Following the release of Spider-Man: No Way Home in 2021, it has now come to light that Spider-Man 4 won't be helmed by Jon Watts. According to the reliable Marvel Cinematic Universe leaker @MyTimetoShineH, Watts won't be directing the next Spider-Man entry for Sony and Marvel Studios, and it looks like a new director will be coming in.
It was wildly believed prior to this report that Sony was actively seeking out Jon Watts to direct Spider-Man 4, but it looks like plans might have changed and the studio might be pivoting to another director. It surely might disappoint some fans as Watts helmed all three of the Tom Holland Spider-Man films.
Drew Goddard rumored to be the top pick to direct Spider-Man 4
This wouldn't be the first Marvel Cinematic Universe film that Jon Watts wouldn't have been a part of after being the top pick. The director was originally slated to helm Fantastic Four as well, but then later on decided to leave the project and was replaced by Matt Shakman.
Now that the director's chair for Spider-Man 4 is reportedly open, rumors around the net have been stating that Drew Goddard is a top pick for Sony currently. Goddard, who is best known for directing The Cabin in the Woods, wouldn't be new to the Marvel Cinematic Universe as he was involved with the creation of Daredevil Season 1 as well.
Alongside that, the director was also poised to direct The Sinister Six film for Sony, which was canceled later on. Goddard is also a part of the writers' room for James Gunn's upcoming DC Universe.
What can fans expect from Spider-Man 4?
With the way Spider-Man: No Way Home ended, it left Peter Parker in quite an interesting position. No one remembers who Peter is now, but they know about Spider-Man, and that can lead to an interesting storyline as it grounds the character in the universe.
The post-credits scene for Spider-Man: No Way Home also saw Tom Hardy's Eddie Brock in the Marvel Cinematic Universe for a brief minute. Before being pulled back into his own universe (Sony's film universe of Spider-Man spinoffs), Brock left behind a bit of the Venom symbiote, which can hint towards a black-suit Spider-Man storyline in the future as well.
Reports currently have been stating that Marvel Studios and Sony are butting heads on where to exactly take the Wallcrawler next in Spider-Man 4. While Marvel wants it to be more street-level focused, Sony on the other hand wants to make things even bigger and potentially even bring back previous Spider-Men, Tobey Maguire and Andrew Garfield, for the film.
Talking about his next Spider-Man appearance, Tom Holland had this to say about Spider-Man 4 to Critics Choice Association:
“All I can say is that we have been actively engaging in conversations about what it could potentially look like for a fourth rendition of my character. Whether or not we can find a way to do justice to the character is another thing.”
Currently, there are no details regarding Tom Holland's next appearance as the character, but one could expect the star to reprise his role soon.