Richard Wenk, writer of Sony’s Kraven the Hunter movie, has revealed he’s currently working on the script – and that the film could even feature Spider-Man. It seems Sony intends to draw upon the famous Kraven’s Last Hunt comic book arc.
Venom was something of a gamble for Sony Pictures; could their Spider-Man spinoffs possibly work? Although the critics haven’t been kind, the film’s box office performance has been even better than anticipated. It shattered October’s box office record, grossing $80 million domestically and a staggering $205 million worldwide in its opening weekend. So it’s hardly a surprise that Sony is now pushing full steam ahead with further spinoffs.
Related: All The Spider-Villain Movies Coming After Venom
The Discussing Film podcast posted an interview with Wenk, who’s dropped what may well be something of a bombshell for Marvel fans. Wenk has revealed that he’s playing around with the concept of Kraven’s Last Hunt – and that he’s currently envisioning a story in which Kraven “comes face-to-face with Spider-Man.“
It’s an interesting world, a great character… it’s in the Spider-Man universe. I’m going to adhere very closely to the lore of Kraven the Hunter, and he’s going to come face-to-face with Spider-Man. I think that where we’re all circling is that this is Kraven’s Last Hunt, and whether this is the precursor to that movie, whether it will include it, we’re talking about those things. And even the idea that maybe Kraven could be like Kill Bill, basically a two-part movie. It’s all in the mix.
This is a pretty remarkable statement, as it suggests Spider-Man could yet be considered part of Sony’s Spider-villains universe. It’s important to stress that Wenk is pretty early on in the writing process; he’s at the stage where, as he puts it, “you just kind of throw everything at the wall” to see what sticks. And yet, not only does Wenk explain that he’s been enjoying a collaborative relationship with other Sony (and Marvel?) figures, but he also sounds very confident indeed when describing the plan to have Kraven face off against Spider-Man. Even his references to Kraven’s Last Hunt should be seen in that light; that arc focused on the relationship between Kraven and Spider-Man, and on Kraven’s desperate desire to prove himself the wall-crawler’s equal before he passed away. It’s very hard indeed to imagine a version of Kraven’s Last Hunt without Spider-Man in it.
Assuming Wenk is right, there are two possible ways this could play out. Venom was deliberately designed to be easily retconned into the MCU, and its director Ruben Fleischer has openly said he believes a crossover between Hardy’s Venom and Tom Holland’s Spider-Man is “inevitable.” Given that’s the case, Marvel and Sony could have agreed to incorporate the Sony films into the wider MCU, with Tom Holland serving as a bridge between the franchises. The other possibility is that Sony is looking to cast their own version of Spider-Man, so viewers would get two distinctive big screen Spider-Mans at the same time. That approach would surely cause some problems between Marvel and Sony, though. Only one thing is certain; right now, the writer of Kraven the Hunter believes that his film will feature Spider-Man. It’ll be fascinating to see if he’s right.
