The recent announcement by Sony Entertainment CEO Michael Lynton that the company has the “ambition about creating a bigger universe around Spider-Man” raises a plethora of questions for fans of the Marvel universe and fans of the Spider-Man franchise in particular.
The obvious question is which characters will see their own script and which will have to settle for cameos or – worst of all – remain locked in the comic books where they originated. Not every character is fit for service as a main role, but every fan has his or her own opinion about which characters are lead material and which are not.
Other questions are less obvious: How will less widely recognized characters be introduced? Will they have to appear as a secondary character in an already established series, such as The Amazing Spider-Man? Or would it be enough to have a recognized character like Spider-Man make a cameo appearance in the film, reminiscent of Captain America's surprise appearance in Thor: The Dark World?
Another missing detail is whether the spin-offs will be blockbuster movies, TV series, web-exclusive episodes, or another format altogether.
Below are suggestions that have already been put forward for likely Spider-Man spinoff movie candidates, thanks to WallStCheatSheet.com.
Venom
“Considering Sony’s previous interest in pursuing a Venom spinoff film, this is likely to be the first film in the extended Spider-Man universe that hits production.
“Venom first appeared in Marvel comics in the 1980s and is the dual-life form between a symbiote, a sentient alien, and one of its many hosts. While the symbiote’s first host was Spider-Man, the hero would later reject the symbiote only for it to merge with Eddie Brock — a reporter at the Daily Globe whose career was disgraced when he was proved to have fabricated a story revealing the identity of the Sin-Eater.”
Carnage
“One of the most popular villains in Spider-Man’s rogues gallery, Carnage is likely to make an appearance in any film that includes Venom. Not only does Carnage share the same symbiote roots as Venom, but the supervillian also acquired his powers when his alter-ego Cletus Kasady shared a prison cell with Eddie Brock following his defeat by Spider-Man.”
Black Cat
“According to the original Spider-Man trilogy director Sam Raimi, Black Cat was already set to be heavily featured in Spider-Man 4 had Sony pursued it, rather than decide to reboot the series. Even more interesting is the fact that actress Anne Hathaway was at the top of the list to play the character — something that would have further made the similarities between Black Cat and Catwoman clear to those unfamiliar with the Spider-Man character.”
Scarlet Spider
“Scarlet Spider first appeared in Web of Spider-Man #118 and has had several different identities, including Ben Reilly, Peter Parker, and Joe Wade.
“Scarlet Spider is one of the bigger long-shots to make an appearance in the Amazing Spider-Man films because his origin involves subject matter that can often seem silly even by superhero movie standards.”
Spider-Woman
“We can probably blame Catwoman and Batman and Robin, but female-based superheroes are definitely not getting the attention they deserve at studios at the moment, meaning Spider-Woman is likely a long-shot to make an appearance in The Amazing Spider-Man series. But given Warner Bros.’ goal of putting Wonder Woman on the big screen, along with rumors of an appearance in the Man of Steel sequel, its definitely a possibility that some sort of iteration of Spider-Woman is in the cards, even if it isn’t a major role.”
Toxin
“When it comes to the slew of characters sourced from the alien symbiote, Toxin is the lesser known of the group which includes Venom and Carnage. The third major symbiote of the Spider-Man series, Toxin is the result of Carnage’s symbiote 'offspring' and New York City cop Patrick Mulligan. Carnage and Venom would later team-up to take on Toxin before Spider-Man joined the fray to support Toxin, defeating the two and pushing Toxin to pursue good.”
...Aunt May?
Sure, she's not a superheroine, but she could be. Film adaptations are notorious for getting key details wrong – I would only be
mildly shocked to see an Aunt May spin-off.
Check out this tongue-in-cheek discussion of ways Aunt May could be added to the pantheon of Marvel heroes.
The Hollywood Reporter has also suggested:
- Alpha
- Captain Marvel
- Cloak and Dagger
- Firestar
- Green Goblin
- Jackpot
- Man-Wolf
- Morbius
- Silver Sable
What Do You Think? Let us know in the comments which of these suggestions are a stretch and which you would be excited to see on the big screen.
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