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Yesterday Variety reported that analysts felt Sony needed to start making more tent pole films and stop relying so heavily on the Spider-Man Franchise. That said Sony doesn't plan to lay off Spidey just yet.

Link to Variety

Meanwhile, SPE co-chairman Amy Pascal is spinning Spider-Man’s web ever larger, taking a page from Marvel Entertainment’s superhero movie playbook. “We are expanding the ‘Spider-Man’ universe into ‘The Sinister Six’ and ‘Venom,’ so that we have ‘Spider-Man’ movies every year,” Pascal says.

In December, Sony announced Alex Kurtzman will direct “Venom” from a script he’s writing with his longtime collaborator Roberto Orci, as well as Ed Solomon. Drew Goddard will write “The Sinister Six” with an eye to direct. Neither film has been dated, and both are in development at the studio. Marc Webb will direct “The Amazing Spider-Man 3,” securing his spot in helming all three films in the trilogy. The third pic is dated for release in June 2016.

So knowing that we have Amazing Spider-Man 2 this year, a potential Sinister Six and Venom movie, and finally the third Amazing Spider-Man is 2016, what other characters could Sony use from the Spider-Man Universe to make new films for?

One character who would have made the list was Morbius, The Living Vampire. He's primarily a Spider-Man character, but apparently may have been a part of New Line Cinema's Blade package as originally he was almost the villain in the second film. If that's the case then Morbius is firmly in Marvel's grasp once more.

These are our picks from most likely to least likely.

5. The Thief - The Black Cat

This is an easy one. The Black Cat is probably one of Spidey's most well known, popular homegrown allies. Having dated Spider-Man through a decent chunk of time of his life, Felicia Hardy brings an edge to Spider-Man's life akin to Batman and Catwoman's relationship.

She's a rogue that challenges Peter's moral sense of responsibility because while she is not hurting anyone she is breaking the law, but more times than not also risks her life to help others too.

A fun film can be made with the character and her introduction to the Spider-Man Universe can be fairly smoothly done either in a Spider-Man movie or in a stand alone that shows she exists in his universe. Black Cat could bring in a different audience, allow them to tell a different story that isn't just the typical good guy versus bad guy, and would give some woman out there a time to shine playing an excellent character with deep roots in the Spider-Man lore.

A good choice for her could be Amber Heard.

4. The Team - The Slingers

Most may be asking who these characters are. Let me explain.

These characters were a spin-off from a Spider-Man story arc which involved him creating new identities with new costumes (and seemingly new powers), when he couldn't be Spider-Man because everyone was hunting him for a crime he didn't commit. After he cleared his name he retired the costumes.

Dan Lyons was an old man who had once been a costumed crime fighter known as the Black Marvel. He gathered four young misfits and gave them the identities and powers used by Spider-Man. Thus was created, Prodigy, Dusk, The Hornet, and Ricochet.

So here you have a movie with 4 brand new heroes that takes place in the Spider-Man Universe, a new team with new enemies that practically has a blank slate so much so that original characters can be made to go against them in a new movie universe.

They also come with the benefit of adding a goth female hero to the Spider-Man Universe in Dusk and a hero in The Hornet who also suffers from a palsied arm. Definitely new modern heroes that different audiences can relate and rally behind.

If Sony wants to make something that can be partially tied to Spider-Man and still potentially stand on its own, Slingers is a good place to start.

3. The Doctor...Cardiac

Cardiac is another one that could be slightly out of left field but who has a open enough history that nearly anything could be done with. The character, inspired by the death of his brother, Elias Wirtham set out to right the wrongs that slip through the cracks. He is the vigilante heart of justice. He is Cardiac.

Eli underwent an operation and had his heart replaced with a artificial heart, capable of generating vast amounts of power electrical charges. He then developed a staff to focus the energy into concussive blast, able to blow holes in concrete and steel. He also created a psuedo-skin made out of vibranium mesh to help protect him in dangerous situations. Coupled with the padding from his costume, Eli can vault over high walls and jump from great heights without getting hurt. With these new powers, he became Cardiac; a heart that beats for justice.

In Cardiac you get a self made hero, an original African American hero, and a hero with a fairly blank slate in comics that you can play with and create new and original stories for without being hampered by years and years of back story. And if it does well, your almost guaranteed Marvel will follow suit and try to capitalize on it with a new comic book, placement in cartoons, and Marvel Legends style action figures.

Our best choice for the older hero? Laurence Fishburne, if he isn't tied to DC with his role of Perry White in the new Superman films.

2. The Clone - Scarlet Spider/Kaine

I'm throwing this one out there as it would be interesting but I have no idea how it would be done.

Kaine is the clone of Spider-Man. Created by Miles Warren, Kaine was originally identical to Peter until a clone degeneration set in and made scarred and flawed. Kaine wandered the country for years a flawed version of Peter Parker, with amped up strength and Spider-Sense so strong he got visions of the future.

Now I guess this could clear things up. Start with Andrew Garfield playing himself and Kaine. Have Kaine's body fail, change and become scarred and then slip another actor in to play him. It works. It's weird but it could work.

Of course currently it doesn't jive with the current Marvel books, with Kaine restored and looking healthy and whole, taking on the mantle of his "brother," other Spider-Clone Ben Reilly, and moving out to Texas to be the tougher on crime Scarlet Spider.

Kaine's a good character, but could Andrew Garfield pull double duty? Or is there an answer I've missed? Unsure, but that's why hes a long shot.

1. The Newb - Alpha

No one likes Alpha.

I like Dan Slott, but Alpha went from new to annoying fast. He's a self centered kid. A screw up. He doesn't listen to Spider-Man or the Avengers and has mostly been created at this point to prey on Peter's sense of responsibility due to it being his experiment which gave this kid his incredible powers.

With that said those are reasons he would be an excellent character. Not the typical hero, not easily liked, not overtly impressive and could have an interesting arc to go from little shit to little hero in training. But its doubtful it will happen, at least not like the books since his entire origin is due to a Parker experiment and current Spidey isn't old enough or smart enough to be doing this stuff yet.

Alpha would be a hail mary by Sony to find something they could throw at the wall and have hope to stick to keep the franchise a little longer.

But there is one character who would be an even bigger hail mary who could still have an excellent film...

Bonus Round: The Future - Spider-Man 2099

Everyone likes Spider-Man 2099.

Doing Spider-Man 2099 would have the potential to be colossal. Miguel O'Hara is the prime example of how a legacy character can be very similar and in some ways completely different.

Spider-Man 2099 would have the benefit of having a completely new feel taking place so far in the future, being arguably relatively unknown by the main stream from a lack of cartoon appearances, although his video game appearances show their is an audience interested in the character.

Why I feel Spider-man 2099 is a bigger hail mary from Sony is while it would be successful, and probably> spawn a few sequels, where do you go from there?

Spider-Man 2099's rogues gallery isn't extensive enough to carry it forever. It would be especially hard to jump from that back to present day to do another Spider-Man film without then having the characters cross over and rebooting the franchise once again.

While I'd love to see it, I think if Sony did one, you know its just to delay and milk the franchise one last time before it reverts to Marvel, who would have to undo and redo years worth of material to truly claim Spidey again in a fashion they could line up with other properties.

When you get to the end of this, leave some comments! Let me know what you think? Any characters you think I missed? Any you think would do better or worse? Let me know!