Warning: This article contains SPOILERS for Kraven the Hunter
The decision to include credits scenes in Sony's latest Marvel film, Kraven the Hunteris an important indication about the future of this franchise. Since Poison Premiered in 2018, Sony's Spider-Man Universe films have attempted to offer some counterprogramming to Marvel Studios' MCU by telling stories about lesser-known Marvel Comics villains or heroes. However, all of the films struggled to connect with critics, and although Tom Hardy's film Poison The films found an audience and were, for the most part, financially successful, the others were failures at the box office and with viewers.
Part of the reason for the lack of interest in Sony's Spider-Man universe is the absence of its titular wall-crawler. The latest iteration of Spider-Man, played by Tom Holland, resides in the MCU, and the creative decisions about when and where he will appear appear to be made by Marvel Studios. It's hard to sell movies about Venom, Morbius, Madame Web and Kraven – all connected characters or villains to Spider-Man in the comics – without Spider-Man. This led to two major box office disappointments with Lady Teia and Morbiusand diminished returns on Venom: The Last Dance.
Now, after the introduction of the Thanos-level villain Knull in Poison 3It seemed like SSU might have a plan for where the franchise would go after several films introduced several Marvel characters. However, Kraven the Hunter There are no credits scenes teasing the future of the franchise. Following reports that Sony's Spider-Man universe is dead for all intents and purposes, the lack of credits scenes seems to confirm this to be true.
Kraven the Hunter No Credits Scene Confirms Sony's Spider-Man Universe Is Dead
Sony is no longer trying to establish a future for the franchise
The end of Kraven the Hunter is the only setup the film gives audiences about what could happen in the future of Sony's Spider-Man universe, but the final scene is simply a look at Aaron Taylor-Johnson's Kraven finally donning the lion's head vest that the character uses in the comics. There is no mention of Knull or Spider-Man, or any other character featured in previous Sony Marvel films. Kraven the Hunter has just ended, and without any hint of where SSU is headed, it seems safe to say that the franchise itself is over.
Arguably, Kraven the Hunter Not including credits scenes was a smart decision. Considering that the main film does not present any explicit connection with Poison or other SSU films, functions as a standalone feature. Adding a credits scene connecting it to the larger universe would have felt cheap and unearned. Plus, considering how poorly received the non-Venom SSU films have been, it seems like a good idea for Sony to hedge its bets and see how Kraven acts before making any decisions about Taylor-Johnson's future in the Marvel franchise.
Why it's good that Sony is focusing on proven Spider-Man franchises
The MCU's Spider-Man 4 and Spider-Verse projects will have the studio's full attention
According to Sony's Spider-Man movie future report, the studio is no longer developing villain films like Kraven the Hunter or Poison. Instead, they're focusing on the untitled Spider-Man 4 film for the MCU; the upcoming third installment in the Spider-Verse franchise, Spider-Man: Beyond the Spider-Verse; and the TV show Spider-Man Noir starring Nicolas Cage, which is a spinoff of the Spider-Verse series. These are all established properties that have performed well in the past, which is the smartest path forward for Sony, especially after a string of duds and disappointments.
Although it is not yet known whether Kraven the Hunter ends up being another box office bomb for Sony, the film debuted with a Rotten Tomatoes critics score as low as Lady Teia and Morbiusthen your future doesn't look bright. That said, with Tom Holland Spider-Man 4, Beyond the Spider-Verse and Spider-Man Noir on the horizon, there are a lot of interesting Marvel projects coming from Sony – all directly connected to Spider-Man.