What is Going on With Sony's Spider-Man Franchise?

Sony has demonstrated a, shall we say, complicated relationship with their Spider-Man rights in recent months. The Amazing Spider-Man 2 was a far less inspiring movie than the studio expected, and its modest (by Spider-Man standards) box-office take and critical savaging have left the studio shuffling their feet (not to mention release dates), and it's becoming increasingly difficult to figure out where the truth currently lies.

With each increasingly inferior Spider-Man movie from Sony, and each audience lauded Marvel movie that gets released, the cry gets louder for Marvel to get the rights back to Spider-Man. It's difficult separating fact from fiction, especially in the wake of the Sony hack, which made all manner of things public that probably shouldn't have been. The latest rumor (via Latino Review) indicates that a deal has been struck between Sony and Marvel that will allow Spider-Man to make his first Marvel Cinematic Universe appearance in Avengers: Infinity War Part One.

The problem is that there are still some other Spider-Man movies on Sony's slate, and those, at least as of now, haven't been officially marked off, even if in reality they're as dead as Uncle Ben. There has been some official movement on one (two depending on how you look at it) of these in recent months. So here's everything we know about every Spider-Man movie that's supposedly in development, and then we'll let you judge whether or not the latest Marvel rumors are true. 

November 11th, 2016 - The Sinister Six

What is it? It's the closest thing to a sure thing on Sony's Spidey schedule. Teased throughout The Amazing Spider-Man 2, right down to a bizarrely marketed Marvel style out-of-credits sequence, this may or may not serve as a soft reboot of the franchise, with Spider-Man forced to team up with his enemies. Or it's a supervillain heist movie. Anything is possible. 

[related article: The Villains of The Amazing Spider-Man 3 and The Sinister Six]

Who's involved? Cabin in the Woods' Drew Goddard is writing and directing. This is a good thing.

What's the confusion? Well, at one point May of 2016 was the planned release date for The Amazing Spider-Man 3. That's gone, but The Sinister Sixremains for now. But there's even more confusion on this one. Why? Well, that brings us to...

May 27th, 2018 - The Amazing Spider-Man 3

What is it? That depends. Is it a sequel to The Amazing Spider-Man 2? Is it a sequel to the "soft reboot" of The Sinister Six? Is it even going to happen?

Who's involved? In theory? Marc Webb and Andrew Garfield. Roberto Orci is gone.

What's the confusion? See all of the above. At one point The Amazing Spider-Man 4was scheduled for May 4th of 2018. This is clearly not that movie, and it's worth noting that there's been no mention of Amazing Spider-Man 4 in months as of this writing. But are you ready for more confusion?

A recent casting call from a NYC based agency was looking for extras for a project known as, wait for it, The Amazing Spider-Man 3, starring Andrew Garfield and Dane DeHaan, for scenes that will shoot in Atlanta, GA. Seems an awfully early start for a movie not coming until May of 2018, doesn't it? Unless, of course, it has swapped places with The Sinister Sixmovie for that 2016 release date. See the problem?

Please note, that casting agency hasn't returned my repeated requests for more information, which I'm beginning to find suspicious.

Venom

What is it? It's a movie about everyone's favorite symbiote. He may or may not be Eddie Brock. He may or may not be teamed or put up against everyone's favorite symbiote serial killer in a movie called Venom Carnage, a title that almost (almost) makes Batman v. Superman: Dawn of Justice look like it's playing coy.

Who's involved? Alex Kurtzman. Assuming this is still happening, of course. There's been not a peep on this movie in several months. We suspect it's dead.

Mystery Female-Fronted Superhero Movie

What is it?We've heard this could be a team-up movie involving characters like Spider-Woman, Silver Sable, Black Cat, and others, with a working title of Glass Ceiling. 

Who's involved? At this point, it sounds like it's just the pipe dream of Sony executives. Given the state of the rest of the Spider-Man franchise, Glass Ceiling sounds increasingly unlikely.