I'm a bit confused on how everyone seems to be saying that TASM2 didn't make Sony money.
Look, no argument, the profits weren't what they were with the first movies, but as you look at each one it seems as though the profits decline.
But, isn't a $92 million US opening decent?
Isn't a $708 million combined US and International decent?
From what I've been able to find TASM2 is the 11th top grossing movie of 2014, just behind Winter Soldier.
So I'm a bit confused. Can anyone explain how much profit this movie has made for Sony so far? And yes, maybe they haven't met the coveted $1 billion mark, but hasn't this movie done pretty good profit wise for Sony???
In addition to what's already been said the negative critical reception combined with the downward trend at the box office over the past two films is very alarming to the studio.
See Sony was banking on a massive opening in the US, headed by positive word of mouth over seas. Unfortunately it was negative word of mouth that caused for a mediocre opening (for a spider-man movie). This was very bad for Sony because they were banking on this film to not only serve as the big 2014 tentpole, but to kickstart their spin-off's they'd already begun production for.
The Sony has already contractually agreed to pay Bob Orci close to 10 million dollars for Venom, Sinister Six, and ASM 3, regardless of if they get made. They are also obligated to pay to out to the rest of the Spidey think tank, as well as people like Drew Goddard, who've already signed onto the project.
Not to mention the negative trend at the box office along with the bad reviews means that likely the next film (films) in the franchise regardless of quality will be hurt at the Box Office. Look at Origins Wolverine for a moment. That movie was not by any means a flop, however the negative reception killed audience interest in the X-Men franchise. The Wolverine was well received and X-Men First Class was very well received, however neither movie earned more than 500 million at the Box Office (FC didn't even break 400) and neither earned as much as The Last Stand. Fox's planned series of origins spin-off's was dead on arrival.
Sony is in a similar situation. See Spider-Man has had three films that were received poorly - meh (SM3, TASM, TASM 2). Even with The Amazing Spider-Man, one of the main points of praise was the world they'd set up, and many critics claimed they felt the film was simply taking the bullet for a fantastic sequel. Unfortunately the sequel did not deliver so the promise of the first film's reception is even bit hampered. Sony is in a bad spot where TASM 3 could be monumental, but because of a general lack of interest they've created, it's poised to be an X-Men First Class with disappointing returns despite whatever quality there maybe.
Fox rebounded by returning to what fans liked (Bryan Singer and the original cast from nearly a decade ago), and now they have a foundation to build a universe on. Sony has even considered this by asking for Raimi to return in some capacity, however the return of a director won't have the same impact as the return of a familiar star like Maguire (who frankly isn't coming back). So this makes a deal with Marvel more tantalizing as they could hope to breathe some new life into the franchise by marketing Spidey as being a part of the same universe as Iron Man and co. However they would be on Kevin Feige and Bob Iger's terms if this were the case, and likely would get the short end of the stick- making it a better (if less likely) option to find a way to successfully solve the problem on their own. This is why they're having the big Spidey summit to begin with.
It's a really complicated scenario, and it's one someone who isn't very closely following movie news would be able to understand at a glance.
