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Spider-Man movies swinging over to Disney+ in landmark licensing deal

Character had previously been the glaring exception in company’s Marvel content

Rachel Brodsky
Los Angeles
Thursday 22 April 2021 09:28 BST
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Spider-man - Homecoming - Trailer

Disney and Sony Pictures have struck a major deal in the US, where the Spider-Man movies will be hosted on Disney Plus, starting with Sony's 2022 release slate.

In the past, Spider-Man has been the glaring exception in Disney Plus's Marvel content. Prior to this agreement, Disney Plus housed almost the entire Marvel Cinematic Universe, save for Spider-Man movies. A 2015 agreement let Peter Parker be shared by Sony and Disney, but a new licensing agreement will let the character join the rest of the Marvel family.

Likewise, the multi-year agreement will allow Disney’s streaming platforms to stream titles from Sony’s library, such as Hotel Transylvania and the Spider-Man films, via services like Hulu and Disney Plus beginning in June.

The official announcement said the deal “gives Disney enormous programming potential across its platforms and makes them key destinations for a robust collection of Spider-Man films.” Hulu is also set to get a “significant number” of library titles beginning as early as June 2021.

“This landmark multi-year, platform-agnostic agreement guarantees the team at Disney Media and Entertainment Distribution a tremendous amount of flexibility and breadth of programming possibilities to leverage Sony’s rich slate of award-winning action and family films across our direct-to-consumer services and linear channels,” said Chuck Saftler, head of business operations for ABC, Freeform, FX Networks and Acquisitions for Disney’s Media and Entertainment Distribution.

“This is a win for fans, who will benefit from the ability to access the very best content from two of Hollywood’s most prolific studios across a multitude of viewing platforms and experiences.”

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