Indicators have been popping up lately that Marc Webb's Spider-Man reboot might be headed in a Sinister Six direction. The Lizard is still alive at the end of Part One, Part Two features both the Rhino and Electro, and rumors indicate we'll also be seeing Adrian Toomes, aka the Vulture. Add a couple more and you get the whole shebang. Oh wait! Both Norman and Harry Osborne are in Part 2, aren't they? That's six bad guys. Or five and a half at least.
Today Sony Pictures announced not only that there will be two more Amazing Spider-Man sequels but when they will come out. The Amazing Spider-Man 3 will be released on June 10, 2016, while The Amazing Spider-Man 4 comes out May 4, 2018. And of course, The Amazing Spider-Man 2 hits theaters May 2, 2014. So every other summer there will be a Spider-Man movie. By the time this series is done, it will have lasted one film longer than Sam Raimi's run. If it's even finished by then.
Sony Pictures probably wouldn't have done this if there weren't some bigger plan at play here, and a Sinister Six picture does feel like the likely catalyst for this confidence. With three films leading up to it, I can see how The Amazing Spider-Man 4 could supply a villainous Avengers model that doesn't feel too full or rushed.
But that also means none of Spider-Man's villains can die at the end of these films, which might get silly after a while. Hopefully one of these knuckleheads does die, so I can get my big screen Mysterio.
For those of us out there who had serious problems with The Amazing Spider-Man 1, this could be seen as troubling news. The silver lining is that The Amazing Spider-Man 2 kind of looks awesome so far, so maybe Marc Webb has done some much needed course correction.