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Updates Will Sony Spin Spidey Reboot With Webb?
Updates EXCLUSIVE: ‘SPIDER-MAN 4′ SCRAPPED; SAM RAIMI & TOBEY MAGUIRE & CAST OUT; FRANCHISE REBOOT FOR 2012
Updates EXCLUSIVE: ‘Spider-Man 4′ Officially Has No Start Date As Of Today Because Of Script Problems; Sony “Unlikely” To Make Scheduled May 5, 2011, Release Date
You read it here first on January 13th. Today an Internet site tried to claim credit — and then got it wrong. There’s only standard language about sequels in the deal with Webb who’s not locked in for the franchise by any means. And the money he was reportedly paid is also inaccurate. Sheesh!
CULVER CITY, Calif., January , 2010 – Marc Webb, the director of the Golden Globe nominated Best Picture (500) Days of Summer, will direct the next chapter in the Spider-Man franchise, set to hit theaters summer 2012, it was jointly announced today by Columbia Pictures and Marvel Studios.
Written by James Vanderbilt, Webb will work closely with producers Avi Arad and Laura Ziskin in developing the project, which will begin production later this year.
Commenting on the announcement, Amy Pascal, co-chairman of Sony Pictures Entertainment, and Matt Tolmach, president of Columbia Pictures, said, “At its core, Spider-Man is a small, intimate human story about an everyday teenager that takes place in an epic super-human world. The key for us as we sought a new director was to identify filmmakers who could give sharp focus to Peter Parker’s life. We wanted someone who could capture the awe of being in Peter’s shoes so the audience could experience his sense of discovery while giving real heart to the emotion, anxiety, and recklessness of that age and coupling all of that with the adrenaline of Spider-Man’s adventure. We believe Marc Webb is the perfect choice to bring us on that journey.”
Arad and Ziskin added jointly, “Over the years, the Spider-Man comics have been told with bold and creative new writers and artists who have re-calibrated the way audiences see Peter Parker. Marc Webb will do for the new direction of the films what so many visionary storytellers have done with the comic books. He is an incredibly talented filmmaker and we look forward to working closely with him on this new adventure.”
Webb said, “This is a dream come true and I couldn’t be more aware of the challenge, responsibility, or opportunity. Sam Raimi’s virtuoso rendering of Spider-Man is a humbling precedent to follow and build upon. The first three films are beloved for good reason. But I think the Spider-Man mythology transcends not only generations but directors as well. I am signing on not to ‘take over’ from Sam. That would be impossible. Not to mention arrogant. I’m here because there’s an opportunity for ideas, stories, and histories that will add a new dimension, canvas, and creative voice to Spider-Man.”
Stan Lee, co-creator of Spider-Man, added, “I’m excited that Sony has chosen a director with a real penchant and understanding for the character. This is a brave, bold direction for the franchise, and I can’t wait to see what Marc comes up with next.”
Added Marvel Studios President Kevin Feige, “The idea of re-imagining the on-screen story for one of the world’s most iconic superheros is sure to deliver an exciting new dimension to Spider-Man fans everywhere. There are volumes of comics and material available to inspire fresh and compelling takes on Peter Parker and his journey as Spidey and we look forward to seeing this come alive onscreen.”
Marc Webb has won acclaim with his film debut (500) Days of Summer. He has several MTV VMAs™ including 2009′s Best Director award for Green Day’s “21 Guns,” 2006 Best Rock Video for AFI’s “Miss Murder,” and Best Group Video for The All-American Rejects’ “Move Along.” The Music Video Production Association honored him in 2006 as the Director of the Year for his work with Weezer, AAR, and My Chemical Romance.
In addition to two Golden Globe nominations including Best Picture (musical or comedy), his first feature film, (500) Days of Summer, starring Joseph Gordon-Levitt and Zooey Deschanel, has been nominated for three Independent Spirit Awards, including Best Feature. Webb was also awarded the Spotlight Award, which honors outstanding directorial debuts, by the National Board of Review.
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Omg, can we please start the spider-WEBB related headline predictions??!!!
“Spider-Man Has New Director Caught in Webb!”
Good move, Sony.
Awesome! Webb is a great director. (500) Days of Summer was an amazing movie that truly grasped the young perspective of life and romance… He’ll definitely bring a unique look to the Spidy franchise.
It wasn’t a “young perspective on life and romance” as much as (the screenwriter, the one who actually wrote it, admitted) a take on anti-romance.
It is not a love story. Its an anti-love story, indeed it discounts the possibility of romantic love (as opposed to consumerist relationships based on power). In its own way, far more depressing than anything Neil Labute ever wrote and directed. Indeed, the film comes right out in the script in saying that for guys, power and status matter more than anything else regarding love. Love only happens as a career achievement checklist. Which of course implies it has relatively little meaning, like an employer plaque on a wall.
Scott Neustadter is the guy responsible for 500 Days of Summer. The script was basically events out of his real life, it was not particularly flattering to his ex even if Zooey Deschanel played her.
Webb did a good job. But he didn’t write the script. THAT was Neustadter.
except the ending of both main characters finding love discounts your whole theory. They just didn’t fall in love with each other.
Nice scoop, Nikki. You were the first to telldjme.
This is a great move by Sony, Webb knows what he’s doing with creating relateable characters and he’ll make it even better than 500 DOS. Thanks for keeping us in the loop Nikki!
Really, people? Just because a guy can make a good (ok, very good) anti-rom-com doesn’t mean he can take a kajillion dollar special affects-laden franchise and do jack shit w/ it. I smell a dog.
And Zack Snyder went from commercials to “Dawn of the Dead” (Great remake that was better than it had any right to be), “300″ (a good action film, and then “Watchmen” (A film I hated but it looked very nice). I’m sure Webb wont falter here. Just as long as he can film coherent action unlike Marc Forster’s “Quantum of Solace” or Gavin Hood’s “Wolverine”.
I’m willing to give him the benefit of the doubt. “(500) Days of Summer was way better than I ever expected and it really resonated with me as I was stuck on my own “Summer” for quite a while.
BIG movie for a guy who has done little. I wonder how he’ll do.
Kevin Feige should not be giving statements he should be selling pencils outside retirement homes with a tin cup.
They have to cast an unknown. Its the only way to go.
Hopefully Spider Man 4 will have better dance sequences thatn Spider Man 3
So what about Spidey? Any news on who’s playing the webslinger? Could it be our friendly neighborhood web-SINGER?? You know, the beatle look-alike and VERY talented actor who Julie Taymor wasn’t able to snag for her musical, but who would definitely be a HUGE asset to any film concerning a super hero with REAL FEELINGS? So what do you think?
I don’t agree at all. Just because woman and girls turned out for Avatar doesn’t mean its good for all geek genre films. Spider-Man is not going to score any points with its core fanbase and young boys if it is Spider-Man 90210. That seems to be the plan.
For the comment from Whiskey… 500 DOS WAS about Romance. Doesn’t matter if its about getting your heart broken or not. WTF is Anti-Romance? And for a great writer, yes, I agree that it was a well written script, but a movie is only as good as it’s director and Webb made that movie what it’s worth… A Golden Globe best Picture Nom. I’ve read tons of great scripts and then seen the movies and they sucked. Just b/c you have a great script doesn’t mean its going to be a great movie. A director MAKES the movie. And Webb will do that with Spiderman.
Well Said!!! Directing a movie takes a vision and skill that few can pull off. Marc can add a lot to a movie like Spiderman.
Um, I thought 500 Days was a completely overrated film, but a movie like that is not as good as its director, it’s only as good as its two writers. Marc Webb isn’t getting nominated for an Academy Award, the two writers are. That’s not even really the justification, but sorry, writers are the only people who work with a blank page. Composers, directors, actors, they’re all working from the script. Yes, a director is ultimately responsible for the vision on screen, but this isn’t The Hurt Locker, where the tension comes from the direction, so much of the visual story-telling comes from her choices. Much like anything from Sleepless in Seattle to Meet the Parents, the dialogue, story, characters, when they’re all on the page, are why a film gets greenlighted. If it’s not on the page, it’s not on the stage.
because taking a newbie-ish director from a critically acclaimed but small film and handing him the golden reins of a studio multi-million $$ franchise worked out soooooo well for Fox and Wolverine, Sony figured it was the right path to follow?
It also, to be fair, worked out really well for the WB with Batman.
“It also, to be fair, worked out really well for the WB with Batman.”
Don’t confuse giving over $130 million and complete creative control with giving $80 million (minus $10 for salary) and demanding the director go with the screenplays already in the works or done.
This is Sony trying to create a Twilight-sized mega-franchise by firing anyone with political, creative weight or vision, then cutting costs across the board.
Sure, let’s hire the guy with Webb in his name who likes a comic book reboot that took 7-9 issues to tell the same story that took half an issue or 45 minutes of movie time. Bring on green hulk Goblin and 2 1/2 hours of high school drama.
Suckers!
Yeah, but handing Batman from Burton to Joel failed miserably and that is a better analogy
I always thought reboots were used to reinvigorate a franchise or introduce it to a new generation. The first Spiderman came out what? 8 or 9 years ago? This thing sounds like they wanted to capitalize on the name while saving money on the director, star and special effects.
They’re not even hiding that they did it for money. They’re openly bragging about how they’ve figured out how to control the money that goes to Webb in the same way they do for actors with franchise options.
AGREED!!! Finally someone else who see my POV on this whole thing!
Too early for a reboot!! finish the story and move on to next character…
Personally I disliked 500 Days rather intensely for the erudite reasons mentioned above…along with the fact that it was a total waste of two great actors. Movies, and I don’t think I’m going out on a limb here (Avatar?) thrive on the suspension of disbelief and escapism. 500 Days was a mental handjob that Critics loved and people dismissed…and Sony gives Spiderman to Webb?
Excuse me while I go answer this call, it’s the suicide prevention hotline returning…
Have you ever heard of slice of life films? You’re obviously not a creative talent, but you’re probably not a talented executive or agent, because people didn’t ignore it. The soundtrack itself made more money than your average mini-major release did at the actual box office this year. The gross was terrific as well, and it’s the exact type of film that *does* do well on DVD, even these days. I’m sure You Can Count on me doesn’t fit in with your view either, nor do half the Oscar winners over the past 40 years. 500 Days of Summer was lacking in depth, it was thin, the characters didn’t have any depth to them or have three-dimensions, Tom wasn’t even likeable, but you’re really, really off here.
At its core, Spider-Man is a small, intimate human story about an everyday teenager that takes place in an epic super-human world.”
Is Amy high or just plain stupid? Its a bloody cartoon so stop making it sounds like a fiction. I am sure no teenager would want to be caught dead dancing like a baboon in a club.
Good luck with the new guy. Just make sure Silly-stupid-Spidey has his dancing shoes off this time round. Or else, the next reboot will be called ‘Dancing with the Spidey’
Hey, Stan Lee always said that the reason Spider-Man sold wasn’t because of Spider-Man. It was because of Peter Parker.
Parker brought a teenager’s real-world perspective and problems to the super-hero comic. That was a revolutionary concept at the time, and it’s been the reason for the continued success of the character. Raimi understood that in Spider-Man I and II. Webb seems to understand it, so hopefully he’ll bring that back to the franchise.
hey Bryan Singer went from USUAL SUSPECTS to X-MEN and Peter Jackson went from HEAVENLY CREATURES to LORD OF THE RINGS.
True about Bryan Singer. But Jackson actually had The Frighteners before Lord of The Rings, and before that Dead/Alive (Brain Dead). He also created WETA with Taylor, so that’s a bit of a different ballgame.
That being said, I agree with you that we can’t dismiss Webb because he never made an action/fx movie. I have absolute faith in his ability to pull this off.
Oh, and go with a villain we haven’t seen. No Green Goblin.
hmmm…this didn’t work so well for new line when they got a critically acclaimed small movie director, Chris Weitz (About a boy) to jumpstart a franchise (The Golden Compass) which then proceeded to bomb- and take new line down with it. Scale people scale- just because these directors can create intimate portraits of people does not mean they can jump scale and deal with the 1000+ artists, issues of vfx, and all the other crap that goes along with franchise films. I mean its spiderman for chrissakes- has this guy even done any action sequences???
Yeah, but Weitz was dealing with producers scared to death of the anti-religion message of the source material. They had the screenwriters gut the script and left Weitz with a muddled, confusing story to tell.
A “Spider-Man” movie with 60% less Spider-Man? Who wants to watch a non-action comic book action movie? Is Jeff Zucker running Sony, too?
This is just mind boggling. Why would they announce that they want to get into the “human” aspects of a high schooler as a superhero? Even if they’re doing it, I don’t think I’d announce it. Just sounds like your saying, “With this new film, we’ll save TONS in the effects and director salary.” Next thing you’ll know we’ll be hearing that Fox is re-booting “Avatar” and WB is re-casting Harry Potter for the final film.
This just proves that the studios were intent on hiring somebody who has no clout to question their merchandise-driven creative decisions. They made no attempt to put out feelers toward anyone of Raimi’s caliber. They’re bitter that their bottom line for 2011 won’t be supplemented by action figure sales so they’re intent on Spidey’s arrival in 2012 not being railroaded by a pesky directorial demand for script kinks to be ironed out. The way Fox and Sony screwed the pooch on X-Men and Spidey, respectfully, will hopefully serve as a cautionary lesson to other studios about how to not snap the necks of their golden-egg-laying geese. Mark my words, this property will have to be re-rebooted later in the decade because of the fanboy backlash that will torpedo the release of Spider-Man: The Wonder Years. It’s going to have to be a reimagining of Casino Royale proportions for the geeks to put down their cleavers, which seems unlikely given that Raimi’s departure was instigated by a growing unease over the bigwigs’ marginalizing of quality control.
If Raimi is such a great director, he shouldn’t have been a baby about being “Forced” to have Venom in the film. He should have handled it better instead of throwing a tantrum and making his story really seem like an add on that was thrown in there last minute. A real director would have worked it out and made his story seem like it fit naturally.
Also, maybe if he cut out the Gwen Stacy subplot, Peter being all ridiculous and hitting MJ while dancing in the club, and saved the Harry going bad for another movie, Venom could have probably worked.
Finally, was it the studio’s interference that forced Raimi to make everyone cry on the roof of the building in the end of the film?
“This just proves that the studios were intent on hiring somebody who has no clout to question their merchandise-driven creative decisions.”
Just look at how many people here are just sticking their fingers in their ears and acting like we haven’t seen this a thousand times before….
If I may present the evidence to the court:
Superman – Richard Donner + Richard Lester = Superman III
X-Men – Bryan Singer + Brett Ratner = X-Men: The Last Stand
Batman – Tim Burton + Joel Schumacher = Batman Forever/& Robin
Bryan Singer, Richard Donner and Tim Burton were all allowed an incredible amount of creative input during their tenures on these franchises and pretty much co-created staples of the genre. As soon as the “toyetics” took over, you end up with guys like Schumacher and Raimi apologizing for letting the studios tell them what to do.
The difference here is that Raimi said Spider-Man Forever was enough and didn’t feel like doing Spider-Man & Vulturess. Now you’ve got a thousand desperate fans willing to suck down any nonsense they hear to buy that this will work. Look what happened to the guy who made A Hard Day’s Night when he decided to do what the producers told him…
Marc Webb is making the movies that Sony has already decided to make. THE END. You might as well change that to Chris Weitz and slap a Twilight logo on it and be done with it.
NOOOOOOOOO!!!
HOW IS HE GOING TO DO THE JESUS CHRIST SUPERSTAR REMAKE THEN???
What a load of crap. This is a train wreck on the way and it’s full speed ahead. Sony/Columbia have driven this successful franchise off the tracks and there is no “The Dark Wallclimber” in their futures. What a joke!
Lame – Polish this turd any way you want – Spidy meets Twilight ain’t gonna fly.
Reboot? – For a whole new generation? What are ten year olds having kids now? So I guess the 8 year olds from the 10 years old parents in 2002 is the hot new demo! Sound’s like a bad pitch parody.
I think there was a scene missing from “Idiocracy” the one where in the future there are only 11 movies made. They just cycle through the sequels and reboot over and over. Oh, hang on, the future is here.
Epic fail – you heard it here first. Sony’s going to lose their ass.
RB is right! No one cares about Spidey’s high school angst. What’s next, The Incredible Hulk the musical.
i think marc will do a nice job.