The Spider-Man Rights Trap: Why Sony Can’t Stop Making These Movies

© Sony Pictures

For many years, Sony’s Spider-Man Universe spin-off films have received mixed, and often negative, reactions from audiences. Movies like Venom, Morbius, and Madame Web often feel chaotic, inconsistent, and disconnected from what Spider-Man fans actually want. Because of this, many viewers ask the same question: why doesn’t Sony simply make better movies, or just let Marvel take control?

The answer is complex, but it comes down to several key factors: money, licensing rights, business strategy, and the lack of a single strong creative vision.

Spider-Man Rights Are Extremely Valuable to Sony

The biggest reason is that Sony owns the film rights to Spider-Man and his related characters. These rights are among the studio’s most valuable assets. Spider-Man is one of the most popular comic book characters ever created and guarantees massive audience interest.

However, Sony cannot afford to sit idle. If the studio stopped making films connected to the Spider-Man universe, it could risk losing the rights. That is why even projects with weaker concepts often move forward, maintaining the license is sometimes more important than achieving perfect artistic results.

In practice, this means Sony needs to release new productions regularly, every 5.5 years, even if they do not always have a strong creative foundation.

Movies Don’t Have to Be Great to Make Money

From a business perspective, Sony does not need masterpieces. The films only need to earn more than they cost.

The first Venom movie was heavily criticized by critics, yet it became a major financial success, earning hundreds of millions of dollars worldwide. That success showed Sony that even average Spider-Man-related films can be profitable.

If a mediocre movie generates profit, the studio has little incentive to completely change its strategy.

Sony Wants Its Own Cinematic Universe

The success of Marvel proved how profitable a shared superhero universe can be. For years, Sony has been trying to build its own connected series of Spider-Man-related films.

The problem is that Sony does not have access to most major Marvel heroes. The studio can mainly use characters connected specifically to Spider-Man, many of whom are less well-known or harder to adapt for mainstream audiences.

As a result, Sony often produces films about characters that many viewers barely recognize.

Marvel Wouldn’t Take Control for Free

Fans often suggest that Sony should simply hand Spider-Man back to Marvel. In reality, that would mean giving up one of the studio’s biggest sources of revenue.

Marvel, owned by Disney, would likely receive the largest share of profits, while Sony would lose a major financial asset. From a business standpoint, that would be a very difficult decision.

This is why Sony prefers partial cooperation with Marvel (as with the Spider-Man films set in the MCU) while still developing its own projects independently.

Lack of a Strong Creative Vision

One of the biggest problems with Sony’s Spider-Man Universe films is the absence of a clear long-term plan. Marvel built its success on a coordinated creative direction that maintained consistency across films.

Sony’s projects often feel more isolated from one another. The tone shifts between movies, story connections are inconsistent, and the overall direction of the universe feels unclear.

This creates a sense of randomness and confusion for audiences.

The Spider-Man Paradox

The biggest irony is that Sony is clearly capable of making excellent Spider-Man films, especially when working with Marvel or giving filmmakers more creative freedom. At the same time, many spin-offs feel driven primarily by business needs.

Sony doesn’t make “strange movies” by accident. These films are the result of calculated decisions: keep the rights, make money, and attempt to build a cinematic universe, even if the artistic results are uneven.

As long as these movies generate revenue or help retain the Spider-Man rights, there is little reason to expect Sony’s strategy to change anytime soon.