Spider-Man: No Way Home memorably brought back Tobey Maguire and Andrew Garfield as their respective variants of Peter Parker, giving the actors significant roles in the film’s third act. The overwhelming success of No Way Home sparked a new wave of interest in seeing both actors headline another installment in their solo series — both of which ended prematurely for various reasons. Sadly, Garfield has cast doubt on The Amazing Spider-Man 3 ever happening, but fans remain hopeful Maguire will be able to reunite with Sam Raimi for Spider-Man 4. Nothing official has been confirmed on that front, but a prominent voice in superhero cinema is trying to make it happen.
Mattson Tomlin, Matt Reeves’ co-writer on The Batman Part II, is actively trying to get Spider-Man 4 off the ground, telling a story about Maguire’s Peter trying to balance his superhero and parenting responsibilities. Answering fan questions on X, Tomlin provided an encouraging update. “Slow and steady wins the race,” he said. “There won’t be anything to say about that for a long time (if ever!) because it involves a lot of people and politics and things going right that have nothing to do with me, but I haven’t gotten a ‘no’ yet!”
Slow and steady wins the race. There won’t be anything to say about that for a long time (if ever!) because it involves a lot of people and politics and things going right that have nothing to do with me, but I haven’t gotten a “no” yet! https://t.co/hdYju4h0p4
— mattson tomlin (@mattsontomlin) October 26, 2025
Will Sam Raimi’s Spider-Man 4 Ever Happen?
As we’ve recently seen with the saga of The Hunt for Ben Solo, having a strong idea for a franchise film isn’t enough to get a green light. There are still various hurdles those projects need to clear, including approval from the top studio executives. So, the fate of Spider-Man 4 ultimately rests in the hands of Sony. It’ll be interesting to see if they’re interested in reviving an old Spider-Man film series when Tom Holland’s version is still ongoing. Spider-Man: Brand New Day is being positioned as the beginning of the next chapter in the story of “Peter 1,” so Sony may decide it’s better and easier to just have one live-action Spider-Man running around.
Still, it’s encouraging to hear Tomlin’s pitch hasn’t been rejected as of yet. This implies Sony is at the very least considering it and weighing any pros and cons. Whether or not Spider-Man 4 happens could depend on any potential role for Maguire’s Spider-Man in Avengers: Secret Wars. It’s long been rumored that that film will bring back several notable characters from past Marvel movies, possibly even having Maguire cross paths with Hugh Jackman. Since No Way Home essentially made Raimi’s Spider-Man series part of the Marvel Cinematic Universe, Spider-Man 4 would likely have to take into account what happened to “Peter 2” in Secret Wars.
If it’s deemed plausible to make Spider-Man 4 a reality, Sony should move forward with it. Over the past decade, legacy sequels became a hot industry trend, successfully reviving several fan-favorite properties. Raimi’s Spider-Man trilogy remains one of the most popular and influential film series of a generation, so there would be a lot of interest in seeing Maguire come back to star in another outing — one that ideally would allow him to go off on a high note after the mixed reception to Spider-Man 3. Spider-Man seems to be one of the superhero characters immune to any box office trends affecting the genre, so there could be a lot of money in bringing the old band back together for Spider-Man 4. Kirsten Dunst recently said she’d be interested in returning for a sequel following Peter and MJ as parents, aligning with Tomlin’s vision.
If Sony executives are trying to figure out how this could all work, they need to look no further than DC Studios. James Gunn is embracing an Elseworlds concept that allows filmmakers to come in and tell stories that aren’t part of the main DC Universe continuity. The Batman Part II falls under that umbrella, as there’s a separate Batman movie in development for the DCU. As long as the two don’t open in the same calendar year, the existence of the two projects shouldn’t be too confusing for casual audiences. If DC Studios remains committed to making dual Batman films, there’s no reason why Sony can’t make Spider-Man 4, releasing it in a gap year between Holland-led installments.
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