More From Marc Webb On TASM 2; Says Fourth Film "Might Not Just Be A SPIDER-MAN Movie"
Further discussing why Mary Jane Watson (Shailene Woodley) was cut from The Amazing Spider-Man 2 and her "very minor" role, director Marc Webb also discusses casting Paul Giamatti as The Rhino and suggests that the confirmed fourth installment will be much bigger than the franchise's usual.
Speaking with Crave Online at San Diego Comic-Con, The Amazing Spider-Man 2 director Marc Webb talks more about what to expect from the highly anticipated sequel and beyond. He reiterates prior comments about Shailene Woodley's Mary Jane Watson being cut from the film to focus on Peter Parker and Gwen Stacy's relationship (as for whether or not she could pop up in a post credits scene, he says, "Not in this one. Well, maybe. I don't wanna give the plot away."), and he also discusses casting Paul Giamiatti as Aleksei Sytsevich/The Rhino, praising his enthusiasm for the role. He then comments on how the villain is featured in the sequel's storyline, and also dodges the question of whether his take on he's inspired more by the Ultimateor 616 version. Finally, Webb teases just how big the recently announced fourth installment (which is set for a May 4th, 2018 release, while the third movie will debut June 10th, 2016) will be by the time so many characters have been introduced in the first three films, saying that it might not just be a Spider-Man movie. Could we see other heroes fighting alongside the Web-Slinger by then? It has been widely speculated that the Sinister Six will battle Spider-Man in The Amazing Spider-Man 4. What do you think?
On Why Mary Jane Watson Was Cut From The Amazing Spider-Man 2 And Just How Small Her Role Was:
"The character was just teased. It was a very minor inflection and I felt it was important to really focus on Peter and Gwen's storyline. It was hard because I love Shai. I think she's such a brilliant actor and such a lovely, wonderful warm person. That was hard and having her presence in a movie is great but I thought it was important to focus on Peter and Gwen. I'm excited to see Spectacular Now, though."
On Casting Paul Giamiatti As The Rhino:
"Listen, it's not the whole storyline. It's not deeply integrated into the plot. He's not distracting, I think he's really elemental and fun to play around with and incredibly justified but it also allows, I think, hardcore fans a chance to see what we do with him, with that character in a way that has enough nuance to feel real but doesn't distract from the film.
"I'll tell you what I like about both of them [616 and Ultimate versions of the character]. The real truth is, I saw Paul Giamatti on Conan O'Brien, talking about The Rhino and how much he loved it and I was like, I love Paul Giamatti and I think he's such a brilliant actor, so, I wanted to incorporate that enthusiasm that he had in the movie. As you might now, the introduction to that character is before the suit."
On What To Expect From A Fourth Movie And Introducing Multiple Characters In The Series:
"Well, I think this was conceived of as a trilogy so there was a defined architecture to the story we were telling and we had sort of a rough outline of what was going to happen. I think [for] the fourth movie, what we've discovered is there are so many ancillary characters, that have enormous, cinematic potential that there may be other ways to exploit those characters, in a way that is exciting and fun and worthwhile. It might not just be a Spider-Man movie.
"I think there's… You know, what was fun about the comics is that there's an entire sort of encyclopedia of characters and stories and histories and nuances and idiosyncrasies and off-shoots. I think that that is something that seems to be really successful and has a lot of potential so it's sort of, as yet, undefined, but intentionally so."
The Amazing Spider-Man 2 stars Andrew Garfield, Emma Stone, Jamie Foxx, Shailene Woodley, Dane DeHaan, Colm Feore, Paul Giamatti, Chris Cooper, Felicity Jones and Sally Field. The film is set to hit theaters May 2nd, 2014.