Sony Pictures has been slowly assembling their own Marvel Comics cinematic universe with characters connected to the “Spider-Man” rights. First, they shocked skeptics, critics, and pundits with the Tom Hardy film “Venom” which grossed over $800 million at the international box office; impressive, given that the film removed Peter Parker’s connection to the anti-hero’s origin and Tom Holland didn’t appear in the film.
READ MORE: ‘Kraven The Hunter’: J.C. Chandor Hired To Direct ‘Spider-Man’ Spinoff Film For Sony
Another project that has been in the works is “Kraven The Hunter,” the Russian big-game hunter turned Spider-Man villain, and that’s moving forward. Sony Pictures has hired British actor Aaron Taylor-Johnson for the Marvel role, according to The Wrap. The actor is best known for his comic book roles playing Wanda’s twin brother Quicksilver in “Avengers: Age of Ultron” and in the titular role in the two “Kick-Ass” films. He also recently appeared in Christopher Nolan‘s “Tenet.” Kraven was a key member of the Spider-villain super-team The Sinister Six, his half-brother is also the shape-shifting villain known as The Chameleon.
The project is set to be directed by “Triple Frontier” helmer J.C. Chandor from a script penned by “The Equalizer” screenwriter Richard Wenk and rewrites from “Iron Man“s Art Marcum and Matt Holloway. Wenk had teased in an interview that Spider-Man would be part of the film.
According to a tweet from Deadline reporter Justin Kroll (see below), Sony Pictures was impressed with Taylor-Johnson from the recent footage of the David Leitch-directed action film “Bullet Train” with Oscar-winner Brad Pit in the lead role. However, the studio had aimed high and approached actors such as Pitt, Keanu Reeves, John David Washington, and Adam Driver to play Kraven initially, but they all passed.
Hiring someone from the established Marvel Cinematic Universe to play a major character in the Sony spinoffs could further illustrate that the two cinematic universes aren’t as connected as previously imagined.
READ MORE: Olivia Wilde Will Direct A Female-Centered Marvel Movie For Sony’s Spider-Verse
More Sony/Marvel movies are on the way, including the sequel “Venom: Let There Be Carnage” which will introduce Woody Harrelson‘s super-villain Carnage to the big screen and Jared Leto‘s “Morbius” featuring the living vampire that is created when Dr. Michael Morbius attempts to cure himself of a rare blood disease using bats in an experiment that goes wrong. A television series focused on Spider-Man ally, “Silk” is said to be in the works, and “Booksmart“s Olivia Wilde is also reportedly directing a “Spider-Woman” film for Sony Pictures. Still, the studio has yet to confirm what character it will focus on or even a title.
Update: Sony Pictures has now scheduled the release date for January 2023.