Sony's Spider-Man Universe is effectively dead. Kraven the Hunter, the 2024 film that accelerated the shutdown, arrives on Disney Plus this week, marking another loss for the studio's superhero ambitions.
Kraven the Hunter bombed at the box office, earning just $59 million domestically against a reported $110 million budget. The film underperformed globally, grossing roughly $110 million worldwide. Critics panned it as a poorly constructed action movie with weak character development and a convoluted plot. Audiences stayed away. The damage was immediate and undeniable.
This failure capped Sony's years-long experiment building out a connected Marvel universe without Spider-Man. The studio previously released Venom (2018), Venom: Let There Be Carnage (2021), Morbius (2022), and Madame Web (2024). While Venom found modest success, the sequels and spin-offs consistently disappointed both critics and audiences. Morbius became a meme for its theatrical failure and confusing marketing. Madame Web landed with a thud. Kraven was supposed to relaunch the universe with a grittier, more serious tone. Instead, it finished what the others started.
Sony has since shelved plans for further Spider-Man Universe films. The studio is reportedly stepping back from the franchise entirely, redirecting resources elsewhere. No new projects have been greenlit or announced.
The irony cuts deep. Sony owns the film rights to Spider-Man characters but cannot use the character himself without Marvel Studios' involvement, since Spider-Man remains part of the MCU. This created an impossible situation. Sony tried to build a universe around Spider-Man characters without being able to feature Spider-Man, leading to narratively hollow, commercially unviable films that audiences rejected.
Now Kraven joins the