Sony Pictures has decided to reboot the Spiderman franchise by replacing all involved with the original trilogy. Including Sam Raimi and Tobey Maguire.

Writes Mike Fleming/Nikke Finke: “This means that Raimi and the cast including star Tobey Maguire are out. There will be no Spider-Man 4. Instead, the studio will focus on a reboot script by Jamie Vanderbilt with a new director and a new cast. All this took place today at meeting on the lot today. An official Sony Pictures news release about it is expected.”

Apparently, Raimi told Sony he couldn’t meet the studio’s release date. Sony responded by scrapping the whole project. Fleming reports that Sam Raimi could possibly directed World Of Warcraft next if he wants to stay on a big budget or move to The Given Day, based on a Dennis Lehane novel (Shutter Island, Mystic River).

UPDATE: Sony Pictures has tweeted that “Peter Parker is going back to high school when the next Spider-Man hits theaters in the summer of 2012.”

So, an entire series reboot within 10 years? Really Sony? Check out the full press release below.

Culver City, CA (January 11, 2010) — Peter Parker is going back to high school when the next Spider-Man hits theaters in the summer of 2012.

Columbia Pictures and Marvel Studios announced today they are moving forward with a film based on a script by James Vanderbilt that focuses on a teenager grappling with both contemporary human problems and amazing super-human crises.

The new chapter in the Spider-Man franchise produced by Columbia, Marvel Studios and Avi Arad and Laura Ziskin, will have a new cast and filmmaking team. Spider-Man 4 was to have been released in 2011, but had not yet gone into production.

“A decade ago we set out on this journey with Sam Raimi and Tobey Maguire and together we made three Spider-Man films that set a new bar for the genre. When we began, no one ever imagined that we would make history at the box-office and now we have a rare opportunity to make history once again with this franchise. Peter Parker as an ordinary young adult grappling with extraordinary powers has always been the foundation that has made this character so timeless and compelling for generations of fans. We’re very excited about the creative possibilities that come from returning to Peter’s roots and we look forward to working once again with Marvel Studios, Avi Arad and Laura Ziskin on this new beginning,” said Amy Pascal, co-chairman of Sony Pictures Entertainment.

“Working on the Spider-Man movies was the experience of a lifetime for me. While we were looking forward to doing a fourth one together, the studio and Marvel have a unique opportunity to take the franchise in a new direction, and I know they will do a terrific job,” said Sam Raimi.

“We have had a once-in-a-lifetime collaboration and friendship with Sam and Tobey and they have given us their best for the better part of the last decade. This is a bittersweet moment for us because while it is hard to imagine Spider-Man in anyone else’s hands, I know that this was a day that was inevitable,” said Matt Tolmach, president of Columbia Pictures, who has served as the studio’s chief production executive since the beginning of the franchise. “Now everything begins anew, and that’s got us all tremendously excited about what comes next. Under the continuing supervision of Avi and Laura, we have a clear vision for the future of Spider-Man and can’t wait to share this exciting new direction with audiences in 2012.”

“Spider-Man will always be an important franchise for Sony Pictures and a fresh start like this is a responsibility that we all take very seriously,” said Michael Lynton, Chairman and CEO of Sony Pictures. “We have always believed that story comes first and story guides the direction of these films and as we move onto the next chapter, we will stay true to that principle and will do so with the highest respect for the source material and the fans and moviegoers who deserve nothing but the best when it comes to bringing these stories and characters to life on the big screen.”

What do you think of this news? Are you sad to see Raimi’s Spidey go?

It was reported a few days ago that production on Sam Raimi’s Spider-Man 4 has been put on hold due to some major script discrepancies. MTV Movies Blog recently sat down with Willem Dafoe about his new film Daybreakers and one of the topics of discussion was the next Spider-Man. Check out what Dafoe had to say below. Read the full story

A few weeks ago we reported that Sam Raimi’s Spider-Man 4 was being delayed indefinitely due to an incomplete script, then there was news that it may not be true and the project was moving forward. It looks like the initial report was right as insider Nikke Finke came across this report that was sent to the special effects crew for the fourth Spidey. Check it out below: Read the full story

Latino Review has the exclusive tip that Spider-Man’s Tobey Maguire is in talks to play the lead Bilbo Baggins in Guillermo del Toro’s upcoming 2-part adaptation of The Hobbit. The question arises with Spider-Man 4 starting up, if Maguire will have time for both projects. LR debunks the rumor that Spider-Man 4 and 5 are shooting back to back so that leaves Raimi’s project to shoot in a couple of months and The Hobbit for summer 2010. The filming of both Hobbit films are rumored to take 370 days so that would make Maguire quite a busy man. First Showing reported a smaller project Maguire may be involved in, but with the strenuous schedule I wonder if it he could do it all. With The Hobbit not even greenlit yet, you can expect more announcements in the coming weeks related to funding, casting and other pre-production. Read the full story

Relativity Media | USA | 110 min

(Warning: minor spoilers)

Big name, studio-pushed family dramas without a “holiday” selling point (a la The Family Stone or Everybody’s Fine) are hard to come by these days. So are successful war films. Jim Sheridan’s Brothers is both of these things, and has fought a long, hard war of its own to open in theaters, literally surviving a recession and all the conflicts that it came with. Sheridan lost funding in the middle of production, unable to shoot the helicopter crash sequence as written by David Benioff, only to finally be saved by an output deal struck between Lionsgate and Relativity Media for 5 films, the first being Brothers. Read the full story

Lionsgate has released a new trailer for Jim Sheridan’s Brothers on Yahoo. The film stars Tobey Maguire, Jake Gyllenhaal, Natalie Portman, Sam Shepard, Clifton Collins, Jr., Carey Mulligan, and Ethan Suplee. It is written David Benioff (The Kite Runner, 25th Hour). Check out the trailer below. Read the full story

Variety is reporting today that Daniel Craig has signed on to star in the psychological thriller Dreamhouse directed by Jim Sheridan. The film is set to start production January 25, 2010. Variety describes Craig’s role as “a New York publishing exec who relocates his family to a small New England town only to learn that their new home was the scene of a vicious murder.” The film is written by David Loucka and as of now no release date is set.

It looks like Sheridan is looking to pack on a really tight schedule this year. His new film Brothers starring Tobey Maguire and Jake Gyllenhaal hits theaters Dec. 4th in the US and then internationally over the following 3 months. I am surprised that he would want to start production on a new film so soon. I have always been a fan of Daniel Craig’s work even before the James Bond days (even though that is a plus). I do wonder how this will effect the timing of a new James Bond film since I doubt that we will see a new Bond film in 2010 if Craig is working on this.