Chris Pratt Supported Tom Holland Over Sony/Marvel Spider-Man Fallout
Spider-Man actor Tom Holland credits Avengers co-star Chris Pratt with helping him cope with the Sony and Marvel deal negotiations last year.
Sony's Spider-Man star Tom Holland reveals that Chris Pratt was at his side to offer support through the infamous but short-lived split between Sony Pictures and Marvel Studios. The two companies briefly severed ties last summer after failing to come to terms during negotiations on a new deal, an estrangement that basically kicked Spider-Man out of the MCU and left Holland worse for wear. But all is well in the universe, as they've since announced having put their differences aside to continue to build on what's been a very fruitful relationship thus far.
Sony has released two Spider-Man movies set in the MCU, both starring Holland, and a third installment is on the way. But plans for Spider-Man: Homecoming 3 became uncertain when news broke of Disney and Sony splitting over their inability to reach a new financing deal. Disney, Marvel's parent company, proposed that future ventures be financed on a 50/50 scheme, but Sony wanted to keep things as they were, with the setup seeing Marvel earn five percent of first-dollar gross, as well as all merchandising revenue. Fortunately for everyone, the companies backtracked not too long after, much to Holland's relief.
The 23-year-old actor made no secret of the fact that he was distraught over the whole thing and, back in December, admitted he cried over a drunken phone call with Disney CEO Bob Iger. As it turns out, that phone call went a long way into repairing the relationship between the two companies and Holland recently revealed that Pratt, who plays Star-Lord in the MCU, supported him through the ordeal. Holland and Pratt star together in upcoming Disney movie Onward and, speaking at the premiere on Tuesday night, the Spider-Man actor said Pratt assured him things would work out between the two entertainment giants and everything would be OK for him whether or not they renewed their deal. "Everyone was really supportive, absolutely everyone," the British actor told Variety, going on to say:
But Chris and I were obviously standing backstage together before we were called out on stage and I was telling him the news and he hadn't heard it yet. And he was like, 'No that's not gonna happen, they're gonna figure it out and, if not, you'll be fine,' so it's just really nice to have him in my corner because he's someone that I really look up to and appreciate. I'm glad that we're good buddies.
Holland will have a pretty busy schedule looking ahead, with the film adaptation of Naughty Dog's Uncharted reportedly set to begin shooting in around a month's time, although a new director has not been named as yet. The film's release was recently pushed back to March 5, 2021 - not the first delay of its troubled development history - having gotten penned in for a launch this holiday season. Holland is also starring in The Devil All The Time, a film set to be released by Netflix this year. He will be joined therein by Avengers co-star Sebastian Stan (Bucky Barnes aka The Winter Soldier) and the movie is being produced by another Marvel co-star in Jake Gyllenhaal, who played villain Quentin Beck aka Mysterio in 2019's Spider-Man: Far From Home.
Spider-Man fans were quite relieved to learn Disney and Sony reached a new deal but perhaps none more so than Holland. The actor's role as the web-slinging superhero has been well-received overall and, while he would have probably stayed Spider-Man with Sony operating on its own, it's likely everyone, including Pratt, prefers him swinging around the MCU. The two actors seem to have developed a bit of a bromance as of late, so just as well.
Source: Variety