Earlier today, Sony Pictures released a bloody new trailer for the long-delayed Kraven the Hunter movie. On the surface, it looks like a fun, incredibly violent, action-adventure.
However, as Kraven is one of Spider-Man's greatest foes, many fans are understandably disappointed to see the Hunter turned into an animal-loving killer of men. Throw in the fact Avi Arad is producing and we're bracing ourselves for bizarre Morbius-style changes to the comics.
The new sneak peek showcases one of them as we see more of the "mutant" Rhino. That villain is a tough nut to crack; The Amazing Spider-Man 2 tried and failed to put him in a mechanical suit and it's admittedly tough to replicate the character's size on screen in his classic, skin-tight costume.
At first glance, this take on Rhino appears relatively comic-accurate. However, some new hi-res screenshots (via @Cryptic4KQual) reveal just how silly Alessandro Nivola's rampaging baddie looks here.
Not only is he wearing black pants which have somehow grown with him but Rhino's cartoonish face is truly the stuff memes are made of. Plus, looking at his size, it wouldn't have been that difficult to cast a hulking bodybuilder in the role and put him in a suit (Deadpool & Wolverine's Juggernaut is a good example of that).
"These movies all have a certain formula to them, but J.C. said that he wanted to shoot all on location," Nivola previously said of the project. "The physical ability of the characters in the movie is also more grounded in reality. People aren’t flying around or anything. J.C. described it as the most incredible Olympic athlete you’ve ever seen."
"It’s just a great character part, and I didn’t have to do any CGI," he continued. "I only transform, physically, in the final moments of the movie, so it’s just a classic villain role. It had a really interesting, complex psychology and personal history to draw on, and the movie has a time jump in it, so the character changes a lot from the way he is in the beginning of the film."
Take a closer look at Kraven the Hunter's take on Rhino below.
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 (Russell Crowe), 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.
Directed by J.C. Chandor from a story by Richard Wenk and a screenplay by Richard Wenk and Art Marcum & Matt Holloway, Kraven the Hunter is based on the Marvel Comics and produced by Avi Arad, Matt Tolmach, and David Householter.
The cast is led by Aaron Taylor-Johnson, Ariana DeBose, Fred Hechinger, Alessandro Nivola, Christopher Abbott, and Russell Crowe.
Kraven the Hunter arrives in theaters on December 13.