Sony Wants Spider-Man 4 in 3-D? Say it Ain't So!
April 22, 2009
Source: Forbes
by Alex Billington
Spider-Man
"Could be" is all that Sony's head Amy Pascal said in response when asked about if we'll see Spider-Man 4 in 3-D. So how did we get to this point? Forbes.com has posted a very interesting interview with Pascal and fellow studio head Michael Lynton. They discuss most of the business side of Sony Pictures, but near the end they get into the 3-D realm, starting with a question about Cloudy with a Chance of Meatballs, Sony's upcoming fall animated release. From there, they continue into a question about live-action 3-D. Her answer to that question is not only very intriguing, but it leads directly into the Spider-Man 4 question.
First up, Pascal was asked what she thought about using 3-D in live action movies, and this is her answer.
"I think James Cameron's new movie [Avatar] could change the world. I think everyone is in anticipation thinking it's going to be like Star Wars. It's going to change the way you consume entertainment. I don't know that it will ever be the way you see dramas, but I can't say anymore that it won't be."
I hate to get all antsy, but if the head of another competing studio is already saying (eight months out) that Avatar could "change the world," I think that's a good sign that if it does live up to everyone's expectations, it's worthy of being called revolutionary right away. But that's a story for another day. Forbes followed up with the question about Spider-Man 4 and Pascal's response was only "could be." Then Lynton chimed in and added: "People are paying a premium to see movies in 3-D and that's a very big deal. It's never been done before that someone says you have to pay more to see Spider-Man than a romantic comedy."
It's too early to officially say that Spider-Man 4 is going to be in 3-D, especially when they're still working on casting anyway, but this is a good sign that Sony at least wants to pursue it. I also don't believe it's hasty of me to say that all of the major studios are anxiously awaiting Avatar's release, for many reasons, but most importantly to see how well a live-action 3-D movie plays on a large scale. If it is does incredibly well, then it'll be the first sign that live-action 3-D will actually be the future of filmmaking. So although we'll probably hear rumors about 3-D like this for a while, nothing will be confirmed until December 18th.