Marvel Studios president Kevin Feige has opened up about the future of Spider-Man in the Marvel Cinematic Universe, following the news that Disney and Sony have failed to reach a new financial deal regarding the films.

Unless a deal is reached it is unlikely that Tom Holland will appear in any further MCU films as Spider-Man, while other MCU characters will also not be able to appear in any of his Spider-Man films.

Speaking to EW at Disney's D23 Expo this weekend, Feige has now addressed the situation, explaining that Spider-Man in the MCU was "never meant to last forever".

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"I'm feeling about Spider-Man gratitude and joy," he said. "We got to make five films within the MCU with Spider-Man: two standalone films and three with the Avengers. It was a dream that I never thought would happen.

"It was never meant to last forever. We knew there was a finite amount of time that we'd be able to do this, and we told the story we wanted to tell, and I'll always be thankful for that."



Sony, which owns the film rights to the arachnid superhero, and Disney, which has the rights to the Marvel Cinematic Universe, made a deal several years ago that enabled Spider-Man to appear in the MCU and Tom Holland's version of the character first appeared in Captain America: Civil War in 2016.

However after the success of Spider-Man: Far From Home this summer, Disney reportedly asked to make changes to the financial arrangement between the studios, which Sony did not agree to.

Sony Marvel Studios

Related: Which Spider-Man movie made the most money?

Actor Tom has also spoken about the future of his character, assuring fans that he will carry on in the role no matter what.



"It's been five amazing years. I've had the time of my life," he said. "Who knows what the future holds? But all I know is that I’m going to continue playing Spider-Man and having the time of my life.

"It's going to be so fun, however we choose to do it. The future for Spider-Man will be different, but it will be equally as awesome and amazing, and we'll find new ways to make it even cooler."

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Fellow Marvel star Jon Favreau – who plays ally to Iron Man and Spider-Man, Happy Hogan – has also said he is "cautiously hopeful" that a deal can still be reached.

"It's still early days. As a fan, [I'm] cautiously hopeful that something will come together, because I think all the fans wanna see those characters together," he said.

"As a fan, I'm hopeful that... you know, cautiously optimistic. Holding out hope that this isn't the final chapter of that story."

Spider-Man: Far From Home is out now in cinemas. Spider-Man: Homecoming is out now on Digital Download, 4K Ultra HD, Blu-ray and DVD.

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