Sony says it’s not searching for a new Peter Parker
Sony Pictures representatives deny this week’s Big Internet Rumor that the studio is considering a replacement for Tobey Maguire in Spider-Man 4.
According to IESB, some websites were even asked to remove the link to the original story, reported by Latino Review. IESB quotes Sony’s Steve Elzer as saying the rumor is false, and that, “No one is being considered for the role but Tobey. Period.”
Of course, I have to point out that Maguire’s interest in donning the red-and-blue tights again appears tepid at best, and largely contingent on the participation of director Sam Raimi.
The Ticker
• Marvel Studios’ Kevin Feige envisions The Incredible Hulk as only the first part of “an on-going saga,” with the Green Goliath possibly appearing in other Marvel movies: “The sky’s the limit right now and it’s us being very cautious about how we do these crossovers so we don’t collapse under our own weight. … I never want to lose track of what the characters are really about so I want each of the franchises, knock on wood, to stand on their own two feet and the inter-connectivity between them to be that extra bit of fun for fans, comic fans and everyone who stayed in their seats for the Nick Fury scene at the end of Iron Man are now, you can consider them, whether they read comics or not, now Marvel fans and part of the bigger continuity.” [IESB]
• Hollywood producer William Teitler (The Polar Express) has signed on for the South Korean giant-robot movie Robot Taekwon V, based on a 1976 animated movie and a more recent comic series. Won Shin-yeon will direct the live-action feature. [The Hollywood Reporter]
• The July issue of Empire magazine has two Dark Knight covers, one with Batman and the other with The Joker. But the Joker edition goes further, with “defaced” pages. You can see an interactive preview at the magazine’s website. [Empire]
• Garbage lead singer Shirley Manson has joined the cast of Fox’s Terminator: The Sarah Connor Chronicles. [The Hollywood Reporter]
• Eight superheroes who deserve a shot at a movie franchise reboot. [IGN]
• With the addition of Doomsday next season, does Smallville have “a big villain problem”? [BuddyTV]
May 29th, 2008 at 10:16 am
Great, a forty yr old Spidey…
May 29th, 2008 at 10:22 am
Feige’s contention everyone who stayed after the credits are now “Marvel fans” is the kind of lame salesmanship I didn’t expect from him. Monday after Iron Man, newspapers reported the Nick Fury bit was not just a lame little moment, but actually a tease for the sequel, which it very well may be, but certainly people stayed to see what was coming next, not to hear Bendis’s bad movie dialogue.
For example, of the four couples who were sitting through the credits with us the last time I saw the movie… I can safely assume not one of the girlfriends or wives is now a “Marvel fan.”
Feige should be slapping himself on the back–getting people to sit through fifteen minutes of credits for an awful tag is an achievement, but it’s not a fan recruiter.
May 29th, 2008 at 10:34 am
Doomsday in Smallville?
Alright, now it’s getting ridiculous.
May 29th, 2008 at 10:36 am
What was so awful about the tag? While I agree that if you’re not already a Marvel fan, it didn’t really matter, but I also didn’t think the scene was lame. It was just another teaser/easter egg for people.
Chill out, dude.
May 29th, 2008 at 10:41 am
Why does keeping Maguire make it “40 year old Spidey?” The Harry Potter kids are all playing younger than they really are, and let’s not get started about shows like 90120. I’m not even sure how old Tobey is (I’m guessing he’s around my age, 38), but he certainly doesn’t look 40. Just looking at him, I’d place him late 20’s or early 30’s.
For all of S3’s problems, I don’t think Maguire was ever a problem. I thought he waas great casting from the start, and he delivered in the first two movies. Spidey needs a reboot, or at least a complete 180 from the crapfest that was S3, but there’s no need to go replacing Maguire. If he’s willing to do another, stick with him.
Oh, and for the record I don’t think Spidey needs to perpetually stay in high school or college. He is called Spider-MAN after all.
May 29th, 2008 at 10:42 am
Sorry, I meant 90210. Whatever. You get the idea.
May 29th, 2008 at 10:47 am
All of the franchises (or potential franchises) IGN lists are ones that need a serious reboot. Superman, more than any of them.
I think a strong case can also be made for Spider-Man (though a total reboot may not be necessary, and I think it would also be too soon)and X-Men.
I was rather fond of the first two X-movies, but they dropped the ball with X3. From what I’m reading about the Wolverine prequel, it sound like they’re throwing way too many characters into the mix (The Blob? Honestly?) and it doesn’t sound good. X4 was needed after they left things open for both Xaiver’s and Cyclops to return, but since that’s not happening a reboot would be a good thing.
May 29th, 2008 at 10:49 am
Liked the tag, a lot. And when I explained the personage to my friends who stayed with me ( and pointed out the three striped scar running over Nick Fury’s eye) we had a great night at a bar discussung crossover potential.
When you explain the scope of a ” comic universe” to certain people it might seem daunting. The tag was the perfect way to initiate that ” universal” feel in the simplest way possible, while teasing for sequels.
Very well done.
May 29th, 2008 at 10:55 am
I have to be honest, I’m ready for a change with Spider-Man. Toby, Sam, and Dunst did a great job with I and II, but I think it’s time to breathe new life into the franchise. That, or bring the characters back to what made them lovable. Spider-Man III turned them into rather unlikable characters, which is never a good thing in the Spider-Man mythos.
May 29th, 2008 at 11:33 am
Shaun: Tobey Maguire is 33.
May 29th, 2008 at 12:20 pm
” I can safely assume not one of the girlfriends or wives is now a “Marvel fan.””
I’m going to disagree with you. I’d defiantly say Iron Man made my gf a marvel or at least an Iron Man fan. It wasn’t the first hero movie I took her too. It was the first she asked me to take her to a second time though.
May 29th, 2008 at 12:45 pm
Who the hell wants ANOTHER Spiderman movie?
Oh, that’s right! The Fanboys.
NVM.
May 29th, 2008 at 12:51 pm
I am happy to hear that Tobey McGuire will still be Peter Parker/Spiderman. Nothing against the actor or any other actors considering the role, but they simply can’t replace Tobey, in the Marvel Movie Universe, he is and will forever be Peter Parker/Spiderman.
May 29th, 2008 at 12:51 pm
Here’s the deal - as much as I enjoyed Maguire and Dunst in the first two films, if they don’t want to take part in any further films, then regardless of how professional they are about it, it’s going to show in their performances. If they want out, it’s best for all sides to let them go, with no hard feelings.
May 29th, 2008 at 1:14 pm
I’d like to see Tobey Maguire back, but they should get rid of Kirsten Dunst- she was fine in the first one, okay in the second, but she didn’t even seem interested in opening her eyes more than halfway in the third. Bryce Dallas Howard really seemed to enjoy herself as Gwen Stacy. I say stick with Gwen
May 29th, 2008 at 1:15 pm
So long as Maguire is happy in the part, that’s the main thing. How many crapfests have we had to sit through where it’s blindingly obvious the cast were hating it?
Reboot of the Spidey franchise or not, I don’t care, so long as it’s good. Yes, I’d prefer it if Sam Raimi was directing and the full cast came back (especially JK Simmons, who was absolutely perfect!). But if it’s good, I can get over it.
May 29th, 2008 at 2:08 pm
yeah i mean we need the original cast for the next installment. while Sam Raimi is in the director chair, everything is gonna be good, he doesn’t do another emo montage.
May 29th, 2008 at 2:20 pm
After seeing the quality of SM3(and to be honest 1 and some of 2) and the way the cast promoted it(and clearly wanted no part in it) I say,get rid of the whole cast other than JK.Directors and cast can always be replaced,there are those special cases where it’s magic but the SM movies and cast are iffy at best and replacable.(LOL,to people saying dunst was great)
The Crow should be rebooted and Superman hasn’t punched anything is the dumbest complaint about the superman movies I’ve ever read.
“An on going saga” and “whether they read comics or not, now Marvel fans and part of the bigger continuity.”
Lol,theres no on going saga,it’s just a bunch of poorly done movies vaguely connected to sell product.There not Marvel fans,there fans of the movie characters which are completely different from there comic counter parts.People don’t care about the comics.
May 29th, 2008 at 2:28 pm
So… You like the lack of action and credible threats Superman has battled in his movies thus far? IMO, it cheapens the character knowing that the jokey, two-bit crook version of Luthor played by Hackman and Spacey can honestly stand up to Superman.
What they did 1978 was about as good as they could for the time period (though I thought making time go backward was really stupid, even when I was eight) but in the 21st century? No, the article had it right. Let’s see Supes do battle with Brainiac, Mongul, Darkseid and Doomsday. Let’s see some epic, cosmic, slugfests.
It doesn’t mean you can’t have a good story too. LOTR was loaded with epic battles, but there’s still a great story with great characters in all of that.
Besides, they can’t do much worse (storywise) than making Supes out to be jilted stalker and deadbeat dad who also abandoned Earth shortly after promising the president he wouldn’t.
May 29th, 2008 at 3:09 pm
Thank the heavens!
May 29th, 2008 at 3:21 pm
That’s mostly true Shaun but look at what you said.All that is from poor writing,directing and production not from Superman not having punched anything.Supermans problem has always been the people running the show.
Superman the Movie is known as a classic.Superman isn’t flying around punching anybody in it.It’s how well you present the character in the movie.
The problem is Superman is so good at everything(especially the space messiah movie version)that he has a lack of threats.That’s why even though it’s good for his character he kind of has to battle things he can’t beat with his fists.The Dini/Timm Brainiac is perfect for the movies though and Darkseid as well.
May 29th, 2008 at 4:37 pm
There were definite parts that took me out of the Spidey movies and while I do have my complaints with them, as a whole, they were entertaining.
Having said that, I don’t think the franchise needs a ‘reboot’ but I say yes to letting another director and cast take a kick at Spidey 4, 5 and 6. Raimi was not ‘perfect’ and a new cast might inject a favourable new interpretation and energy to the franchise.
Also, note to Sony, don’t cram in villains for the sake of it. I’d rather see one villain done properly than two or three done meagerly.
Villains I want to see in a Spidey 4, 5 and 6 (no particular order):
Lizard
Mysterio (yes, I said it. Mysterio).
Electro
Hobgoblin (in comic book costume)
Scorpion
Spider-Slayers
Venom (done right)
Morbius
Manwolf
Overall, I am impressed with Marvel’s output, it should be even better now that they have total control of some of their characters coming to film.
May 29th, 2008 at 7:38 pm
Tobey should be 36 by the time the next one comes out, assuming they stay on schedule. That’s still pretty OK, as long as he keeps in shape. Really, though, he needs some in costume snappy dialogue. His “i’m the sheriff here” in SM3 was just wince-inducing; Downey Jr. had snappier dialogue as Iron Man when he was fighting Obadiah Stane! (Then again, Downey Jr. is a much, much better actor than Tobey) But the point is we’ve had enough of the self-pity Spider-Man lavishes on himself for three movies. It was fine in 1 and 2, but simply went over the limit in 3. It’s time for a new direction.
May 29th, 2008 at 7:50 pm
Fair enough, Yawn… While I don’t think Supes: The Movie has aged particulary well, it is indeed a classic. Even with its faults. I just think that taking that same approach (which is exactly what Singer & Co. did with Supes Returns, almost verbatim) showed just how dated and out of touch it is now. What worked pretty well in 1978 didn’t work so well in 2006.
So, no, it’s not simply a matter of Superman punching someone/something. It’s what you do with the character. You’re right about that. But giving him challengers worthy of his awesome powers would be a start. And that would probably mean throwing a few punches here and there.
Once in a while, it would just be nice to watch Supes kick some ass and seriously use his powers.
May 30th, 2008 at 6:10 am
“For example, of the four couples who were sitting through the credits with us the last time I saw the movie… I can safely assume not one of the girlfriends or wives is now a “Marvel fan.””
HA! My wife was a fan before we sat through the credits. Just because you can’t bag a chick that has similar interests, doesn’t mean they don’t exist or that other guys can’t.
May 30th, 2008 at 7:23 am
I don’t think the spider-man franchise needs a reboot. There was a stumble in S3, but I don’t blame that on any of the actors…the script was off…they tried to cram too much in and the movie suffered from over-action and over-cheesed emotional scenes. Everything they got right in S2 they pushed too far in S3. They need to get back to basics, sure, but I don’t think the franchise is lost.