Spider-Man returns to spin the web

Tobey Maguire's Spider-Man 3 opens in the Japanese theatres on May 1.

The third instalment of the hugely successful Spider-Man movies will make its worldwide premiere in Japan next month, Sony Pictures Entertainment said.

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Spider-Man 3 starring Tobey Maguire as the beloved Marvel comics hero will open in Japanese theatres on May 1, three days before it opens in the United States, the studio confirmed on its website.

The official opening will follow a premiere in Tokyo on April 16. The previous two Spider-Man films have raked in more than 1.6 billion dollars worldwide since the first movie was released in 2002, making it one of the most successful franchises of all time.

However Maguire triggered speculation that Spider-Man 3 may be the last film in the series, telling Australian media recently that the latest film felt like a natural full-stop.

"To me it seems like this is a natural point for the team to break up," Maguire was quoted as saying.

"We have a lot of story conclusions that were going along for the main characters for the first two movies and kind of tie almost everything up for the third movie."

Maguire added: "It feels like a trilogy to me and it feels like the end.