Sony Reaches Deal On Spider-Man Coming To Marvel Cinematic Universe

SACRAMENTO (CBS13) — Spider-Man will be coming to the Marvel Cinematic Universe as part of a deal announced by Marvel on Monday to resolve a deadlock with Sony Pictures Entertainment

The deal calls for Spider-Man to appear in a movie under Marvel's banner between now and July of 2017. From there, the Sony Pictures will release a movie described as having "a new creative direction for the web slinger."

This deal breaks a deadlock between Sony Pictures and Marvel over the character who plays a vital role in The Avengers comic series and specifically the Civil War timeline. While "The Avengers 2: Age of Ultron" comes to theaters this May, it's unlikely Spider-Man will play a significant role in the plot, due to how close this announcement comes to the release date. Instead, it's more likely he will make an appearance in next May's Captain American sequel "Civil War."

The unnamed July 2017 Spider-Man release will be co-produced by Kevin Feige and Amy Pascal. Pascal stepped down as the co-chair of Sony Pictures after last year's hack revealed emails showing her struggling to find a direction for the Spider-Man franchise, as well as several other emails that led people inside and outside the company to question her leadership.

Under the deal, Sony Pictures would still retain final creative control and distribution rights for Spider-Man movies.