The Amazing Spider-Man 3: What Really Happened?
6. You Get A Spin-Off! And You Get A Spin-Off!
One month after that writing trio was brought onboard for The Amazing Spider-Man 3, it was confirmed that Sony's plans consisted of more than just Spidey flicks.
In November 2013, Michael Lynton - who, at the time, was in charge of Sony Pictures Entertainment - told investors that a cinematic universe was coming, which would utilise the wide array of Spidey-centric characters the studio held the rights to:
"We do very much have the ambition about creating a bigger universe around Spider-Man. There are a number of scripts in the works."
In December 2013, these plans were detailed even further. A Venom spin-off was announced (which the aforementioned Kurtzman would write and direct), alongside a Sinister Six movie, which was set to be helmed by Cabin In The Woods director Drew Goddard. Reportedly, Goddard would also pen the script.
In addition, Sony unveiled a "franchise brain trust", consisting of Kurtzman, Orci, Pinkner, Goddard, and Marc Webb, on top of Men In Black writer Ed Solomon, and Spidey producers Avi Arad and Matt Tolmach.
This group would "collaborate on overseeing the developing story over several films", making them the architects of Sony's budding cinematic universe.
Remember though, this was still several months away from The Amazing Spider-Man 2's May 2014 release. Sony was banking on the film being a hit - not just for the continuation of Garfield's Spider-Man, but for the rapidly-expanding web of spin-offs the studio had planned.
Unfortunately however, the film didn't fare so well...