Despite the Franchise’s Rocky History, Sony’s Spider-Man Universe’s Premature End Left Me Wondering What Could Have Been
Sony’s Spider-Man Universe has ended, and I’m actually disappointed because I think its best was still to come. After years of teasing epic Marvel storylines and gradually assembling pieces for larger-than-life narratives, the SSU ended just as it began laying the groundwork for its two most promising stories. This untimely demise leaves me wondering what could have been, especially since the franchise seemed on the verge of its most exciting chapters.
The SSU started ambitiously with Tom Hardy’s Venom in 2018. While it wasn’t perfect, Venom found commercial success, paving the way for its sequel, Venom: Let There Be Carnage (2021), and other spin-offs like Morbius (2022) and Kraven the Hunter. However, despite its potential, the SSU struggled to connect its narratives cohesively. Each film’s story felt like a puzzle piece that didn’t quite fit with the others, often missing the spark needed to elevate its characters beyond their origin stories.
One of the SSU’s greatest frustrations was its reliance on teasing future storylines rather than actually delivering them. Nearly every film spent significant energy laying the groundwork for narratives that were always just out of reach. For example, Venom: Let There Be Carnage hinted at the larger symbiote lore, introducing tantalizing connections to Knull without fully exploring them.
The SSU’s best narratives would have come in the sequels. A story about Knull’s invasion of Earth, for instance, could have brought cosmic stakes and tied together disparate elements of the SSU. Similarly, Morbius featured a puzzling post-credits scene that teased the formation of the Sinister Six. A Sinister Six movie could have united the likes of Venom, Morbius, Kraven, and even Michael Keaton’s Vulture, creating a compelling antihero ensemble to rival the MCU’s Avengers.
However, the SSU seemed stuck in an endless cycle of origin stories, never advancing to the climactic narratives that many were waiting for. Its premature end leaves me wondering what could have been if the franchise had continued to explore these exciting storylines.