Sony Pictures had originally intended the film to launch an expansive film universe around Spider-Man to compete with the Marvel Cinematic Universe. In June 2013, Sony Pictures announced a third Amazing Spider-Man film with a release date of June 10, 2016, which Alex Kurtzman, Roberto Orci, and Jeff Pinkner would return to write, and a fourth film with a release date of May 4, 2018. However, between December 2013 and the release of The Amazing Spider-Man 2 in May 2014, Andrew Garfield and Marc Webb revealed that while they would both return for the third film, neither was certain of their involvement in the fourth, with Webb adding he would certainly not be directing. Following the mixed critical reviews and franchise-low box office performance of The Amazing Spider-Man 2, the future of the franchise was unclear. By July 2014, Orci had left the third film to work on Star Trek Beyond, The Amazing Spider-Man 3, which would have included Chris Cooper returning as Norman Osborn and focused on Peter recovering from Gwen's death, was delayed to an unspecified date in 2018, and The Amazing Spider-Man 4 was moved to a later, unknown date, before they were ultimately canceled.