User blog comment:John Avery Whitaker/Is Gwen Stacy Going to Die?/@comment-4651179-20121207032413/@comment-1895174-20121210005839

Actually, the first series was a trilogy because very few franchises survive past the third film. And most that do become **** after that point. Even James Bond started going downhill after its third film, and really didn't pick up until rather recently. The only exception to this is Harry Potter, and that benefits from strictly adhering to the source material. Spider-Man can't emulate Harry Potter.

Also, Sony's executive meddling practically forced Raimi off the project. And the ending of the third film was pretty conclusive - Harry was dead (ending that story) and Peter forgave Uncle Ben's killer (which, although bullshit, also ends that story). Where would the story go from there?

Furthermore, Spider-Man is inherently a young character. Assuming each sequel to The Amazing Spider-Man are two years apart, The Amazing Spider-Man 4 would be coming out in 2018. Granted, Andrew Garfield looks much younger than he actually is, but can a 35-year-old actor pull off Spider-Man? Remember - Tobey Maguire was only 32 when Spider-Man 3 came out.

Oh yeah, and Star Wars made the trilogy the model studios would use to make their blockbuster franchises.