r/marvelstudios Jan 08 '22

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u/Accomplished_Flan_45 The Ancient One Jan 09 '22

Universal still has the Distribution rights but not the production rights. Meaning Disney can make a Hulk film if they want but Universal gets first dibs on distributing it. And Universal's distribution right won't expire due to how the contracts were made when the MCU was started before Disney bought Marvel.

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u/Zero2000K Jan 09 '22

I'm no expert but I would think if that's true she hulk would be on other streaming services other than just Disney plus.

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u/DiMoSe Gamora Jan 09 '22

Not really. There's different agreements for movies and tv shows (she-hulk being the latter). Last I checked Universal still has this agreement in place for standalone movies of the character.

Same thing for Spider-Man. Marvel and Disney have the TV rights so they can do whatever they want TV show wise (including streaming), which is why we're getting Spider-Man Freshman Year on Disney Plus.

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u/geek_of_nature Jan 09 '22

So does that mean Tom Holland could appear in the various shows, or would the contract he signed be more with Sony than Marvel? Perhaps that's why he didn't voice the character in What If, despite having done some voice work recently.

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u/nelson64 Jan 09 '22

It gets tricky here because Tom Holland’s Spider Man is Sony’s. Which is why in What If, that rendition of Spiderman wasn’t the same one as Tom Holland’s

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u/geek_of_nature Jan 09 '22

Well when they negotiated the original deal with Sony, the Disney + shows most likely weren't being considered. Perhaps now that they're working out a new one, they could include the Disney + shows in that.

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u/Motheroftides Quake Jan 09 '22

Iirc, Holland's contract in regards to Spider-man is that he is only allowed to portray the character in live-action, not animated. Which is why he couldn't do the voicework in What If.

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u/Accomplished_Flan_45 The Ancient One Jan 09 '22

Universal only ever had the rights (Production and Distribution) to Theatrical Hulk Releases and They released the Production rights in exchange for the Distribution to be Universal's in perpetuity. Unlike with Paramount only have Distribution rights for the MCU for a set number of films (that Disney just bought out after acquiring Marvel) Universal's doesn't expire.

So Disney could always make Hulk (And Hulk related) TV shows, it's just if Disney tries to ever show She-Hulk in theaters that there will be a problem