Sam Raimi‘s unmade Spider-Man 4 has long been a giant question mark to fans, but some exciting new details are finally becoming public. It’s been known for a long time that Hollywood legend John Malkovich would have portrayed Adrian Toomes, a.k.a. The Vulture, in the film, had it come to fruition, but his character’s actual role in the plot has always been shrouded in mystery. Luckily for those who want more information, an upcoming book centered on Spider-Man, Sean O’Connell‘s With Great Power, has shed a little bit of light on the matter.
According to the novel, Raimi‘s Vulture would have been a modernized version of the villain, who utilized razor-sharp blades on his wings as a primary form of weaponry. He also would have been quite the vicious adversary for Tobey Maguire‘s hero, with a featured scene specifically designed to be on par with Alfred Molina‘s infamously terrifying hospital sequence in Spider-Man 2. Instead of a grotesque transformation, however, the scene in question would have seen Vulture lurking over a library, picking off goons sent to take him down. Storyboard artist Jeffrey Henderson confirmed this was an example of how the antagonist would have received his nickname, explaining it as part of the character’s planned origin in the movie:
He was essentially a guy that did as a lot of ugly stuff for the government, did a lot of ugly stuff as a private contractor… I thought a clever thing to do would be to say that part of the reason they called him The Vulture was because when he was done, he didn’t leave anything but bones behind.
Jeffrey Henderson
Furthermore, With Great Power reveals exactly how Vulture would have perished in Spider-Man 4. The plan was for Spider-Man and his winged foe to have a climactic battle that began in the New York City subway system and ended atop the Citicorp Center on Lexington Avenue in Manhattan, with Vulture gaining the upper hand before things go sideways. Henderson explains:
They were going to have a big brawl-for-it-all, where Vulture almost kills Spider-Man. And then Spider-Man at the last minute—he’s really wounded, he’s bleeding really badly, he’s in real trouble—Peter finally, almost as a reaction, forces The Vulture off. When he does, it snaps some of the stuff from the wings, so he ends up just tumbling into the ether, off the top of the Citicorp building. That’s what does him in.
Jeffrey Henderson
The book goes on to explain that, after Toomes’ death, his daughter would have stepped in as the main villain for the movie’s third act. It sounds like this version of the Vulture would have been wildly different than the one Michael Keaton eventually brought to life in Spider-Man: Homecoming, even if the later adaptation is still adored by fans.
Welcome to another edition of Murphy’s Multverse’s Sunday Paper. With endless news and content coming to you throughout the week, the Sunday Paper is here for anyone who wants an overview of what happened in the past week. Whether you missed it all, or just want to catch up, this is the article for you. Remember to follow us on Twitter, subscribe to our YouTube channel, and check out our website to stay up to date. Check out last week’s Sunday Paper here.
Perhaps some of the week’s biggest news comes from two upcoming Marvel Studios Disney+ series. Despite having no release date, Wonder Man has made headlines due to some major casting announcements. For starters, Yahya Abdul-Mateen II is in talks to star in the titular role. He is well-known for his roles DC’s Black Manta in the Aquaman films has also starred in HBO’s Watchmen, The Trial of the Chicago 7, Nia DaCosta‘s Candyman, and The Matrix Resurrections where he played Morpheus. Not only that, but Better Call Saul’sBob Odenkirkis also reportedly being eyed for a role in the series, and we have a theory as to who he could play.
Spider-Man: No Way Home was the third and final solo Spidey film to come out of the unprecedented collaborative agreement between Sony and Disney. With it becoming the #6 all-time highest-grossing film, it seemed like a no-brainer that the two studios would ultimately renew the deal and get to work on not only a new trilogy of films starring Tom Holland but also on finding other Marvel Studios projects in which he could appear. In late 2021, Marvel Studios President Kevin Feige revealed that he had begun working with Amy Pascal on developing the future of the character, however, without a new deal in place no official progress could be made, causing fans to wonder if they’d ever see Holland swinging through the MCU again.
A new rumor might help some fans feel a little better in that regard. According to one YouTuber, Sony and Disney have apparently been at the negotiating table and are closing in on a new collaborative arrangement. The rumor states that once closed, the two studios could then begin working with Holland on sorting out the terms of his deal, which would likely consist of another Spider-trilogy of Sony films produced by Marvel Studios in addition to scheduling him for appearances in Marvel Studios films. With two Avengers films on the slate for 2025 and 2026, those would seem to stand as obvious choices, but it is possible that Marvel might like to have Spidey appear in their Fantastic Four film, which is also scheduled for 2025.
As it stands, No Way Home could serve as a fine ending for Spidey’s MCU story. Peter made some heavy sacrifices, but by the end of the film, he seemed to have come to terms with them and found himself in a new suit swinging across the NYC skyline during the holiday season. Of course, having Holland back on board during the Multiverse Saga allows Marvel Studios a lot of freedom in exploring Spidey’s relationship with a character that fans have been clamoring to see join the MCU for some time now: Miles Morales.
With no deal in place, there’s currently no timeline set for Spider-Man 4, though given Feige’s comments from late 2021, it wouldn’t be surprising to see the project come together fairly quickly once the deal is in place.
Jon Watts just recently surprised people with the decision to move away from the upcoming Fantastic Four project. Yet, we learned shortly after that he started work on a new project together with Lucasfilm, which will explore an Amblin-style entry in the Star Wars galaxy. Now that he just wrapped work on one of the biggest Spider-Man film releases of all time with No Way Home, it seems Sony Chairman isn’t ready to let him go quite yet. In an interview with Deadline, Tom Rothman confirmed that he hopes for Watts to return to the director’s chair for the fourth MCU Spider-Man entry.
On one hand, many have hoped that a new creative team would take the reigns as Tom Holland‘s Spider-Man takes a more grounded approach. Now that he’s seemingly unshackled from the rest of the Marvel Cinematic Universe, they can rewrite his future as part of the franchise. Yet, it seems that Sony wants to keep Watts heavily involved, as well as see the return of Zendaya as MJ.
Now, that also raises the question of how big of a role she could have considering she is heading out to MIT and has completely forgotten who Peter Parker is. Of course, she may be visiting New York City, it is her home after all, and they bump into each other. She will only remember him as the stranger she met at the coffee shop. He’s not officially signed on and things may change as more get a chance to potentially pitch their take on the character.
As Sam Raimi makes his grand return to the Marvel universe with Doctor Strange in the Multiverse of Madness, it’s hard not to ask him aboutwhat could’ve been with Spider-Man 4. Many years after the director left the projects behind, it was hinted that it was going to feature Bruce Campbell‘s cameo as Mysterio and Vulture would appear in some capacity. Yet, it turns out that the plans were originally going to include another classic member of his rogue’s gallery.
It looks like Kraven the Hunter was going to be part of Spider-Man 4. In an interview with Rolling Stone, Sam Raimi reveals that not only was Mysterio not a definite, as they had other plans for Bruce Campbell to cameo, but they also were going to include the iconic villain in the film. The reasoning is the same for any comic fan., he wanted to see them fight on the silver screen.
We had other things in mind, too, but that was one of them. And I missed Kraven the Hunter. We were going to work that character into the next Spider-Man; I always wanted to see Kraven fight Spider-Man on the big screen. I thought that would be really unique. He’s the ultimate hunter, and Spider-Man is like the most agile trickster of the skies. And I wanted to see Peter continue forward as a human being.
Sam Raimi
It’s crazy to think that Spider-Man: No Way Home may have almost featured the character as well before fully jumping into the multiverse. The character is currently getting their own spinoff series starring Aaron Taylor-Johnson, but it’s unclear how it may tie together with Sony’s overarching plans. Still, it’s a shame he never got to explore the character, and perhaps he’s interested in integrating that story into the fourth entry of Tom Holland‘s Spider-Man as a nice tribute to his original plans.
The timing of this story is quite fitting, but director Jon Watts has just left Marvel Studios’ Fantastic Four franchise. Unlike some in the past, it’s not over creative differences but rather to take a break after working back-to-back on three massive blockbusters. After the success of Spider-Man: No Way Home, it’s not surprising that he’d want to take it easy for a bit. Yet, it seems that Sony seemingly is still counting on him to return to direct the fourth entry in the MCU’s incarnation of Spider-Man.
As shared by ComicBook.com, the production company hopes to have him alongside Tom Holland and Zendaya return for a fourth entry in the franchise. While many were hoping to potentially see a new director leave his imprint on the franchise, it’s not surprising that they’d want to bank on the success of the third entry. It’s unclear though when we might expect the next entry. As Watts takes a step back from the spotlight, the statement from Marvel Studios has hinted that they are keeping an eye out for other projects they could work on.
The addition of Zendaya being expected to return is a rather interesting surprise considering the ending of the third film. It seemed like they were moving away and giving Spidey a new cast of characters resulting from the final spell that Doctor Strange unleashed upon the world. We know from Marvel Studios CEO Kevin Feige that they started work on a fourth entry, and many things can change throughout production.
We’ve had conversations about the potential future of Spider-Man, but at the moment they are conversations. We don’t know what the future looks like.
Tom Holland
The actor highlighted that he believes talks are currently happening between Feige, Sony’s Tom Rothman, and producer Amy Pascal, but that he doesn’t know where exactly they are with it, as he currently is “not really thinking about the future.” He goes on to highlight his current way ot handling the situation with No Way Home‘s success.
I’m still riding the wave of the success of the film and enjoying that.
Tom Holland
It makes sense the two companies are following up on the film’s success by taking a look at how they can continue the story. Feige is no stranger to planning quite a bit in advance. So, he may already have some plans for how they might potentially tackle the project. Though, with director Jon Watts moving on to Fantastic Four, they may already be considering who might be the perfect choice to tackle the next trilogy.
Hawkeye reintroduced Vincent D’Onofrio‘s take on Wilson Fisk into the Marvel Cinematic universe. His return was met with a lot of praise and some uncertainty about what the future might have in store for the character, especially given the open ending of his fate at the hands of Echo. Well, it seems that D’Onofrio currently does not have a contract with Marvel Studios currently, as revealed in an interview with The Sarah O’Connell Program. He states that
I’ve been through this before with Daredevil. It’s all been very clear to them that I really want to play this part, keep playing. You know, I just hope that continues. I just started having fun with it.
Vincent D’Onofrio
Of course, there is the chance he’s not allowed to give away if he has a contract or not given how the Disney+ series ended. It wouldn’t be too surprising that Kevin Feige and his team want to ensure that the fake-out wasn’t given away so easily, but D’Onofrio is certainly hoping to make a return, especially in the already confirmed Spider-Man 4.
All of them. I mean, it’s obvious that Punisher, Daredevil, and Spider-Man are the ones that my character is tied to in the comic books. But there’s plenty of room for others, I can just only hope that that happens. But I mean, Spider-Man definitely. I think that would be really really fun.
Vincent D’Onofrio
A return in the fourth entry of Spider-Man would make a lot of sense after No Way Home ended on him returning to his roots. It also would work as a way to still connect to the Marvel Cinematic Universe without other heroes taking over his film. Daredevil may also become a supporting player as they take on Kingpin, whose empire may have truly only started after the events of Hawkeye. Here’s hoping we’ll find out sooner rather than later.
You can watch the full interview with D’Onofrio here:
Although it looked at one time like it might not make it, the first MCU-set Spider-Man trilogy has come to its conclusion in Spider-Man: No Way Home. The film grossed $1B in just 12 days and Sony and Marvel Studios have already confirmed that they are developing another film in the franchise. As is always the case in the world of comic book movies, the events of the film neatly tied up the plot while setting the table for what comes next. In this case, what comes next is likely another MCU-set trilogy in addition to some opportunities for star Tom Holland to participate in other films both in the MCU and Sony’s universe of Marvel films.
With No Way Home having been in theaters for two weeks, it’s time to join the conversation about what we might expect from the next Spidey trilogy. Of course, the conclusion and the mid-credit scene of No Way Home did set the stage for a couple of storylines to unfold, so let’s start there and work our way out:
J. Jonah Jameson Out to Get Spidey
Spider-Man: No Way Home did end on a little more upbeat note with Spidey swinging through New York in his shiny, new suit during the Christmas season, but that was preceded by Peter Parker suffering through a great deal of personal loss. Present and looming large over Parker while he struggled with the loss of May was the huge, talking head of J. Jonah Jameson. Jameson, who had been dogging Parker throughout, made a final appearance in the film (following the spell that erased Peter Parker from peoples’ minds) with the promise that he’d get to the bottom of the menace that is Spider-Man.
It’s a familiar feeling for long time fans of the Spidey films, especially since J.K. Simmons is back in the role, but there’s reason to believe that unlike the Jameson we saw in the Raimi films, the Jameson might be more than a loud mouth who bullies Parker at the Daily Bugle. The comics lay out a path that could potentially put Parker in real danger due to Jameson’s determination to “bring Spider-Man to justice.” Over the course of a half dozen or so issues beginning in The Amazing Spider-Man #20, Jameson served as essentially an outright villain. He first hired Mac Gargan to investigate how Peter Parker was able to get so many great pictures of Spidey and then took a key role in Gargan being turned into the Scorpion. When that didn’t work, Jameson hired Spencer Smythe to build the first generation of Spider-Slayers.
Having Jameson working against Parker in Spider-Man 4 could really make things difficult for the young hero. An adaptation of the events described above could allow for Michael Mando, who played Gargan in Spider-Man: Homecoming, to return in a beefed up role and allow for the Spider-Slayers to finally make their way to the big screen, maybe even one with Jonah’s mug plastered on it.
The Black Suit
The mid-credit scene in Spider-Man: No Way Home caused as much excitement as any Marvel Studios’ stinger since Nick Fury showed up at Tony Stark’s home in Iron Man. Defying the whole premise of Doctor Strange’s spell to send visitors from other universes back where they belong, a portion of the symbiote worn by Tom Hardy’s Eddie Brock in Sony’s Venom films was left behind in the MCU. This is one stinger that’s going to pay off in a big way, especially Marvel Studios’ favorite way: selling toys.
Obviously, that symbiote is going to find its way to Parker and some point and fans will see Spidey in the infamous black symbiote suit for the first time since Spider-Man 3. It’s highly likely that Parker will wear it for a while, certainly long enough to showcase it in the all-but-certain Secret Wars project. It’s also likely we’ll get a little more comic-accurate arc for the symbiote this time that sees the symbiote attempt to permanently bond with Parker because it truly, deeply cared for him. And, like in the comics, when the symbiote leaves Parker it’ll find a new host, only this time it might not be Eddie Brock. With Hardy’s Venom franchise having the success it’s had at the box office, there’s no need to complicate things by adding another Brock to the mix, especially not when Holland can face off against him in the Sony films. No, it might rather make more sense to have the symbiote find another one of its comic book hosts, one that would be happy to cause some problems for Parker.
Mac Gargan Becomes Venom
Should Gargan turn up in Spider-Man 4 and once again be defeated by Spidey, it wouldn’t be too shocking to see him teed up for one more run at the Wall-Crawler, only this time on a level playing field. In the comics, after joining with Brock and becoming Venom, the symbiote developed an unsatiable bloodlust. That bloodlust grew larger when it bonded with Gargan and together, they became a much more monstrous version of Venom. For reasons that shouldn’t be too hard to understand, any MCU Venom should probably be VERY different from Sony’s and the Gargan version of the character would easily accomplish that. Should it work out, it would also allow for Gargan/Venom to join the Thunderbolts and/or Dark Avengers.
A New Romance
Fans across the globe felt the pain of Peter Parker walking away from MJ at the end of Spider-Man: No Way Home. While it’s hard to believe she’ll be out of the picture forever, her being temporarily out of the picture does allow for Parker to meet one of his many other romantic interests from the comics. And while fans might be feeling the urge to cheer for Gwen Stacy to appear, it’s time for Felicia Hardy to get her time in the spotlight. Felicia showed up for a beat in The Amazing Spider-Man 2 but the character, who has been a staple in Spidey comics since 1979, has yet to be fully realized.
The two met at a time when they were both young and vulnerable and despite being on different sides of the law as their alter egos, Spider-Man and Black Cat fell in love with one another. Peter revealed his secret identity to Hardy who, for a time, became his partner. Their relationship lines up nicely with Secret Wars and they both have a history with one particular NYC crime boss.
A Daredevil Team-Up
Spider-Man has always been a staple in Marvel Team-Up comics and no partner makes more sense for him to team-up with in an upcoming Spider-Man film than Daredevil. With Charlie Cox’s return an Daredevil in Spider-Man: No Way Home, the stage is set for the two high flying crime fighters to run into one another on the rooftops of NYC. And with the Kingpin running NYC’s organized crime, the opportunity is there for the perfect team-up. Vincent D’Onofrio, who plays the Kingpin, recently reiterated his wish to take on Spidey. Tom Holland has indicated interest in taking on the big guy. What more is there to discuss?
Peter and Johnny Storm’s Friendship
While it wasn’t always the case, over the years Peter has developed one of his closest friendships with Johnny Storm. It was a rocky start for the two in Spidey’s early days, but by the late 1970s, Spidey and the Human Torch were the cover boys for Marvel Team-Up #1. To honor his friend, Parker replaced Johnny on the Fantastic Four following his death; when Johnny came back, the two were roommates for a time. Johnny even helped Peter build the Spider-Mobile. With the rights to the Fantastic Four now residing at Marvel Studios, a Fantastic Four film in development and set to be directed by Jon Watts, who directed all 3 MCU-set Spidey films, it seems like an absolute sure thing that we’ll get to see these two hang out at the Statue of Liberty at some point in the next decade.
Miles Morales
Over the last several years, Sony has begun development on a lot of Marvel films. One can learn as much, if not more, from the films they aren’t developing as the ones they are, however. And one property that Sony has yet to develop into a live-action property is Miles Morales. Arguably one of the most important comic book characters of the last 20 years, Morales already exists in the MCU and, hopefully, Sony and Marvel Studios will work to bring him into play during the next trilogy.
Miles was referenced by Donald Glover’s character in Spider-Man: Homecoming and the crazy events within the Sacred Timeline of the MCU can work to Marvel and Sony’s advantage in bringing the character along at the right time. Homecoming was set in 2017 and then, a year later, Thanos Snapped away half the population of the planet. This gives Marvel Studios the opportunity to work around any age issues and introduce Miles as a 15-or-so-year old at some point in the next trilogy, which will all be set in 2025-ish or later. While it’ll be great to see the two Spider-Men share the screen for a time, allowing Miles to grow into the role of Spider-Man for a while clears the path for Marvel Studios and Sony to do something truly major at the end of the next trilogy.
The Death of Spider-Man
Even though he is beloved in the role, Holland isn’t wrong when he says that by playing Spider-Man forever, he’s taking an opportunity away from someone else. And even though he’s going to be paid a pretty penny for this next trilogy, one has to imagine Holland won’t want to keep putting on the spandex every other year for the rest of his life. To that end, Spider-Man 6 should feature the death of Spider-Man and the true passing of the torch to Miles Morales. To date, Marvel Studios has had no problem killing off their heroes and Spider-Man should be no different. A Miles Morales-led Spider-Man trilogy will not only be a box office boss, it’ll also be a major cultural event. Sony and Marvel Studios must know that. Also…in comics nobody is ever really dead, so if Holland gets bored he can come plan an adult Peter when he’s in his 40s. It worked for Tobey Maguire.
One of the biggest movies in the biggest film franchise of all time makes a lot of money.
Spider-Man: No Way Home was greeted with an enthusiasm from audiences all around the world that we probably haven’t seen since Avengers: Endgame. That led to it surpassing expectations in what regards its domestic debut. The incredible reviews it got, coupled with the passionate word of mouth, seems to hint at its box office tally continued growth at a steady rhythm in the coming weeks.
New characters addedto ‘Doctor Strange in the Multiverse of Madness’
726 variants of Mephisto are set to debut on the Doctor Strange sequel that’s set to premiere next year. We’ll get Grumpy Mephisto, Sleepy Mephisto, Dopey, Sneezy, and several more. According to a trade report, the movie will be setting up the Multiverse as the MCU takes a deep dive into the concept, after only tip-toeing through it in the more recent projects.
Spider-M4n is a go
The worst best-kept secret in Hollywood outside of everything regarding Spider-Man: No Way Home has been finally made public. Spider-Man 4 is confirmed to be in active development over at Marvel Studios meaning the web-slinger will continue his cinematic journey alongside, should we say, much more likable, powerful and overall heroic characters. Hopefully, this fourth solo outing, that may or may not evolve into a new trilogy (it depends if fans finally start connecting with such an obnoxious and awkward character), will focus more on a struggling Parker as he leaves his vigilante days behind him and gets a real job for once.
Karate Kid spin-off² goes back to where it all started.
Xolo Maridueña is set to become the superhero his Cobra Kai days have shown he always had the potential to be. His debut in the upcoming Blue Beetle has now moved from being an HBO Max exclusive to a full-fledged theatrical release. Hopefully, this not only hints at a hopeful future in what the COVID-19 pandemic is concerned, with audiences back in theaters but at a worthy final product that’ll justify the push to the big screen where expectations are bound to increase. Now just cast Elisabeth Shue as La Dama.
‘Hawkeye’finale being an hour long screws even more healthy sleeping schedules.
This is a bit of news that will probably anger east-coast fans as next Thursday’s productivity might be at an all-time low. For everybody else, besides being cool that we’ll be having more minutes to enjoy, it seems to hint that Hawkeye might actually resolve most of its storylines. The plot twist will probably be that the show will use those extra minutes to develop a few more unresolved storylines and have the MCU never address them ever again.
Jim Mickle is set to adapt one of the best movies you haven’t watched yet.
There’s this guy working at Marvel Comics who, ever since starting at the company, has written some of the most absurdly awesome storylines ever put to paper this century. From Doctor Strange to the Silver Surfer, Guardians of the Galaxy, and Venom, there’s hardly a character he has touched that didn’t instantly become a must-read series. But before all of this he wrote God Country, over at Image Comics. His name is Donny Cates, and he is working on the adaptation that Legendary is putting together, alongside Jim Mickle. Mickle also adapted the iconic comic series Sweet Tooth for Netflix, a series that didn’t get enough attention as it probably was in the top 5 of comic book adaptations in 2021. Meaning he should be good at his job. So being, God Country is on the right path to become a huge disappointment as it seems to have nowhere to go but down, given the quality of the source material and the talent already attached to it.
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