“Spider-Man: Across the Spider-Verse” was this huge commercial and critical success back in the summer of 2023. The sequel ‘Beyond the Spider-Verse’ was initially supposed to be released theatrically in March 2024, but was then abruptly removed from the schedule.
Back in September, Jeff Sneider reported that Sony had scrapped most of ‘Beyond the Spider-Verse’ for “creative reasons,” and that given the detailed animation it requires, the movie was now unlikely to release before 2027. The ‘Beyond the Spider-Verse’ creative team was apparently “relieved” by the scrapping as they “will now have more time to work on the sequel.”
‘Spider-Verse’ composer Daniel Pemberton quickly dened Sneider’s reporting as “not particularly accurate.” Chris Miller also came out swinging, adding that “nothing has been scrapped.” However, Sneider was sticking by his story, and called Pemberton’s comments the “worst f*ckin’ denial of all-time.”
Well, lo and behold, Sneider has now been vindicated. Brandon Davis has just reported that Sony rewrote the ENTIRE script for the sequel after ‘Spider-Verse’ came out last year. The studio is also said to be undecided on the film's ending. The worst part is that there were reels of animated footage that had to be scrapped because of this creative decision.
Might this delay have to do with creative duo Phil Lord and Chris Miller’s recent clash with Sony over, among other things, “Spider-Noir”? The duo had signed a five-year, nine-figure deal with the studio in 2019, with the idea being that they'd oversee a slate of Spider-Man projects. Sony ended up not renewing their contract because of this clash.
Last year, Vulture reported about Lord and Miller’s controversial managerial style while overseeing “Spider-Man: Across the Spider-Verse”? Crew members — ranging from artists to production executives who had worked anywhere from five to a dozen years in the animation business — described the process of making the $150M Sony project as “uniquely arduous, involving a relentless kind of revisionism” and “death by a thousand paper cuts.”
Lord and Miller recently wrapped production on “Project Hail Mary,” starring Ryan Gosling, which is set to be their first directorial effort since exiting ‘Solo.’
Callum Turner has stepped down as a director of Twentytwo Films, the production company he launched last August, and the British tabloids are already reading it as a sign he's clearing the decks for James Bond.