Spider-Man is set to leave the Marvel Cinematic Universe after Disney failed to agree a deal with Sony Pictures, according to reports.
The news surprised fans and has led to some starting a petition to try and keep your friendly neighbourhood superhero in the hands of the Marvel team.
Sony Pictures Entertainment has a motion picture division that works specifically on managing the production of their movies, launching in 1998 after taking over from Columbia Pictures.
With the news that Spider-Man could be returning as a solely Sony project, what other franchises is the company known for producing?
What other franchises does Sony own?
Sony Pictures is one of the biggest companies in film, so it’s not surprising that it owns the rights to several blockbuster franchises.
The Karate Kid was one of the first big franchises from the company, when it was known as Columbia Pictures, with the first movie being released in 1984.
This was followed by two sequels during the 1980’s, as well as a TV show, and in 2010 a remake of the original film was released starring Jaden Smith and Jackie Chan.
During the 1980’s and 1990’s the company also saw success with the release of Ghostbusters and Jumanji.
Both films led to various TV and video game spin-offs and became well-known franchises.
Since their initial releases, they have also had several sequels and reboots over the last few years with a new Ghostbusters film set for 2020, while a new Jumanji sequel will be coming out later this year.
In 1997 Sony produced the first Men in Black movie, which became an instant hit, receiving several award nominations and grossing more than $580m worldwide.
Since then there has been two sequels and a spin-off movie, starring Chris Hemsworth and Tessa Thompson.
Sony has also produced various animated movies such as Hotel Transylvania, Cloudy with a Chance of Meatballs and The Smurfs.
They have all become multi-film productions, with several films being produced since 2009.
More recently the company has seen success with The Angry Birds Movie, with a second film being released in 2019 after the original grossed more than $350m worldwide.
The company has also helped produce several of the recent James Bond movies, taking over the franchise for Casino Royale, and more recently producing Spectre.
Sony’s contract to co-produce the films ended after the release of Spectre, and the new distribution rights were secured by MGM and Universal, which means the company won’t be involved with No Time To Die.
More recently the company has produced two Goosebumps movies and a live action version of Peter Rabbit.
What is Sony’s highest-grossing movie?
This week Spider-Man: Far From Home became Sony’s highest-grossing movie of all time, overtaking the James Bond movie Skyfall, which was released in 2012.
The two films have both grossed over $1 billion, with Jumanji: Welcome to the Jungle coming in third with over $960m and Spider-Man 3 in fourth with $890.
Spider-Man is one of Sony’s most valuable commodities, with both the Marvel and non-Marvel films taking up five of the top ten spots for their highest-grossing films.
Venom is another recent release that has made the top ten, grossing more than $855m, while the disaster film 2012 made $769m when it came out.
MORE: Why is Spider-Man leaving the MCU
MORE: Avengers’ Jeremy Renner furious as he demands Sony return Spider-Man to Marvel and Stan Lee
