Tobey Maguire’s Spider-Man 4 was canceled in 2010 after years of being stuck in development. One of the reasons for the cancelation was Sam Raimi’s withdrawal from the project after the director had informed the studio that he could not meet the planned May 2011 release date. More than a decade later, Raimi has revealed to a fan that there’s a chance of Spider-Man 4 actually happening because he has the same desire as we do.
This fan interaction is not the first time Raimi has talked about Spider-Man 4 in recent years. He expressed his interest in making a fourth film in his Spider-Man film series after Tobey Maguire appeared in the MCU film Spider-Man: No Way Home.
Sam Raimi May Reunite With Tobey Maguire For Spider-Man 4 Sooner Than Fans Thought
Sam Raimi recently appeared at the Monster-Mania Con held at Cherry Hill, New Jersey, on March 8-10, 2024. Longtime Spider-Man fan and X user, @LukasASoaresRM, met with the director and had a short interaction, about which he posted to his X account. When the fan asked him about a potential fourth film after the Spider-Man trilogy, Raimi shared a positive update that there are chances of the film happening.
Raimi revealed that he has as much desire as fans of the original trilogy to see Tobey Maguire return to the role of the web-slinger. Raimi added that if the film were to happen, it would be at the right time.
Ele me disse que há chances sim disso ocorrer pelo simples fato dele ter a mesma vontade que nós temos. Mas se for pra acontecer, será no momento certo. 4/6
— Lukas A. Soares (@LukasASoaresRM) March 9, 2024
Sam Raimi on “Spider-Man 4”:
“He told me that there are chances of this happening simply because he has the same desire as we do. But if it is to happen, it will be at the right time.”
(Via: @LukasASoaresRM) pic.twitter.com/UMKo8dcXT4
— Sam Raimi Updates (@SamRaimiUpdates) March 9, 2024
In 2021, Maguire appeared as Peter Parker from an alternate universe in the MCU film, Spider-Man: No Way Home. Following the appearance, the original trilogy fans campaigned for a fourth film with Raimi at the helm, under the hashtag #MakeRaimiSpiderMan4 (via CBR). Raimi also expressed his interest in making such a film during the promotion of Doctor Strange in the Multiverse of Madness.
During an interview on the Moviepilot YouTube channel, the Evil Dead director noted that a fourth film was now possible due to the introduction of the multiverse, especially after the different versions of Spider-Man crossed paths in No Way Home. However, in an interview with Rolling Stone a month later, Raimi shared that he had no plans to direct Spider-Man 4 at that time.
However, he revealed that he would change his mind if he came across a story that he would approve of. The script was a reason why Raimi dropped the fourth film plan in the first place in 2010.
Why Was Sam Raimi’s Spider-Man 4 Canceled In 2010?
Not just Spider-Man 4, but Sony also engaged writers to pen scripts for Spider-Man 5 and Spider-Man 6 with Tobey Maguire in the lead. The fourth film entered development in 2007, despite the third film receiving some major criticism from critics and audiences. James Vanderbilt was first hired to write the screenplay, followed by Pulitzer-winner David Lindsay-Abaire and later Gary Ross.
By 2010, the production had undergone four iterations of the script from different screenwriters, and Raimi still was not satisfied with them (via Deadline). In addition, the studio was putting more pressure on the director to meet the planned release date of the film, May 6, 2011. Raimi finally walked out of the project, and Sony had no option but to cancel the entire sequels.
Interestingly, if Raimi’s fourth film happened, we could have seen John Malkovich’s Vulture, Dylan Baker’s Dr. Curt Connors, and Anne Hathaway‘s Felicia Hardy. All films in the Spider-Man original trilogy are now available for streaming on Disney+.
