Disney CEO Bob Iger appeared on Jimmy Kimmel Live! Last night to discuss his new book, The Ride of a Lifetime. While speaking with Kimmel, Iger also discussed the recent reacquisition of Spider-Man for the Marvel Cinematic Universe and the role Tom Holland played in that deal.
- Back in August, it was learned that Sony and Disney were at a standoff regarding Spider-Man negotiations and as a result, the character would no longer be present in the MCU and Marvel Studios President Kevin Feige would no longer have a hand in producing Spider-Man movies.
- Last week, the two companies reached an agreement to continue sharing Spider-Man, keeping him in the MCU and keeping Feige involved.
- Iger explained that Spidey actor Tom Holland played a big role in that new deal, as he personally reached out to Iger and urged him to get the deal done.
- “It was clear that he cared so much and actually we care a lot about him. He’s a great Spider-Man isn’t he,” Iger asked, prompting cheers from the crowd and a response from Kimmel declaring “he’s the best Spider-Man.”
- “I felt for him and it was clear that the fans wanted all this to happen,” Iger continued. “So after I got off the phone with him, I made a couple of phone calls to our team at Disney Studios and then I decided to call the head of Sony and I said ‘we have to get, we[‘ve got to] figure out a way to get this done for Tom and for the fans.’ And we did.”
- So, as it turns out, a simple phone call from a passionate actor and the voice of the fans helped to bring Spider-Man back to the MCU. As Iger said before wrapping up his interview, “and that’s how it happened.”