Sony Pictures ( SONY 4.30% ) has struggled greatly in recent years. Flops like After Earth and White House Down lent credibility to investor calls for Sony to split off its film division. The sorry state of affairs at Sony Pictures even facilitated the rumor that the company was considering the sale of the film rights to the "Spider-Man" universe to Disney ( DIS -0.45% ). Given that Spider-Man movies have brought in billions, such a move would have surely signaled the end of Sony's film division as it currently exists. The fact that such rumors swelled following the 2012 series reboot The Amazing Spider-Man shows that the film was less than a resounding success.