Spider-Man: No Way Homewill be available to stream on Starz at some point over the next six months. This may come as a surprise to fans expecting the Marvel superhero to appear on Disney Plus or hoping to see the next installment of the Spider-Man story on Netflix.
Spider-Man: No Way Homewas released in theaters in December 2021 and crushed the box office, becoming one of only ten movies to ever earn more than a billion dollars at the international box office. With thebox office success ofSpider-Man: No Way Home, it stands to reason that fans would be open to watching the film again, especially when it is possible to do so in the comfort of their own home.
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Many might expect such a successful film, especially involving a Marvel superhero, to stream on Disney Plus or Netflix, but a deal struck between Starz and Sony Pictures back in 2013 makes that an impossibility for now. As Deadline reports, the deal ensures Starz will have the right to stream Sony Pictures theatrical releases first until 2021. With its December 2021 release date,Spider-Man: No Way Homefalls under this agreementand will land on Starz until July 2023, when the blockbuster will likely become available on more popular streaming platforms like Disney Plus and Netflix. Starz CEO Jeffrey Hirsch plans to get the most out of the popular film’s time on the platform by moving “customers that watchSpider-Man"towards the network’s originals. The platform will have 18 months to do it before their deal with Sony Pictures comes to an end and the fan-favorite becomes available to other platforms.
In April 2021, it was announced thatNetflix reached a deal with Sony Picturesfor exclusive rights to stream the latter’s theatrical releases on its platform beginning in 2022. The deal also ensures Netflix will license older Sony Picture titles, which could include the latestSpider-Manfilms. Sony’s move from Starz to Netflix is a big deal because they have primarily partnered with Starz in order to stream their content since 2006. Netflix missed the exclusive right toSpider-Man: No Way Home by less than a month, but it is presumed the popular film will appear on the streaming platform late next year.
The films move to Starz is an interesting one because Netflix and Disney Plus are the more popular streaming services. WhileSpider-Man: No Way Homehad a very successfultheatrical release, it is uncertain whether the film’s appearance on Starz will bring new viewers who remain loyal to the streaming platform, as Hirsch desires.Spider-Man: No Way Home’s streaming success on the platform is even more questionable when it has already been announced that the film will be released on Blu-ray in March of this year.
