Why are spider man movies not on disney plus

Fans of Spider-Man hoping to watch the collection of movies in the web-slinger’s film franchise would expect to find them on Disney+ which owns Marvel Studios. However, a deal years ago, prior to Disney's acquisition of the superhero factory sold Spidey to Sony Pictures.

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How Sony came to own the rights to Spider-Man
Disney scoops up Marvel
Disney and Sony reach a deal to bring Spider-Man to Disney+

Looking at the success of superhero movies over the past couple of decades its hard to believe that one of the most iconic and beloved characters to come out of Marvel would be in the hands of another company. But that deal over two decades ago may just have been what kick started the constant stream of superhero blockbusters in cinemas.

How Sony came to own the rights to Spider-Man

Fans have always liked superhero movies but after initial success of the Superman franchise by the mid-1980s the trend had petered out. Hollywood didn’t see a guaranteed return on investment and lost interest, so that when Marvel put the Spider-Man film rights up for sale in 1985 there weren’t many takers. Eventually the rights were pawned off to a small studio, Canon Films, but the studio went under before a movie could make its way to the silver screen.

After bouncing around for several years, and much litigation, in 1999 Spidey was back in Marvel’s hands. However, the company promptly sold the rights to Spider-Man again, this time to Sony Pictures for $7 million. In 2002, Spider-Man swung into cinemas taking in a record $114 million in its opening weekend and eventually netting $821 million worldwide.

Disney scoops up Marvel

In 2009, Disney bought the superhero factory for $4 billion but without Spider-Man and the Spider-verse of characters. Also missing were the X-Men and the Fantastic Four, whose rights have now returned to Marvel Studios.

The partnership, nonetheless, has raked in billions as the Marvel Universe took to the big screen. Since 2018, seven Marvel films collectively brought in $9.4 billion for Disney in addition to billions more in licensing revenue from merchandise sales. Marvel Studios is worth around $53 billion in 2021 according to Forbes’ estimates.

When asked in 2012 by Wired about not having “all the heavy hitters at Marvel Studios”, Kevin Feige said “We have a great relationship with Sony and Fox. Would we like to have them all back? Sure. But we are more than comfortable with the way things stand now, because it worked out pretty well, right?”

Disney and Sony reach a deal to bring Spider-Man to Disney+

Spider-Man has become a bit of a cash cow for Sony so it is unlikely to give up the rights anytime soon despite the hassle. Under the 1998 deal, the studio has perpetual rights but must release a Spider-Man movie every five years and nine months.

In April the two entertainment giants reached a six-year deal that would see Spider-Man, and other Marvel properties held by Sony, appearing across Disney’s array of platforms, both streaming and linear. Disney+ will begin to have access starting with Sony’s 2022 release slate once Netflix’s exclusivity to stream the films expires.

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If you’re a Marvel Cinematic Universe fan, then Disney+ is a must-have, as the streaming service is home to most of the franchise’s movies… most being the key word. Because The Incredible Hulk and Tom Holland’s Spider-Man movies are set up at Universal Pictures and Sony Pictures, respectively, they’re not available on Disney+. Fortunately for fans of Marvel’s current cinematic Web-Slinger, he’ll soon be swinging over to the Mouse House’s platform, and he won’t be alone.

Disney and Sony have announced a a multi-year content licensing agreement for United States streaming and TV rights that will allow for theatrically-released Sony movies from 2022-2026 to be shown on Disney’s various platforms, including Disney+ and Hulu. Most notably, Disney will have access to a significant number of Sony’s “iconic library titles,” including Spider-Man and the other properties in Sony Pictures’ Universe of Marvel Characters, as well as the Jumanji and Hotel Transylvania franchises. Hulu will gain access to various library titles starting as early as June.

So not only will MCU fans finally be able to enjoy Tom Holland’s Spider-Man adventures alongside nearly every other MCU movie on Disney+ (there’s been no word on if Disney and Universal can come to an arrangement on The Incredible Hulk), but the official announcement saying that Disney will be a “key” destination for a “robust collection of Spider-Man films” presumably means older Wall-Crawler-centric movies will also be available. It’s unclear if Spider-Man-adjacent movies like Venom and Morbius will also go on Disney+ or be put on Hulu. Either way, don’t forget that this deal doesn’t just apply to Disney’s streaming services; ABC, the Disney Channels, Freeform, FX and National Geographic will also get in on the fun.

All this being said, when it comes to upcoming Sony movies, you shouldn’t expect them to hit Disney + and/or Hulu immediately after their theatrical runs are over. You’ll recall that earlier this month, it was announced that Sony and Netflix struck up their own special pact, which will give the latter streaming service an 18-month exclusivity window for new Sony movies after they’ve played on the big screen and come out on home media. This pact takes effect in 2022, so once these Sony movies have had their time to shine on Netflix, then they’ll had over to Disney’s platforms.

As far as the already-released Spider-Man movies goes, there’s no word on when they’ll start hitting Disney+ and/or Hulu. However, with Spider-Man: No Way Home currently scheduled to drop in December, it just barely misses the cut for being part of the 2022-2026 slate, although I suspect there’s still a decent chance that the movie could be delayed to next year. In any case, while it’ll take longer for Spider-Man movies and Sony properties to make their way to Disney+ (which you can subscribe to with this link), eventually they’ll get to nestle nicely in there. Though that’s not to say that Disney+ is entirely lacking in Spider-Man content right now, as there are a handful of cartoons subscribers can watch.

As far as what’s head for Tom Holland’s Peter Parker, no plot details for Spider-Man: No Way Home have been revealed yet, but the story will involve the hero clashing with Jamie Foxx’s Electro and Alfred Molina’s Doctor Octopus. Holland is also expected to reprise Peter in another Marvel Studios movie, but it hasn’t been revealed yet which one. Elsewhere in the multiverse, the animated Spider-Man: Into the Spider-Verse 2 will see Shameik Moore’s Miles Morales and Hailee Steinfeld’s Gwen Stacy reuniting, and Spider-Man 2099 and Takuya Yamashiro (the Japanese Spider-Man) are also expected to appear.

Spider-Man: No Way Home is primed for a December 17 release, and Spider-Man: Into the Spider-Verse 2 will follow on October 7, 2022. If you’re curious about what else the MCU franchise has coming up, head over to our upcoming Marvel movies guide.

Connoisseur of Marvel, DC, Star Wars, John Wick, MonsterVerse and Doctor Who lore. He's aware he looks like Harry Potter and Clark Kent.