After the massive Kraven flop that delivered the final proof that Sony can’t make movies featuring the Spider-Man universe (SSU) that fans actually want to watch, we heard all sorts of rumors concerning the SSU, including one I thought was exciting. Reportedly, Sony has to rewrite the Spider-Man 4 story, as Marvel isn’t happy with it.
I absolutely want Spider-Man 4 to be a great movie, and I’m worried that Sony might ruin it by wanting it to be a sort of No Way Home 2 multiverse adventure. The rumor made sense because earlier rumors said that Sony and Marvel had to delay Spider-Man 4 to December 2026 to avoid production and scheduling conflicts with Christopher Nolan’s The Odyssey.
Then there’s Spider-Man: Beyond the Spider-Verse, which is even more exciting. Recent rumors said that Sony hasn’t even started work on the animated feature, as it doesn’t know how to end the story of Miles Morales (Shameik Moore).
I said at the time that the quality of Beyond the Spider-Verse is even more important than Spider-Man 4. The latter has a great crutch in the MCU, as Marvel’s universe will make fans forgive any issues with Spider-Man 4. Rumors also said the final Spider-Verse installment won’t be ready next year.
Fast-forward to late December, and we have more developments on Sony’s purported plans for Spider-Man 4 and Beyond the Spider-Verse. Apparently, Sony doesn’t want both movies in theaters in the same year. Before I tell you why that could be great news for fans, I will warn you that some spoilers might follow.
Jeff Sneider and John Rocha discussed the Spider-Man drama on the latest The Hot Mic podcast, looking at the latest Spider-Man 4 and Beyond the Spider-Verse rumors.
That’s where Sneider said his sources informed him that Spider-Man 4 and Beyond the Spider-Verse wouldn’t get same-year release dates. Since neither will be ready next year, Sony could schedule them for 2026 and 2027.
However, the order isn’t set in stone. The plan apparently is to have Spider-Man 4 out in theaters in 2026, with Beyond the Spider-Verse to get a 2027 release date.
Again, the latest rumored release window for Spider-Man 4 is Christmas 2026. The schedule makes sense for the MCU, as other reports say the Multiverse Saga chronology dictates that Spider-Man 4 sits between Avengers: Doomsday and Avengers: Secret Wars.
However, Sneider casts some doubts on the rollout of Spider-Man 4 and Beyond the Spider-Verse. The latter might be ready by 2026, so it could always get a 2026 premiere. In such a case, Spider-Man 4 would only come out in 2027.
Sneider speculated that Spider-Man 4 would hit theaters in March 2027 in such a case to avoid competition with The Batman Part II in October 2027. I’d say that March 2027 would be the only possible window for Spider-Man 4 because it would still have to premiere before Secret Wars. Both Avengers 5 and Avengers 6 have May release dates, almost a year apart.
Thankfully, there’s no MCU movie set for the first half of 2027 other than Secret Wars in May, so there’s plenty of room for Spider-Man 4 if that’s the way the cookie crumbles.
I’d still expect Sony and Marvel to target the more lucrative Christmas 2026 release window for Spider-Man 4 and postpone Beyond the Spider-Verse to 2027. But all of this is speculation at this point.
Given these developments, it’s unclear when Sony and Marvel will announce Spider-Man 4. When they do, we’ll get a release date and the first cast teasers.
