Sony Pictures is not giving up on its troubled Spider-Man spin-off universe. Despite years of critical and box office failure, Sony CEO Tom Rothman confirmed that a full reboot is already in the works. The projects that once seemed abandoned may see a second life under a new cast and creative direction.
The studio’s attempt to build what fans called the “Sony Spider-Man Universe” started in 2018 with Venom, starring Tom Hardy. The movie received mixed reviews but became a surprise success, earning $856 million worldwide on a $116 million budget. Sony saw proof that Spider-Man’s world could thrive even without the hero himself. That idea quickly fell apart.
Follow-up titles like Morbius, Madame Web, and Kraven the Hunter suffered poor reviews and weak ticket sales. Morbius, led by Jared Leto, flopped twice (after a failed theatrical re-release). Madame Web and Kraven the Hunter joined the list of misfires, raising doubts about Sony’s entire approach. The failures stalled a shared universe once meant to rival Marvel’s, leaving fans and critics unimpressed.
Appearing on The Town with Matthew Belloni podcast during an event at the American Film Institute, Rothman shut down claims that the live-action Spider-verse is finished. When asked directly if it was dead, he said “no.” When asked if it would be rebooted, he said “yes.” That confirmation alone suggests that Sony leadership still sees value in the property, even after years of problems.
By the end of 2024, Sony had already canceled several projects connected to the universe, including Silk: Spider Society, El Muerto, and The Sinister Six. An untitled film once linked to Olivia Wilde was also scrapped. The collapse followed the commercial failure of Kraven the Hunter, which ended the original franchise’s run. Few expected the studio to return to the concept after that outcome, given the long-running complaint that movies about Spider-Man characters without Spider-Man never quite worked.
Even so, Sony continues to share film rights to the character with Marvel Studios, which is moving ahead with Spider-Man: Brand New Day scheduled for release on July 31, 2026. Meanwhile, Sony is developing a Venom animated film and a live-action series titled Spider-Noir starring Nicolas Cage. Those projects mark a shift toward exploring alternate formats and tone. Whether the rebooted Spider-Man universe will fix past mistakes or repeat them remains to be seen, but Sony seems determined to try again. The trend is far from over.
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