Sony’s Spider-Man Universe movies (like Morbius and Madame Web) don’t have a good reputation. Will you still give Kraven the Hunter a chance?
Sony’s Marvel Comics adaptation Kraven the Hunter is set to reach theatres on December 13th – and the film’s director, J. C. Chandor (A Most Violent Year), is hoping movie-goers will give Kraven the chance to wash away the bad tase left by some of Sony’s other Marvel adaptations (like Morbius and Madame Web).
Directed by Chandor from a screenplay by Richard Wenk, Art Marcum, and Matt Holloway, Kraven the Hunter has the following synopsis: Kraven the Hunter is the visceral, action-packed origin story of how and why one of Marvel’s most iconic villains came to be. Aaron Taylor-Johnson plays Kraven, a man whose complex relationship with his ruthless father, Nikolai Kravinoff, starts him down a path of vengeance with brutal consequences, motivating him to become not only the greatest hunter in the world, but also one of its most feared.
Aaron Taylor-Johnson stars as the title character and is joined in the cast by Ariana DeBose as voodoo priestess Calypso Ezili, Fred Hechinger as Kraven’s estranged brother and master of disguise Dmitri Smerdyakov / Chameleon, Alessandro Nivola as Russian mercenary and human-rhino hybrid Aleksei Sytsevich / Rhino, Christopher Abbott as a mercenary and assassin known as the Foreigner, and Russell Crowe as Kraven’s estranged father, the ruthless crime lord Nikolai Kravinoff.
Kraven the Hunter is, along with Morbius, Madame Web, and the Venom trilogy, part of Sony’s Spider-Man Universe (which was formerly known as the Sony Pictures Universe of Marvel Characters), which consists of Marvel adaptations that doesn’t have the creative team of Marvel Studios behind them, so therefore they’re not part of the Marvel Cinematic Universe. Sony is able to make these films because they own the movie rights to all characters that were originally introduced in the pages of Spider-Man comics.
When asked if he’s worried that the bad reputation of Sony’s Spider-Man Universe will have a negative impact on his movie, Chandor told ComicBook.com, “I don’t want to get too into the nitty gritty of it, but here’s what I would say: for me as a filmmaker, my number one goal, especially, quite frankly, over the last couple of years where you guys are deep in this world … some of the fans out there, a lot of the fans, were upset with certain decisions and certain outcomes [of Sony’s Spider-Man Universe]. Then with other films, they’ve gone on to be tremendous successes. So there’s been there’s been a mixed success rate. People have got to give us a chance and come out and support this film, and literally try to wash away some of the other stuff that’s happened. Give our film a chance.“
Taylor-Johnson, who is rumored to be in the running to play James Bond, recently recommended the film to fans of the Bond franchise as well.
Are you looking forward to Kraven the Hunter, despite the bad reputation of Sony’s Spider-Man Universe? Share your thoughts on this one by leaving a comment below.