Draft:Spider-Verse (franchise)

Spider-Verse is an American media franchise centered on a series of American computer-animated superhero films produced by Columbia Pictures and Sony Pictures Animation in association with Marvel, and distributed by Sony Pictures Releasing. The films are based on various properties from American comic books published by Marvel Comics that are associated with the character Spider-Man and are set in a shared multiverse called the Spider-Verse, which has alternate universes. The Spider-Verse franchise began with the release of the film Spider-Man: Into the Spider-Verse in December 2018. The most-recent feature film in the franchise is Spider-Man: Across the Spider-Verse (2023).

Sony is developing a number of films as part of the franchise, including Spider-Man: Beyond the Spider-Verse, and a spin-off for the Spider-Women. Sony Pictures Television is also developing several television series for the franchise.

Spider-Man: Into the Spider-Verse (2018)
Following the November 2014 hacking of Sony's computers, emails between then-Sony Pictures Entertainment co-chairman Amy Pascal and president Doug Belgrad were released, saying that Sony was planning to "rejuvenate" the Spider-Man franchise by developing an animated comedy film with Phil Lord and Christopher Miller. In April 2015, Sony Pictures chairman Tom Rothman announced that the animated Spider-Man film would be produced by Lord and Miller, Avi Arad, Matt Tolmach, and Pascal, with Lord and Miller also writing a treatment for the film. By June 2016, Bob Persichetti was chosen to direct. Peter Ramsey joined as a co-director in January 2017 with the film focusing on the Miles Morales version of Spider-Man. The next month, Christina Steinberg was announced as having replaced Tolmach as a producer, while Shameik Moore was cast as Morales in April. The title was announced that December when multiple Spider-Men were confirmed to appear and Rodney Rothman was added as a co-director. Spider-Man: Into the Spider-Verse was released on December 14, 2018.

Spider-Man: Across the Spider-Verse (2023)
By the end of November 2018, ahead of the release of Into the Spider-Verse the next month, Sony Pictures Animation had begun development on a sequel to the film, due to the "incredible buzz" surrounding the project. The sequel was set to continue the story of Moore's Miles Morales, working from "seeds [that were] planted" throughout the first film. Joaquim Dos Santos and David Callaham were set to direct and write the film, respectively, with Pascal returning from the first film as producer. The other producers of the first film—Lord and Miller, Arad, and Steinberg—were all also expected to return for the sequel in some capacity. The next month, Pascal revealed that the film would focus on Morales and Hailee Steinfeld's Gwen Stacy / Spider-Gwen, exploring a romance between the two characters that had been cut from the first film. Sony officially confirmed the sequel in November 2019, with Lord and Miller returning as producers, and a release date of April 8, 2022 announced. In April 2020, Sony shifted the film's release to October 7, 2022, due to the COVID-19 pandemic. Production began in June 2020.

In December 2021, Lord and Miller revealed that the film was being split into two parts after they had written down the story they wanted to tell for the sequel and realized that it was too much for a single film. Work on both parts was taking place simultaneously.

The two sequels were renamed in April 2022, becoming Spider-Man: Across the Spider-Verse and Spider-Man: Beyond the Spider-Verse. Their release dates were shifted then, with Across the Spider-Verse pushed back to June 2, 2023.

Spider-Man: Beyond the Spider-Verse (TBA)
With the reveal of the film's title in December 2021, Lord and Miller revealed that they were working on Part Two simultaneously with Part One and the second part was set to be released in 2023.

In April 2022 it was given a release date of March 29, 2024, when Sony pushed the release of the first part from October 2022 to June 2023. The two films were renamed at that time, becoming Spider-Man: Across the Spider-Verse and Spider-Man: Beyond the Spider-Verse. In response to a claim by an artist on Across the Spider-Verse that it would not be possible to release Beyond the Spider-Verse in March 2024 due to an alleged lack of production progress, Lord and Miller stated that the production would "take the time necessary" for the film to be completed to their standards. In July 2023, the film was removed from the release schedule, reportedly due to the 2023 SAG-AFTRA strike, and its original release date was taken by Ghostbusters: Frozen Empire, as a source within Sony—a member of the AMPTP against whom SAG-AFTRA was negotiating—told Variety that the strike precluded the film's voice cast from recording their lines on schedule. Following the conclusion of the strike in November 2023, Deadline Hollywood reported that the voice recording for the film was set to resume that same month. Production was confirmed to have resumed in December.

Potential projects
Actor John Mulaney expressed interest in a potential spin-off film of Into the Spider-Verse with him reprising his role of Spider-Ham, suggesting its plot as a "Watergate-like story" along the lines of The Post or All the President's Men while focusing on his character's career as a reporter.

Untitled Spider-Women film
By the end of November 2018, ahead of the release of Into the Spider-Verse the next month, Sony Pictures Animation had begun development on a Spider-Women spin-off film focused on three generations of female, Spider-related characters, described as "gaining traction" at the time due to the "incredible buzz" surrounding the project, Bek Smith was set to write the film, with Lauren Montgomery in talks to direct and Pascal returning from the first film as producer. The other producers of the first film—Lord and Miller, Arad, and Steinberg—were all also expected to return for the spin-off in some capacity. The next month, Pascal confirmed that Steinfeld's Spider-Gwen would be featured in the film alongside Cindy Moon / Silk and Jessica Drew / Spider-Woman, and said that the Across the Spider-Verse two-parter would serve as a "launching pad" for the film since it also includes Gwen.

Spider-Ham: Caught in a Ham (2019)
Following the release of Into the Spider-Verse, Lord and Miller both expressed interest in seeing a series of shorts featuring Spider-Ham, with the first of these revealed to have been in development by February 2019 to accompany the digital and home video releases of Into the Spider-Verse. Spider-Ham: Caught in a Ham was released on February 26, 2019.

The Spider Within: A Spider-Verse Story
The film was created from Sony Pictures Imageworks through Sony’s LENS program, and was first premiered at the Annecy International Animation Film Festival on June 12, 2023. It focused on Morales when he "starts to feel the pressure of his life as Spider-Man, which results in a scary, trippy little jaunt through his subconscious."

When debuted at Annecy, Sony did not share how or when they intend to release the short film to a wider audience. It was later released on YouTube on March 27, 2024.

Television series
Following the release of Into the Spider-Verse, Sony discussed the possibility of developing an animated spin-off television series focusing on various characters from the film. By April 2019, Lord and Miller signed a five-year deal with Sony Pictures Television to create animated Marvel television series alongside Sony Pictures Animation, including a potential series based on Into the Spider-Verse.