Sony Pictures is aggressively marking its own territory in the superhero "tentpole" movie genre. In their vision to create a full Spider Man Universe, they will produce spinoff movies for their villains.

Two feature films have been confirmed. One will feature Venom, the alien symbiote possessed version of Spider Man (although it's not the same person). Venom was introduced in the late 80s in the comic books when characters were becoming 'darker' and 'edgier,' a trend set by the Batman comic books which dominated at that time.

They created a separate character when they realized that Peter Parker's personality is a major part of Spider Man's charisma, and it is not a good idea to mess that up. They initially started with Spider Man wearing a black costume, and expanded the storyline to give the costume a life of its own.

Venom was portrayed in the critically panned "Spider Man 3." One of the major criticisms was that Eddie Brock's character (Venom) was poorly developed (as with every aspect of that film). An expanded role in the reboot series was expected, but Sony surprised everyone when they brought the character several notches further with his own film.

Topher Grace played Venom in Spider Man 3. It is unlikely that he will reprise the role, and the stakes for the Venom has risen since he will now be the lead of his own movie.

The Sinister Six consists of Doctor Octopus (who also formed the group), Electro, Kraven The Hunter, Mysterio, Sandman and the Vulture. Later appearances had Kraven the Hunter replaced by the Hobgoblin/Green Goblin. Only Electro and Green Goblin are confirmed to be in The Amazing Spider Man 2. Electro is played by Jamie Foxx and is the main villain, while the Goblin, which may be Norman or Harry Osborn, is played by Chris Cooper and Dane De Haan respectively.

It is not certain whether the movie version will retain the line-up in the comics. With Electro appearing first, the origin story might also change.

Keep visiting for further developments and updates on these spin-off movies.