If there is one movie in Marvel’s Phase 3 that is at the top of most people’s watch list it’s Spider-Man. Information may be a bit thin on the ground at the moment but that won’t stop the new director and writers from talking about the potential tone and theme of their Webslinger’s film.
Of course with this being the 6th Spider-Man movie in less than a 15 year period, Marvel and Sony have quite a task ahead of them to make sure that the character stands above the rest. Jon Watts seems confident though that, with the Marvel-Sony collaboration and the new casting of Peter Parker, Spider-Man will fit right in with the Phase 3 movies and the quality people expect from a Marvel Studios production. On the subject of the selection of a younger actor, Tom Holland, Watts had this to say to EW:
“He can be a real high school student. That’s why people love Spider-Man. He’s the most grounded, relatable of superheroes. And Tom can really do that. He captures that. And he can do a standing back-flip. He’s perfect.”
Marvel has had trouble in the past balancing the creative vision of their directors with the needs of the wider universe. Watts doesn’t seem phased by this either though, and is at this stage enthusiastic about the project.
“I mean, it’s a big universe, so everyone sort of works with each other to make sure that there’s continuity and that it all fits together,” he said. “It’s really exciting actually. We’re just getting started, working on the script and all that, but it’s going to be a great process.”
Separately, in an interview with USA Today, the new writers talked about the general themes and direction for the script. This focused a lot on things they wanted to do differently from previous incarnations of the character.
“The main difference, I think, is that the tone will be very grounded and really about a real kid who gets the powers and what that means to a geeky, outcast kid and how he deals with them. You don’t instantly become a superhero; it’s a long journey.”
Audiences will see Peter Parker first in Captain America: Civil War which releases May next year, helmed by the Russo brothers. The untitled Spider-Man reboot will according to Kevin Feige draw heavily on the 1980s John Hughes movies such as The Breakfast Club and Ferris Bueller’s Day Off. Watts seems to like this comparison and reiterates that much of Peter Parker’s life was spent trying to find a balance between his normal life and his superhero antics.
“The thing that everyone keeps saying is that it’s sort of like the John Hughes version of Spider-Man, which I think is a really cool take on it. He’s in high school, and the questions that that raises I think we haven’t explored as much as we can. In the comics so much of it was about him juggling his high school life and trying to be a superhero. I think there’s a lot to do there.”
The collaborative ‘Sony-Marvel’ Spider-Man film will release in 2017 with Kevin Feige producing, Jon Watts directing and Tom Holland starring. For more movie, TV and gaming news keep it locked right here at TiCGN!
