Tom Holland Helped Save 'Spider-Man' Franchise
by EG
The deal between Sony and Disney that produced Spider-Man: Far From Home and Spider-Man: Homecoming had fallen through until TOm Holland, star of the movies, got involved, sources say. Holland helped convince Disney to grab less of the profits from Sony's Spider-Man movies, the point that had fouled negotiations. Read on for details.
On Aug. 20, the long-simmering spat between Sony and Disney-Marvel over Spider-Man reached a breaking point: Any partnership between the two for a third installment of the Tom Holland-fronted franchise was "100 percent dead," according to a source familiar with the negotiations.
But in true Peter Parker-underdog fashion, an unlikely hero emerged to reconcile the two warring factions less than six weeks later: Holland himself. Sources say the star, 23, made multiple appeals to Disney chairman and CEO Bob Iger and Sony film chairman Tom Rothman to reach a resolution, announced Sept. 27, for Marvel to produce a third Spider-Man movie for Sony, and for the character to appear in at least one additional Disney-Marvel film.
Marvel chief Kevin Feige (who also is teaming with Lucasfilm's Kathleen Kennedy on a Star Wars movie) will run creative point. Disney will earn 25 percent of net gross on a third Spider-Man — opening July 16, 2021 — and chip in 25 percent of the budget.
Holland made a surprise appearance at Disney's D23 Expo days after the Sony-Disney porce to promote the animated movie Onward. He earned big cheers by thanking fans for support and quoting Tony Stark: "I love you 3,000." Online, fans adopted the hashtag #SaveSpiderMan to lobby Sony to make a deal with Disney.
Holland began flexing his diplomacy after the D23 wrapped Aug. 25. He leaned on Rothman to re-engage with Disney (the actor was able to leverage his clout because he also is set to star in Sony's Uncharted) and also surprisingly reached out to Iger, beseeching one of Hollywood's most powerful executives to return to the table.
Money, as usual, was the sticking point. Initially, sources say, Disney sought a 50-50 co-financing deal. In January, a more modest 25-25 proposal was put on the table. Sources say Sony didn't counter for almost six months, so in June, before the opening of Spider-Man: Far From Home, Disney Studios co-chair Alan Horn abruptly broke off negotiations. During Far From Home's $1.13 billion-dollar run, both sides dug in their heels.
Get the rest of the story at The Hollywood Reporter.
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