While Dakota Johnson’s Madame Web brought a new low to the Sony Spider-Man Universe, fans still have the Aaron Taylor-Johnson starrer Kraven The Hunter as well as Tom Hardy’s Venom: The Last Dance to see if the SSU is worth anything. Fans were not ready for a film to be worse than the meme-worthy Morbius, but Madame Web played to win in that competition.
However, Taylor-Johnson has assured fans that Kraven The Hunter is good and worth exploring in the cinemas. The Bullet Train star mentioned how the film was different from the usual franchise fare that audiences were used to and that he would not have chosen to work on it if the film did not have any potential.
The Sony Spider-Man Universe Is In Trouble After Madame Web
While Sony waits to collaborate with the MCU on the next Spider-Man film featuring Tom Holland, the studio has been churning out films based on other popular villains and heroes from the Spider-Man franchise. The Sony Spider-Man Universe, as it is called, began with Tom Hardy’s Venom, which remains the highest-rated film of the franchise.
After the sequel Venom: Let There Be Carnage, the studio focused on the trolled Jared Leto starrer Morbius. Seen as a new low for the franchise, the film became fodder for social media trolls and memes. The film was a box office bomb, earning $167 million against a $83 million budget. Funnily, Sony re-released the film, hoping for the meme trend to convert into tickets, but it failed again (via Euro News).
While the Jared Leto starrer felt like rock bottom for the franchise, fans were unpleasantly surprised when the trailer of Dakota Johnson’s Madame Web dropped. The Internet was flooded with memes, especially due to the poor dialogue writing and Johnson’s delivery. When the film was released earlier this year, it was reported to be worse than imagined.
The film became the worst-rated film in the franchise, earning a rotten 12% on Rotten Tomatoes. Morbius had a rating of 15%. The film was criticized for its writing, shoddy VFX, and convoluted storylines. Actress Sydney Sweeney, who played Julia Cornwall in the film, made fun of Madame Web when she hosted SNL. John Mulaney and Jimmy Kimmel made fun of it at the Oscars.
Aaron Taylor-Johnson Assures Fans About Kraven The Hunter
With the disappointing reaction to Madame Web, fans are now worried about the upcoming SSU film, i.e.. the Aaron Taylor-Johnson starrer Kraven The Hunter. One of Spider-Man’s most formidable foes, the film reportedly sets up the villain as an anti-hero, who, according to the Tenet star, is an animal lover and a conservationist (via Comic Book.com).
A film on Kraven The Hunter has been in development since Sam Raimi’s Spider-Man trilogy, as he reportedly wished to include the character in his canceled four-quel. After the character was teased in The Amazing Spider-Man 2, a spin-off on the Kraven The Hunter finally was in development once the SSU was established.
Despite qualms from fans about Kraven The Hunter being like Madame Web, Aaron Taylor-Johnson assured fans that the film would be better than the average studio fare and that he believed in the project. He said to Rolling Stone,
“I think there was something unique about this character, and something grounded. We’ve all had enough of seeing certain studio films, a certain kind of pop culture… where they’re churning out stuff that dilutes wanting to go to the cinema. I wouldn’t have signed onto it if I felt there wasn’t something to really bring to life with this character.”
The actor also mentioned that he was excited about the film as the comic it is based on Kraven’s Last Hunt was particularly dark and that the film’s R-rating is justified. The film also stars Ariana DeBose, Russell Crowe, and Christopher Abbott. While The Fall Guy star seems to be enthusiastic about the film, fans seem to have heard this tune way too many times with respect to the SSU.
