The news of Spider-Man’s imminent arrival in Marvel’s cinematic universe is still generating a lot of discussion, debate, and questions, but a few recent reports have shed more light on what the move means for the webslinger’s big-screen future.
The initial announcement of the deal between Sony Pictures and Marvel Studios indicated that The Amazing Spider-Man and The Amazing Spider-Man 2 star Andrew Garfield won’t return as Peter Parker, but didn’t offer any details about what sort of actor the studio was targeting as a replacement. However, an update on the news via The Hollywood Reporter indicates that the studios are looking for an actor “much younger” than 31-year-old Garfield, who played high-school-aged Peter Parker in the 2012 film and a recent high-school graduate in the 2014 sequel. Series director Marc Webb will not return either.
Sony will have final say on the actor chosen for the role, according to the deal.
Variety also reports that Sony is still planning to produce the villain-centric Sinister Six movie, as well as the long-rumored Venom movie based on Spider-Man’s infamous enemy. Given that most of the villains who were expected to make up the Sinister Six cast were introduced in The Amazing Spider-Man 2, it’s uncertain whether there will be a different lineup for the film or simply new actors cast in the known roles.
The previously announced female-centric Spider-Man spinoff movie is also still in the works, according to the report, but Marvel Studios and president/producer Kevin Feige are not expected to oversee any of the spinoffs at this point.
