Sony Removes Next ‘Spider-Verse’ Movie From Release Calendar

Even before the twin writers and actors’ strikes there were rumors online that Spider-Man: Beyond the Spider-Verse, the third film in the very popular Spider-Man animated series, was behind schedule and may not meet its originally planned release date of March 29, 2024. The films, with their gorgeous animation and complex storylines, are very time intensive, and it was apparently a race to the finish line just to get Across the Spider-Verse done in time for its release earlier this year.

Whether the rumors were true or not, the fact of the matter is with dual strikes going on, the next Spider-Verse will be essentially impossible to finish until new deals are struck. And today, Sony announced they were taking Spider-Man: Beyond the Spider-Verse off their release calendar for the moment. They have not yet announced a new release date yet, which could speak to the degree of uncertainty in Hollywood about how long these strikes will last and when work on movies like Beyond the Spider-Verse will be allowed to resume.

READ MORE: In Defense of the Underrated Spider-Man 3

The first Into the Spider-Verse became a decent commercial hit and a massive critical success; it also won the award for Best Animated Feature from the Academy Awards. This year’s sequel, Across the Spider-Verse, outperformed expectations and grossed nearly double what the first film earned; to date, it has made $677 million in theaters worldwide. It got equally strong reviews as the first film, and looks to be an awards contender in the Best Animated Feature category yet again.

Sony announced the news about Beyond the Spider-Verse on the same day they also made several other changes to their upcoming lineup of Spider-Man spinoffs. They also announced the next Venom sequel’s release date (July 12, 2024) and delayed their Kraven the Hunter movie starring Aaron Taylor-Johnson from October 6 of this year, all the way to August 30, 2024. Moving it from a prime fall slot to the dregs of next August doesn’t sound like a huge vote of confidence in its chances, but we’ll see next year, I suppose…