Spidey sense is tingling: Spider-Man swings from Sony to Marvel

Marvel and Sony have announced the comic company’s most beloved hero will appear in an upcoming Marvel Cinematic Universe film before his next adventure for Sony, which is scheduled to be released on July 28, 2017. The long-anticipated news comes thanks to a deal that will also see Marvel Studios honcho Kevin Feige sign on as a producer of the Spider-Man franchise alongside Amy Pascal, the former Sony head who is now producing movies distributed by the studio. Although neither party has explicitly detailed which characters will appear together, the deal means Captain America, Thor and other characters from the Marvel Cinematic Universe may be integrated into future Spider-Man movies.

Spider-Man is one of Marvel’s great characters, beloved around the world. We’re thrilled to work with Sony Pictures to bring the iconic web-slinger into the Marvel Cinematic Universe, which opens up fantastic new opportunities for storytelling and franchise building.

Disney CEO Bob Iger

The Spider-Man pact is a significant partnership between rival studios Disney, which owns Marvel, and Sony, which holds rights to the Marvel-created Spider-Man character. Meanwhile 20th Century Fox retains rights to the X-Men and the Fantastic Four. Though those characters are just as important as Spider-Man in the comics, they’ll remain separate in the movies — for now, at least.