Why Marvel’s What If Can Use Spider-Man (Sony Rights Explained)

A.C. Bradley, head writer of Marvel’s What If..?, revealed he was concerned about whether or not the show could use Spider-Man – but here’s why there weren’t any problems. Marvel Studios’ first animated TV series, What If..? explores different branches of the Multiverse where events in the MCU could have turned out very differently.

The show will introduce viewers to creative new variants of classic MCU superheroes. There’s Captain Carter, from a world where Peggy Carter became a Super Soldier instead of Steve Rogers; Star-Lord T’Challa, from a timeline where Yondu kidnapped a member of the Wakandan Royal Family instead of Peter Quill; and a Tony Stark who never became Iron Man, but was instead saved from the shrapnel by Killmonger. But one of the most interesting ideas is a riff on the classic “Marvel Zombies” comic book line, and it will feature a Zombie-Hunter Spider-Man who wears Doctor Strange’s Cloak of Levitation. In a recent interview with Uproxx, What If..?‘s head writer A.C. Bradley admitted he was initially concerned over whether or not he’d get the okay to use Spider-Man. “I was like, ‘Can we just touch Spider-Man,’” he recalled. “And they went, ‘Don’t worry about it. We’re going to figure it out. Just tell the best story you can, and we’ll cross that bridge.’” But how did Marvel pull this off?

Related: Every What If Episode Marvel Has Revealed (& Teased) So Far

Spider-Man’s TV rights are complicated, but ironically that won’t have caused any problems for What If..? Sony’s last Spider-Man animated series, Spectacular Spider-Man, ended in 2009 – and according to showrunner Greg Weisman, it was brought to a close because Sony returned the animated TV rights to Marvel in return for some concessions for the live-action films. Since then, Marvel and Disney have had the rights to make Spider-Man animated adventures. A copy of the Sony-Marvel contract leaked several years later, in 2014, and revealed there are limitations to this – Sony has the rights to animated TV shows where the episodes run more than 44 minutes. But What If..?‘s episodes are only half an hour in length, so Marvel won’t have had any difficulty using Spider-Man in this show.

Ironically, the very fact What If..? is animated made things a lot easier for Marvel Studios. Sony has retained the live-action TV rights for Spider-Man and all his associated characters, explaining why the studio is working on a TV series for Amazon starring Silk, a classmate of Peter Parker’s who was also bitten by that infamous radioactive spider. So don’t expect to see Tom Holland swinging by in any of the live-action Disney+ TV shows anytime soon – at least not unless Marvel and Sony strike another deal.

Unfortunately, although Spider-Man will be appearing in What If..?, he won’t be voiced by Tom Holland. His contract is with Sony, not with Marvel, so bringing him in might have been a little more problematic – and that’s assuming the A-list actor could find time in his busy schedule. Since 2020 alone, Tom Holland has had roles in the movies Dolittle, Onward, The Devil All the Time, Cherry, and Chaos Walking, and he also filmed Spider-Man: No Way Home and Uncharted. So it’s quite possible Holland was unable to reprise his role for What If..?, simply because of time constraints.

More: What If…? Trailer Breakdown: All MCU Character Changes & Alt Timelines

About The Author