Sony Pictures has lost the highly anticipated Once Upon a Time in Hollywood sequel to Netflix, marking another major miss for the studio following KPop Demon Hunters. Tom Rothman, the chairman of Sony Pictures, addressed the situation candidly even as his studio celebrates Spider-Man: Brand New Day shattering box office records worldwide. The timing feels almost poetic, a triumphant week shadowed by the quiet admission that one of Hollywood's most coveted follow-ups slipped entirely from Sony's grasp.

While Rothman basks in Spidey's record haul, a quieter story unfolds behind the scenes, one involving Quentin Tarantino, David Fincher, and a directing swap nobody saw coming.

Tom Rothman revealed that Sony originally planned to produce The Adventures of Cliff, the long-awaited sequel to Once Upon a Time in Hollywood, when Quentin Tarantino intended to direct it himself. Once Tarantino stepped back, the search for a replacement led straight to David Fincher, whose contract kept him tied exclusively to Netflix, the same studio that turned KPop Demon Hunters into a global streaming phenomenon.

"David Fincher is exclusive to Netflix," Rothman told Variety.

He then added, "We were going to make the movie when Quentin was directing it, but he decided that he didn't want to do it and changed course."

Sony stepped aside once creative control shifted entirely.

In an interview with Variety, Rothman was pressed on whether losing the sequel actually stung, and his response left little room for spin. "Yes," he said, a single word that spoke louder than any lengthy statement could. The admission followed Rothman's own explanation of how Fincher's exclusivity to Netflix forced Sony's hand in the first place. Even so, Rothman remained firm that Sony's larger commitment to theatrical moviegoing, underscored by Spider-Man's record haul and the studio's Cinerama Dome revival, remains unshaken.

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While one sequel slipped away quietly, Sony's bigger deal with Netflix has been handing out advantages for years now.

Netflix has quietly built a stronger hand through its ties with Sony over the past several years, and The Adventures of Cliff Booth sequel is only the latest example. The same global agreement also gives Netflix access to select titles from Sony's television and film library, expanding its catalog with established, proven content. Sony has deliberately stayed out of building its own major streaming platform, unlike rivals such as Disney and Warner Bros., choosing instead to license its content heavily to Netflix.

Beyond the library access, the Pay-1 deal locks in exclusive post-theatrical rights to Sony's biggest franchises, including Spider-Man spinoffs, Venom, and Uncharted, the moment their theatrical runs conclude. Netflix has spent a fortune bringing hit television shows onto the platform as well, building an entertainment lineup that rivals traditional studios on multiple fronts. For Sony, the pattern now feels impossible to ignore: another marquee title has quietly slipped away, and Tom Rothman's candid admission only makes the miss harder to shake.

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What are your thoughts on Sony losing The Adventures of Cliff Booth sequel to Netflix? Let us know in the comments.