The popularity of Marvel Studios and Sony Pictures’ joint Spider-Man effort was first tested in 2016 when Captain America: Civil War introduced Tom Holland as the latest incarnation of the Web-Slinger, garnering effusive praise from critics and audiences alike. Holland’s Spider-Man became a bonafide hit last year, when his first solo outing in Spider-Man: Homecoming won big at the box office.

Since then, Spider-Man has gone on to become a pivotal player in the Marvel Cinematic Universe. A sequel, Spider-Man: Far From Home, has effectively been confirmed by Marvel Studios President Kevin Feige. But Sony has yet to follow-up with their own solo outing in the Spider-Verse. All of that is about to change, though.

RELATED: In Spider-Man: Far From Home, Peter Parker Takes a Summer Vacation

Rumors of Spider-Verse characters getting solo films have existed for years, but it’s only just recently that tangible casting information and word of early scripting efforts have started to sound a lot more credible. Unfortunately, nearly every Spider-Man-adjacent big screen project beyond Venom is obscured in the haze of pre-production uncertainty.

So, let’s look at exactly what Spider-Man side stories are reportedly coming from Sony and round up what we know about each one.

Venom

tom-hardy-venom-header

Venom is the first of Sony’s Spider-Man: Homecoming follow-up movies. The film stars Tom Hardy as Eddie Brock, an investigative journalist who is exposed to a mysterious alien symbiote that bonds with his body. Once the two are bonded, Eddie is afforded all the benefits of their relationship -- super strength, speed and a living black super suit with a mind of its own -- as long as they can work together.

RELATED: The Venom Trailer Gets One Thing Very, Very Wrong, and It’s Driving Us Crazy

Venom has been in the works since just after the release of The Amazing Spider-Man 2 in 2014. It took until 2017 for Hardy to confirm he would play the titular antihero on the big screen, but, once casting was set, production on the film was not delayed. The film wrapped production in January and is now slated for release on Oct. 5. As the first of Sony’s Spider-Verse stories, Venom is liable to set the tone for future entries.

Spider-Man: Into the Spider-Verse

Spider-Man: Into the Spider-Verse isn’t a Spider-Man: Homecoming follow-up per se, but the animated movie bears noting if only for how promising it looks. Into the Spider-Verse is the big screen debut of perhaps the most popular alternate reality Spider-Man of all time, Miles Morales, and is produced by Phil Lord and Christopher Miller, the team behind the massively successful The LEGO Movie.

RELATED: What the Heck Is the Spider-Verse?

In Into the Spider-Verse, Miles discovers that he is not the only Spider-Man. The film plays heavily on the concept of the Marvel Multiverse, exploring alternate realities that have their own versions of Spider-Man -- Peter Parker and Spider-Gwen both make an appearance. The first trailer for Into the Spider-Verse dropped late in 2017, showcasing the film’s unique visual style. Into the Spider-Verse releases in theaters on Dec. 14.

Page 2: [valnet-url-page page=2 paginated=0 text='Silver Sable & Black Cat Could Be Next Up After Venom']

Silver & Black

Silver & Black is slated to follow two staples from the Spider-Verse -- Black Cat and Silver Sable. Created by Marv Wolfman and Keith Pollard, Black Cat has been both adversary and lover to Spider-Man. Created by Tom DeFalco and Ron Frenz, Silver Sable is a mercenary whose primary target is war criminals. Both character have a plethora of potential, which is a shame, since their solo film has been plagued by delays since shortly after it was announced.

RELATED: REPORT: Spider-Man Spinoff Silver and Black to Include the Wild Pack

Sony was all ready to fast track Silver & Black back in late 2017, but in February the film was abruptly delayed. This was a stunning turn of events at the time, as the film was originally slated to start filming in March. The film’s director, Gina Prince-Bythewood, eventually revealed that Silver & Black had been delayed for some hefty script rewrites. The rewrites are seemingly ongoing, as the film has been dropped from Sony’s release schedule entirely.

Silk

Now we’re getting a little deeper into the weeds with films that have either been rumored or are in such an early state of development that little is known about them. Such is the case with Silk. Based on the Spider-Man character by the same name, the film would be the big screen debut for Cindy Moon. The film is reportedly part of a slate being developed by Sony Pictures’ Amy Pascal. Venom will reportedly kick off the slate, which sounds like it will effectively be a Spider-Man cinematic universe sans Spider-Man.

RELATED: Did Spider-Man: Homecoming Mark the MCU Debut of Silk?

Created by Dan Slott and Humberto Ramos, Silk officially debuted in Amazing Spider-Man Vol. 3 #4. While Peter Parker is tied up in the Marvel Cinematic Universe, Silk may actually be a decent answer to his absence. Her powers are derived from the same spider that bit Peter Parker, meaning she has similar spider powers. It’s worth noting that Peter Parker had a classmate in Spider-Man: Homecoming named Cindy. Many have speculated this Cindy may turn out to be Silk.

Morbius, the Living Vampire

Morbius the Living Vampire movie

Rumors of a Morbius, the Living Vampire movie haven’t been around for very long, but with each passing day the evidence mounts. Word that the film was being developed broke back in November of 2017. The report claimed that Burk Sharpless and Matt Sazama, writers of the recent Powers Rangers movie, were attached to pen the script. Had that been that, the Morbius movie have receded back into rumor, but Jared Leto recently all but confirmed he is attached to the film.

RELATED: REPORT: Morbius Film Will Not Impact Jared Leto’s Joker Projects

Some supposedly leaked script details reveal that the film may hew close to its comic book origins. Created by Roy Thomas and Gil Kane, Morbius is actually Dr. Michael Morbius, a Nobel Prize-winning biochemist who attempts to fix his rare blood disease by experimenting on himself. The experiment is a failure and renders Morbius a living vampire with an undying thirst for blood.

Page 2: [valnet-url-page page=2 paginated=0 text='Mysterio Could Get A Standalone Film If The MCU Doesn't Grab Him First']

Kraven the Hunter

spider-man and kraven the hunter

It sounds like work on a Kraven the Hunter movie is still in the early, early stages of development. The first hint that Sony was considering the movie came in June of last year, when the studio’s CEO, Tom Rothman, hinted that a Kraven film could follow Venom and Silver & Black. Columbia Pictures President Sanford Panitch would go on to call the character “awesome,” but didn’t confirm or deny the film’s existence.

RELATED: Black Panther Director Originally Wanted Kraven the Hunter to Appear

Created by Stan Lee and Steve Ditko, Kraven the Hunter is Sergei Kravinoff, a big game hunter who views Spider-Man as the ultimate prey. Kraven has an interesting history with the Wall-Crawler. In a 1987 arc, Kraven seemingly killed Spider-Man and took up the hero’s mantle for himself, acting as a far more brutal version of Spider-Man. When it was revealed that Spider-Man was alive, Kraven took his own life, feeling that he had proven he was Spider-Man’s equal.

Mysterio

Mysterio illusion

Rumors of a Mysterio standalone movie came alongside those of a Kraven the Hunter film, both of which were being considered to fill Sony’s superhero slate after Venom and Silver & Black. Now, though, the Marvel villain’s fate might be a quite different one. New rumors peg Jake Gyllenhaal has being considered for the role, but not for a standalone film. Rather, Gyllenhaal would play the villain in the Spider-Man: Homecoming sequel Spider-Man: Far From Home.

RELATED: With Mysterio, Spider-Man 2 May Actually Avoid Villain Fatigue

Created by Stan Lee and Steve Ditko, Mysterio is a master of illusion with no superpowers to speak of. Originally a Hollywood special effects guru, Mysterio eventually turned to villainy, even going so far as to join the Sinister Six, a cabal of villains dedicated to thwarting Spider-Man. Despite his lack of powers, Mysterio is no joke. In one alternate reality story, the villain goads Wolverine into killing all of the X-Men, thus spawning the ever-popular Old Man Logan, one of the last mutants living in a dystopia ruled by villains.