Why Spider-Man Is Going IMAX For His First Solo Movie

Fans of Marvel comics and the Marvel Cinematic Universe have been dying for everyone’s favorite web-slinger to enter the fold. With Spider-Man films formerly existing in their own world, and often being pretty damn disappointing, we’ve had to patiently wait for the legal battle between Marvel and Sony to play out for years. With Spidey’s MCU debut coming in the highly anticipated Captain America: Civil War, fans of Peter Parker’s adventures can then look forward to the first new Spider-Man solo flick in July 2017. Josh Greenstein, Sony Pictures marketing-distribution president, recently opened up to reveal why the use of IMAX is happening for the untitled Spider-Man movie, saying:

There’s so much about Spider-Man – including the web-slinging action – that lends itself perfectly to the Imax screen. We are confident that audiences everywhere around the world will want to see it in IMAX.

This actually makes perfect sense. Spider-Man’s primary of mode of conveyance is by swinging on webs which he attaches to the top of New York City buildings. From there, he essentially catapults himself forward like a slingshot, before firing another bit of web fluid and repeating the same process. Josh Greenstein statement, which comes to us from Variety, makes it clear: how better to really have the audience experience what it is like to fly through the streets of New York than to use IMAX film?

The new Spider-Man film is set to be an exciting departure from the two previous incarnations of the web-slinger. Most importantly, this incarnation of Peter Parker is going to be apart of something much larger than his individual story. Through the Marvel Cinematic Universe, Spider-Man is going to be interacting with the villains and heroes that have already been introduced through MCU’s first two phases. Some of Spidey’s most exciting comic book adventures have been when he was teaming up with the likes of the Avengers, so the scale of this new movie adventure is much larger than recent past. 

Furthermore, Tom Holland’s casting as Peter Parker may be a much more successful incarnation than Tobey Maguire and Andrew Garfield’s. For one, Holland is a more appropriate age for Peter; he’s much closer to the age of a high school student and will bring a level of realism to the upcoming MCU projects. Additionally, Holland is an accomplished athlete and gymnast, and will be able to do much more authentic spider-like movement than his predecessors. 

While the hype around Tom Holland’s turn as the web head only continues to grow, we’ve been unable to see any footage of Holland in the trademark costume. This is because the legal battle between Marvel and Sony hasn’t been completely solved, and the two juggernauts are in negotiations regarding how Spider-Man can be used in promotional material. In film, Marvel will have control over the hero during his adventures with the Avengers, while Sony will take the lead in his solo experiences. This strange negotiation creates a ton of red tape, and it is unclear when we’ll be able to see Tom Holland as Spidey. 

One thing is sure: you can see Tom Holland step into the role when Captain America: Civil War smashes into theaters on May 6th, 2016. 

Corey Chichizola
Movies Editor

Corey was born and raised in New Jersey. Graduated with degrees theater and literature from Ramapo College of New Jersey. After working in administrative theater for a year in New York, he started as the Weekend Editor at CinemaBlend. He's since been able to work himself up to reviews, phoners, and press junkets-- and is now able to appear on camera with some of his favorite actors... just not as he would have predicted as a kid. He's particularly proud of covering horror franchises like Scream and Halloween, as well as movie musicals like West Side Story. Favorite interviews include Steven Spielberg, Spike Lee, Jamie Lee Curtis, and more.