Draft:Untitled Spider-Man: No Way Home sequel

The untitled Spider-Man: No Way Home sequel is an upcoming American superhero film based on the Marvel Comics character Spider-Man, co-produced by Columbia Pictures and Marvel Studios, and distributed by Sony Pictures Releasing. It is intended to be part of the Marvel Cinematic Universe (MCU) and the fourth film in the MCU Spider-Man film series. The film is being written by Chris McKenna and Erik Sommers, and is expected to star Tom Holland as Peter Parker / Spider-Man, alongside Zendaya.

Sony was developing a fourth MCU Spider-Man film by August 2019 alongside Spider-Man: No Way Home (2021). Producer Amy Pascal revealed in November 2021 that the film was intended to be the first in a new trilogy of Spider-Man films with Holland, with Sony and Marvel Studios actively beginning work on the story in December. McKenna and Sommers returned as writers from the prior films by February 2023. Filming is expected to begin in September or October 2024 in the United Kingdom.

Cast

 * Tom Holland as Peter Parker / Spider-Man: A teenager and Avenger who received spider-like abilities after being bitten by a radioactive spider.
 * Zendaya as Michelle "MJ" Jones-Watson: Parker's former classmate and ex-girlfriend.

Development
In August 2019, Sony Pictures was reported to be developing a fourth Marvel Cinematic Universe (MCU) Spider-Man film alongside the third, Spider-Man: No Way Home (2021). Later that month, Sony announced that it would be making No Way Home without the involvement of Marvel Studios and its president Kevin Feige—as they did with Spider-Man: Homecoming (2017) and Spider-Man: Far From Home (2019)—after negotiations to update the production deal between the two companies failed. Following a negative fan reaction to this announcement, Sony and Marvel's parent company Disney returned to negotiations and announced a new agreement at the end of September which allowed Marvel Studios and Feige to produce No Way Home for Sony with producer Amy Pascal. In February 2021, star Tom Holland said No Way Home was the final film in his contract with Sony and Marvel but he hoped to continue playing Peter Parker / Spider-Man in the future. Zendaya, who portrays MJ in the MCU, said in July that she did not know if another MCU Spider-Man film would be made. That October, Holland said No Way Home was being treated as the end of a franchise which began with Homecoming. He said any further MCU Spider-Man films would be different from the first trilogy and feature a tonal change.

Holland said in November 2021 that he was unsure if he should continue making Spider-Man films and felt he would have done something wrong if he was still portraying the character in his thirties. He expressed interest in a film focusing on the Miles Morales version of Spider-Man instead of Parker. Despite this, Pascal hoped to continue working with Holland on future Spider-Man films, and said work on the first film in a new trilogy was about to begin. The Hollywood Reporter reported that Sony did not yet have official plans for further MCU Spider-Man films but the studio hoped to continue its collaboration with Marvel Studios. Holland said he did not know about plans for future Spider-Man films, but there were some "very, very exciting things" being discussed and he felt the franchise had a bright future. The next month, he added that he had achieved what he wanted with the character and was ready to say goodbye to the role if he did not end up starring in another film, but he would be saddened to leave the franchise. Pascal expressed her hope that the partnership between Sony and Disney would last forever, and Feige promised that it would not break down again as it did during the development of No Way Home. He said Holland's Parker would return in another MCU film at some point, and confirmed that he had begun discussing the story for the next Spider-Man film with Pascal, Sony, and Disney. This would continue from Parker's "momentous decision" at the end of No Way Home to make everyone forget who he is.

By April 2022, when series director Jon Watts exited as director of Marvel Studios' The Fantastic Four (2025), Sony was expecting Watts to return for the next Spider-Man film. A month later, Sony Pictures CEO and chairman Tom Rothman confirmed that he hoped the "whole group" from the previous films would return, including Watts, Holland, and Zendaya. Feige said in February 2023 that they had a story for the film with "big ideas" and writers had begun work on it, but this was put on hold in May because of the 2023 Writers Guild of America strike. Pascal said work would resume on the film after the strike concluded. Holland said he had been involved in meetings about the film and these had also been put on hold because of the writers' strike. He was happy with the creative reasoning that had been proposed for why a fourth film should be made, but was apprehensive about the stigma surrounding fourth films in franchises and felt they had "hit a home run with our first franchise and there's a part of me that wants to walk away with my head held high and pass the baton" to another actor. The writers' strike ended in late September, and Holland confirmed in November that discussions about the film had restarted. He stated that he would only return for a fourth film if it would "do justice to the character".

Journalist Jeff Sneider reported in January 2024 that Marvel Studios was searching for a director, with Watts, Drew Goddard, and Justin Lin being considered. Chris McKenna and Erik Sommers were writing the film after working on the prior three Spider-Man films, while Holland and Zendaya were both expected to return. Filming was expected to begin in 2025, but Sneider reported in March 2024 that it was scheduled to begin in September or October of that year and this had caused filming of the third season of Euphoria to be delayed, to accommodate for Zendaya's schedule. Variety reported that the script was still being worked on and there was no director or filming date set. Filming was expected to take place in the United Kingdom. In April, Holland said they were giving the writers the time that they needed to work on the script following the writers' strike. He added that he would "always want to do Spider-Man films" and he owed his career to the franchise, but reiterated that he wanted to make sure the next film was made the right way to preserve the legacy of the previous trilogy. He was able to have more input on the fourth film's story because he was involved in the creative process much earlier than he was for the previous Spider-Man films.

In July 2024, Feige said a draft of the film was being submitted "relatively soon", and that Watts may not be available to direct due to his busy schedule with other projects.

Filming
Principal photography is expected to begin in September or October 2024, in the United Kingdom.

Release
In April 2021, Sony signed deals with Netflix and Disney for the rights to their 2022 to 2026 film slate, following the films' theatrical and home media windows. Netflix signed for exclusive "pay 1 window" streaming rights, which is typically an 18-month window and included future Spider-Man films following Spider-Man: No Way Home. Disney signed for "pay 2 window" rights for the films, which would be streamed on Disney+ and Hulu as well as broadcast on Disney's linear television networks.