New reports claim that one of Sony's Spider-Man Universe films was scrubbed from its studio slate.
Adjacent to Sony Animation's Spider-Verse films and the MCU's own Tom Holland-led Spider-Man films, Sony Pictures has been developing its own live-action web of Spidey spin-offs.
What began with 2018's Venom has been actively expanding with Kraven the Hunter, releasing this fall, followed by Madame Web and its spider-powered star, El Muerto, and rumblings of a Venom 3.
However, new claims suggest one of those spin-offs has been removed from Sony's spin-off schedule.
El Muerto Spider-Man Film Is TBA?
Sony Pictures' El Muerto starring Bad Bunny was removed from the studio's release calendar.
The live-action spin-off was set to feature Bad Bunny as Juan-Carlos Sanchez, a super-powered wrestler with a brief comic book history.
This follows an online posting showing a delayed start date for production, as well as reports that the film was unlikely to make its original release date of January 12, 2024.
According to Deadline, the reason for the delay has been attributed to the ongoing Writer's Guild of America strike as well as Bad Bunny's touring schedule.
Sony's Kraven and Madame Web are still slated to release on October 6 and February 16, 2024, respectively.
Is Sony Rethinking Its Spider-Man Strategy?
Many attributed El Muerto's most recent filming delays to the WGA writers' strike, especially since the ongoing event has delayed films and shutdown productions across multiple studios.
However, Sony removing the spin-off from its slate begs the question of whether the studio is having second thoughts.
There was little enthusiasm over Sony's announcement of El Muerto in April of 2022, largely due to the character being unknown and the studio's lackluster Spider-Man spin-offs thus far.
In contrast, Sony Animation has enjoyed huge success and acclaim for Spider-Man: Into the Spider-Verse and the recently released Spider-Man: Across the Spider-Verse.
While only time will tell if El Muerto ever makes it back on Sony's schedule, the decision suggests the studio may be rethinking its Spider-Man strategy.
