Last month, IESB reported a rumor claiming that Spider-Man 4 had been put on hold due to disputes over an incomplete script. It was claimed that Raimi was at odds with the studio over which villain would be used in the next movie(apparently he wanted The Vulture). Because of this the production was said to be put on "indefinite hold". But these were quickly shot down as rumors by Sony, who claimed production was moving forward on schedule.
Wellllllll....
According to Nikki Finke and her inside sources, the initial report was on the level. She reprints an email that went out on December 11th 2009 to the Spider-Man 4 special effects crew which says:
“We were just notified that our schedule is pushing. We will NOT be starting as planned. I’m terribly sorry for this news, and I hope this email reaches you in time to find other options. We do not know how long we are pushing, and we will not know until mid-January. By mid-January, we will be told how long the push is, whether it be 2 weeks, 2 months, or something else. The studio has every intention of making the movie, but we no longer have a confirmed start date. Again, I’m terribly sorry, but Sam Raimi has story issues [that] need to be resolved before we are ready to shoot.”
According to Finke, Raimi hates the lastest draft of the script and they are now waiting on a new version from screenwriter Alvin Sargent, who worked on both Spider-Man 2 and 3. What this means is that it is very unlikely that Sony will be able to deliver the film to theaters on the announced May 11th, 2011 release date. She also claims that Anne Hathaway really was in the running for an unspecified role, but was nixed because her price tag was too high!
Of course, that still remains rumor until confirmed but that email speaks for itself. Ah well, I don't mind waiting as long as Raimi delivers a good movie. Heres hoping.
Thanks to /film for the info.
About The Author:
Mark Cassidy is a writer, photographer, amateur filmmaker, and Rotten Tomatoes-approved critic from Dublin, Ireland.