Summary
- Madame Webb film falters: Critics panned Dakota Johnson's performance and narrative changes, hinting at a lack of future sequels.
- Mixed reactions for Morbius: The film starring Jared Leto had a lot of hype but didn't impress many fans and critics alike.
- Venom franchise success: The first two films pleased fans, with the third installment slated for an R-rating and a star-studded cast.
Though it hasn’t managed to garner the same level of interest as the MCU, Sony has used their partnership with Marvel and their ownership of the rights to the Spider-Man brand and his universe of characters to create their spin-off universe, which has had a sequence of strange interactions with the main MCU and its characters.
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While there haven’t been that many releases yet under the Sony Universe, there are many plans for where it will go. While no current major team-ups are being planned, Sony has had plenty of teases toward future Spider-Man characters coming together, and fans will have to wait patiently to see if any of these come to fruition.
4 Madame Web
IMDB Score: 3.8/10
- Released: February, 2024
- Directed By: S.J. Clarkson
- Stars: Dakota Johnson, Sydney Sweeney, & Isabela Merced
The most recently released film in the Spider-Man Universe hasn’t had a great start, with Madame Web receiving mostly negative reviews from critics. The film stars Dakota Johnson as Cassie Webb, whose mother ventured into the Amazon while pregnant with her and was gifted the bite of a rare spider by a tribe, leading to Cassie being able to unlock the power to see the future, which made for some changes from the comic book character.
Cassie attempts to use her newfound abilities to save three young girls who are destined to become heroes from the man who killed her mother. Along the way, she also runs into several characters that are important in the Spider-Man mythos, but from the initial reaction that the film has had at the box office, it seems unlikely that Sony will pursue this character further following the end of this film in the Spider-Man Universe.
3 Morbius
IMDB Score: 5.2/10
- Released: March, 2022
- Directed By: Daniel Espinosa
- Stars: Jared Leto, Matt Smith, & Adria Arjona
A film that has garnered a lot of attention online, Morbius gained so much social media attention after its initial release that Sony re-released it in cinemas. However, the actual reaction from most critics and fans has not been overwhelmingly positive.
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It focuses on Michael Morbius, played by Jared Leto, a scientist who has a rare blood disease and attempts to cure himself by splicing his DNA with that of vampire bats. This achieved, his cure has unintended consequences when he turns into a vampire and must face off with his surrogate brother Milo, who steals another dose of the cure and takes it himself. Morbius has had no announcement of a follow-up in the two years since it was released, despite a post-credit tease that seemed to indicate he’d be teaming up with Michael Keaton’s Vulture from the MCU.
2 Venom: Let There Be Carnage
IMDB Score: 5.9/10
- Released: October, 2021
- Directed By: Andy Serkis
- Stars: Tom Hardy, Woody Harrelson & Michelle Williams
The second Venom film brought a lot more into the mix for Sony, giving Carnage his live-action cinematic debut in the form of Woody Harrelson. This infamous actor took on the dark role of Cletus Kasady, who ingests some of Eddie’s blood and, consequently, Venom. With this, he gains abilities and becomes Carnage, a new type of symbiote that is incredibly dangerous.
With these abilities and his lover, Shriek, he comes after Eddie and Venom just as they are having problems and separating from each other. The dark humor of the first film was retained brilliantly in this second installment, and the action was improved upon, but the plot was considered slightly weaker. While it didn't end up matching Venom in some respects, it did enough to please fans and bring about the announcement of a third Venom film.
1 Venom
IMDB Score: 6.6/10
- Released: October, 2018
- Directed By: Ruben Fleischer
- Stars: Tom Hardy, Michelle Williams & Riz Ahmed
The first film in the SSU remains the best-loved of the lot to date. In the wake of The Amazing Spider-Man 2, Sony decided to build other characters around Spider-Man with their own films, starting with the well-known Eddie Brock and his Venom symbiote. Casting Tom Hardy was always going to be a major way to get the film noticed, and the black comedy introduced as Eddie constantly begged Venom not to eat people helped make the idea an instant hit.
Venom featured Eddie merging with the symbiote involuntarily and then having to work against Carlton Drake, who seeks the symbiote and gains his own in Riot, which came from the same comet as Venom. The origin story was filled with dark humor, action, and fascinating characters, and it had a great tease leading to a future for Venom as a franchise.
Kraven The Hunter (Upcoming Movie)
- Scheduled Release: August, 2024
The next attempt from the Spider-Man Universe to score bigger is coming in a few months in the form of Kraven The Hunter. Starring Aaron Taylor-Johnson as the infamous Spider-Man villain who has had some incredible stories in the comics over the years, the film will deal with Kraven attempting to prove he is the world’s greatest hunter.
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The film is set to co-star Russell Crowe and Ariana DeBose, as well as Christopher Abbott as The Foreigner. The movie will likely feature several other minor Spider-Man Universe characters as it attempts to bring more major stars into the fold. While the SSU has no major current plan moving forward for any team-up movie, some fans will certainly be hoping to see the likes of Venom and Morbius interacting with Kraven at some point down the line.
Venom 3 (Upcoming Movie)
- Scheduled Release: November 2024
Another major release coming later in 2024 for the Spider-Man Universe is the third installment in the successful Venom franchise. Once again starring Tom Hardy, the directing duties have fallen to Kelly Marcel in her first directing role, while new cast members to the franchise include Chiwetel Ejiofor and Juno Temple.
While little is known about the plot for this installment, it could bring the Venom franchise to a conclusion as a trilogy if Sony chooses to try and focus on other characters. It could also be the first foray into an R-rated film for Sony's Universe. With no other firm plans despite many films that were announced or rumored, SSU fans will need to wait and see if these next two films are successful before getting any more announcements about what could come next in the overarching Spider-Man story.
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