Sony Pictures Entertainment Inc. (commonly known as Sony Pictures or SPE, and formerly known as Columbia Pictures Entertainment Inc.) is an American mass media and entertainment conglomerate that produces, acquires, and distributes filmed entertainment (theatrical motion pictures, television programs, and recorded videos) through multiple platforms.
Sony Pictures Entertainment has owned the film rights to Spider-Man and other Marvel Comics properties associated with the character since 1999.
Through an intermediate holding company called Sony Film Holding Inc., SPE is operated as a subsidiary of Sony Entertainment Inc., which is itself a subsidiary of Sony Group Corporation. Based at the Sony Pictures Studios lot in Culver City, California, it encompasses Sony's motion picture, television production and distribution units. SPE is one of the "Big Five" major American film studios and is a member of the Motion Picture Association (MPA).
Motion Pictures and Home Entertainment[]
Sony Pictures Motion Picture Group is a division of Sony Pictures Entertainment.
Columbia Pictures[]
Acquired by Sony in 1989, Columbia Pictures Industries, Inc. (commonly known as Columbia Pictures) is an American film studio and production company that is a member of the Sony Pictures Motion Picture Group.
Sony Pictures Animation[]
Sony Pictures Animation Inc. is an American animation studio that is a subsidiary of Sony Pictures through their Motion Picture Group division.
Sony Pictures Animation produced Spider-Man: Into the Spider-Verse (and its subsequent sequels) in association with Columbia Pictures and Marvel.
Sony Pictures Releasing[]
Founded in 1994 as a successor to Triumph Releasing Corporation, Sony Pictures Releasing is Sony Pictures Motion Picture Group's film distribution unit. The company handles theatrical distribution, marketing, and promotion for films produced by Sony Pictures Entertainment, including Columbia Pictures, TriStar Pictures, Screen Gems, Sony Pictures Classics, Sony Pictures Animation, among others.
Collectively, each of these units played a role in the production and distribution of the Spider-Verse trilogy.