Yeah, I know…most of us Venom purists out there (of which I happily count myself among) were pretty convinced that casting Topher Grace as Eddie Brock was some kind of insult, either that or the result of the studio being utterly convinced we all had the mental candlepower of certain kinds of fish.
But I got one real good reason to cheer up and look forward to that Venom movie–two of the writers come from Zombieland.
Ohhhhh yeah. One of the freakiest looking action horror titles of the year and they’ll be writing the Venom movie. Apparently the script is already in Marvel’s hands, and from here it’s all a matter of getting it produced. The current suspicion is that Spider Man 4 will actually be used to set up the Venom movie, so it’ll be at least two years before Venom actually gets a watchable big screen experience. Ah well…we’ve waited longer for worse, and I’m definitely looking forward to this one.
No cameos for the B-movie horror industry’s leading chin, Bruce Campbell, in the future installments of the Spider Man series, no sir! In fact, by all reports, he’s looking to play a MAJOR role this time around.
The only problem is, Sam Raimi thus far has been very hush hush about it all–not even Campbell knows just what that “major” role is. Of course, there’s speculation. Maybe he’ll tackle Mysterio’s part. Maybe he’ll wind up being Spider-Man in some kind of future setting. I personally thought he’d make a great J. Jonah Jameson.
There are a whole lot of possibilities here, and with each being nearly as likely as the other to be the right possibility, all we can do is sit, wait, and hash it out endlessly over the sheer array of possibilities. However, we won’t have long to wait–filming on this one begins January of 2010, with an eye toward releasing it May of 2011.
Variety reports that Pleasantville director Gary Ross has been brought aboard by Sony to rewrite the Spider-Man 4 project. Columbia Pictures and Marvel hopes to put the film into production early next year.
Ross has had a wide ranging career, and this move comes from his growing relationship with Sony. He is also currently rewriting to direct a film about Lance Armstrong, the famous cyclist who won seven Tour de France titles, and more. He also worked with the studio on Tokyo Suckerpunch, which is he expected to direct next.
Spider-Man 4 has been a long time coming, starting with James Vanderbilt and then rewritten by David Lindsay-Abaire.
Marvel Studios has revised its plans for the release of its upcoming film properties, pushing two films back by a year. However, this means that 2011 will be an awesome year for superhero fans. Here’s the new schedule:
May 7th 2010: "Iron Man 2" (same date)
May 6th 2011: "Spider-Man 4" (just announced)
June 17th 2011: "Thor" (delayed a full year)
July 22nd 2011: "The First Avenger: Captain America" (delayed two months)
May 4th 2012: "The Avengers" (delayed ten months)
The company appears to have firmly planted its superhero seeds in every summer, as they had Spider-Man 3 in 2007, Iron Man in 2008, Wolverine this year and now three films up to 2012.
2011 also appears to be quite crowded, seeing as how the studio aims to open three films over the space of eleven weeks. And there’s also expectations that the next Batman film will be out sometime that summer as well.
Spider-Man 4 is close to gaining a Pulitzer Prize-winning playwright to pen the script. David Lindsay-Abaire,
who won a Pulitzer in 2007 for his drama “Rabbit Hole,” is in final negotiations to write for Columbia.
Plot factors are zipped shut.
Scribes have always been an important factor in Spider-Man movies. Veteran scriber, Alvin Sargent, best known for 1973’s Paper Moon and 1980’s Ordinary People, served as a writer on the second and third films. Michael Chabon, another Pulitzer winner, also worked on Spider-Man 2.
James Vanderbilt, who wrote Zodiac and X-Men: Origins of Wolverine, previously wrote a draft of Spider-Man 4.
Signing Lindsay-Abaire shows that filmmakers are intent to focus on character, something that got lost in the third installment with a rather convoluting plot. Characterization has always been the key to Spider-Man franchise success. It’s good to see it coming back.
Sam Raimi and Tobey Maguire are back with a good chance Kirsten Dunst is expected to return as well.
With the Spider-Man 4 vehicle slowly moving into production, franchise director Sam Raimi expressed his excitement for the film, and then some.
"I’m really excited about Spider-Man, and I’m hoping to direct it" he told MTV. "I don’t have a script yet, but production would start probably by March of 2010, I’m guessing."
"It sounds like a long time away, but we need a script first, and a lot of pre-production has to take place," Raimi continued. He hopes that Dunst will be back for the sequel.
Additionally, he talked about the possible back-to-back sequels: “It’s Amy Pascal’s [Sony studio chief] decision. I don’t think it has been decided yet, and she’s the one that’s really going to make that decision; I’m really curious myself."
The movie is expected to be released sometime in 2012.
Director Sam Raimi and lead protagonist Tobey Maguire are in for both Spider-Man 4 and 5, but Kirsten Dunst, the spider’s squeeze, was to be confirmed. Mark her off the unconfirmed list, as Dunst told MTV that she’s in as Mary Jane Watson.
"I’m in," she said as a matter of fact. However, she would not offer any details.
Spider-Man 4 is expected to be released May 2011.
Fancy a visit to the not-in-production-yet set of Spider-Man 4? Bid for it on eBay, as Stand Up to Cancer, in conjunction with Sony Pictures, is offering a package that includes not just a visit to the set for one shooting day, but also a meet and greet with the cast, as well as a walk-on/extra role in the film. They will also throw in a trip to the New York premiere event, designer outfits to wear to the premiere for winner and guest from top designers; plus, the winner and guest gets to walk the premiere’s red carpet.
The auction is currently running and ends on September 5. Remember, it’s all going to charity, so if you can afford it, bid high!
No information on the film is yet available. Nope, not even who is involved yet. Sony, however, wants the film to be out by 2011.
On /Film is word that Spider-Man 4 will hit theaters in May 2011, or at least that’s what Sony Pictures is hoping for. It was confirmed by series producer Laura Ziskin who notified the theaters owners of this.
Ziskin also revealed that screenwriter James Vanderbilt has not yet turned in a final screenplay, and that they are hopeful to stick to a 2011 schedule.
The film may see the original crew return, along with director Sam Raimi who was reportedly "excited to read" the screenplay. No stars have yet been signed on, though Sony has gone on record to say that they want Tobey Maguire back for the fourth film.
