Sony reportedly could have used Tom Holland’s Spider-Man in its Spider-Man Universe movies all along, but wanted to focus on the villains instead

It looks like Sony's Spider-Man Universe could have featured Marvel’s live-action Spidey characters such as Tom Holland’s Peter Parker, but the studio felt that audiences ultimately didn't want that.

Sony’s Spider-Man spin-offs could have featured Holland’s Spider-Man and more Spider-People such as Gwen Stacey and Mary Jane as Sony’s deal with Disney never outlined they couldn't, as found by Variety. This means that Sony’s Venom franchise, Madame Web, Morbius, and Kraven the Hunter could have featured our favorite Spider-Man heroes, but the studio reportedly just didn't think audiences wanted that in a non-MCU project.

As we know, Sony decided to focus on Spidey’s villains instead. After the success of the first Venom movie, the studio hasn’t been deterred from this path since. We did get one cameo-of-sorts from Holland in a Venom 2 post-credits scene, but since then, there has been no sight of Spidey heroes. But could their inclusion have improved the Sony movies?

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Exhibitor Relations analyst Jeff Bock told Variety, "Unfortunately for Sony, they had a taste of success with Venom, and that kind of spoiled everything for them, because they thought they could just spin off all of these characters… To not have Spider-Man in these films was the fatal flaw."

It sounds as though Bock is right as Sony’s most recent release, Kraven The Hunter, has debuted to less than impressive reviews and a Rotten Tomatoes score of 15% (up from an original 9% score).

However, it's not all doom and gloom as Sony has found major success with its animated Spider-Verse series, which, funnily enough, does include alternate versions of Peter Parker and Gwen Stacy. Fans are now eagerly awaiting the release of the third movie in the franchise, Spider-Man: Beyond The Spider-Verse, which has been indefinitely delayed and reportedly won't arrive in 2025.

Kraven The Hunter is out in theatres now, you can read our Kraven The Hunter review for our full verdict. For more, keep up with upcoming superhero movies and see our guide on how to watch Marvel movies in order.

I'm the Junior Social Media Editor here at GamesRadar+, handling all of Total Film's social platforms. However, I also write, covering all things film and TV for the site's entertainment section. I joined GamesRadar+ in 2023 and have been here ever since. I previously worked in communications after graduating with an MA in journalism. In my spare time, you can find me binging horror movies or getting lost in a cosy little game on my Switch.