Marvel and Sony officially announce that Spider-Man will join the Marvel Cinematic Universe! (4 films get new release dates!)

IT'S OFFICIALLY HAPPENING!

Late Monday night Marvel and Sony Pictures Entertainment officially announced that Spider-Man will be crossing over into the Marvel Cinematic Universe!

The agreement seems to be the best for both parties and absolutely amazing for Marvel fans everywhere.

Official announcement:

"Sony Pictures Entertainment and Marvel Studios announced today that Sony is bringing Marvel into the amazing world of Spider-Man.  

Under the deal, the new Spider-Man will first appear in a Marvel film from Marvel's Cinematic Universe (MCU). Sony Pictures will thereafter release the next installment of its $4 billion Spider-Man franchise, on July 28, 2017, in a film that will be co-produced by Kevin Feige and his expert team at Marvel and Amy Pascal, who oversaw the franchise launch for the studio 13 years ago. Together, they will collaborate on a new creative direction for the web slinger. Sony Pictures will continue to finance, distribute, own and have final creative control of the Spider-Man films. 

Marvel and Sony Pictures are also exploring opportunities to integrate characters from the MCU into future Spider-Man films. 

The new relationship follows a decade of speculation among fans about whether Spider-Man – who has always been an integral and important part of the larger Marvel Universe in the comic books – could become part of the Marvel Universe on the big screen. Spider-Man has more than 50 years of history in Marvel's world, and with this deal, fans will be able to experience Spider-Man taking his rightful place among other Super Heroes in the MCU. 

Bob Iger, Chairman and CEO, The Walt Disney Company said: "Spider-Man is one of Marvel's great characters, beloved around the world. We're thrilled to work with Sony Pictures to bring the iconic web-slinger into the Marvel Cinematic Universe, which opens up fantastic new opportunities for storytelling and franchise building." 

"We always want to collaborate with the best and most successful filmmakers to grow our franchises and develop our characters. Marvel, Kevin Feige and Amy, who helped orchestrate this deal, are the perfect team to help produce the next chapter of Spider-Man," said Michael Lynton, Chairman and CEO of Sony Pictures Entertainment. "This is the right decision for the franchise, for our business, for Marvel, and for the fans." 

"Sony Pictures and Marvel Studios share a love for the characters in the Spider-Man universe and have a long, successful history of working together. This new level of collaboration is the perfect way to take Peter Parker's story into the future," added Doug Belgrad, president, Sony Pictures Entertainment Motion Picture Group. 

"I am thrilled to team with my friends at Sony Pictures along with Amy Pascal to produce the next Spider-Man movie," said Marvel Studios President Kevin Feige. "Amy has been deeply involved in the realization on film of one of the world’s most beloved characters. Marvel's involvement will hopefully deliver the creative continuity and authenticity that fans demand from the MCU. I am equally excited for the opportunity to have Spider-Man appear in the MCU, something which both we at Marvel, and fans alike, have been looking forward to for years." 

Spider-Man, embraced all over the world, is the most successful franchise in the history of Sony Pictures, with the five films having taken in more than $4 billion worldwide."

This is absolutely jaw dropping news that is bound to shake the foundations of the comic world. As a big Marvel fan and a huge Spider-Man fan I absolutely cannot wait to see Spider-Man swinging around the Marvel Cinematic Universe and fighting side by side with the Avengers! It is not yet revealed what film Spidey will be making his Marvel debut but an obvious choice would be Captain America: Civil War. We'll have to wait and see if the deal was made in time to cast a Spider-Man and work him into the film.

Along with this news came four new release dates for Marvel films. Thor: Ragnarok will now be in theaters on November 3, 2017 (changed from July 28, 2017), Black Panther will make its way to theaters on July 6, 2018 (changed from November 3, 2017), Captain Marvel will be in theaters on November 2, 2018 (changed from July 6, 2018), and lastly Inhumans will make its way to theaters on July 12, 2019 (changed from November 2, 2018).

Source: Marvel
Source: Marvel