Script problems cause a delay in the production of 'Spider-Man 4'
Is there any chance the film will make its May 2011 release date?
I never realized Spider-Man's greatest enemies were screenwriters, but that seems to be the case these days
The more things change, the more they stay the same.
If you lived in Los Angeles back in the '90s, "Spider-Man" seemed positively cursed as a film property. Even when James Cameron got interested, it just couldn't come together. Then Sam Raimi did the impossible and actually got "Spider-Man" filmed and released and, even more amazingly, it was good. And so was the sequel. And even the third film has things to like about it, even if it felt like there were too many cooks in the kitchen.
But between the Julie Taymor musical for Broadway and the third sequel (which I really hope isn't going to be called "Spider-M4n," the entire property is starting to feel cursed again.
It was IESB that first ran the story that there was something wrong with the development on "Spider-Man 4." I picked the story up because I was hearing the same thing from some of the FX guys who were supposed to work on the film, but I couldn't source it past them. Since that first story ran, I've been hearing some really terrible things about what's going on between Sam Raimi, the studio, and the writers, and I've been starting to wonder if there's any chance they can reach an agreement that will make all involved parties happy.
Today, Nikki Finke is running the story, along with a copy of the internal memo that was sent to all the FX guys when they were told that there was an indefinite delay on the film.
Here's the thing... they'll make another "Spider-Man" film. No doubt about it. But that doesn't mean it'll be a sequel to the films we've already seen, and there's no guarantee it will involve Sam Raimi or Tobey Maguire or anyone connected to the first three films. There may come a point where the studio realizes it's not going to happen, and they make the choice to move on and simply reboot the whole thing. There were talks about doing exactly that, far from the ears of Raimi and company, before they even started to develop scripts this time around, and I would imagine some of those conversations are starting to happen again as they reject draft after draft.
The sad thing is that there are plenty of great villains and stories left in the Spidey catalogue, so there's no reason they should be hitting a wall in picking who Spider-Man's going to face this time. And there's really no reason to invent them wholecloth, either. Raimi's good at tying his villains to a theme he wants to explore about Spider-Man, so instead of trying to force him into using another villain he doesn't like, I hope Sony lets him use the ones he wants. And if they don't, I hope Raimi moves on, for the sake of the film and his own sanity.
We'll be keeping a close eye on how this one comes together in the days and weeks ahead, and I hope they work it out in a way that gives fans a great film.
For the moment, "Spider-Man 4" is set for a May 6, 2011 release. Anyone want to lay bets on whether or not they make it?
Can't get enough of Motion/Captured? Don't miss a post with daily HitFix Blog Alerts. Sign up now.
Don't miss out. Add Motion/Captured to your iGoogle, My Yahoo or My MSN experience by clicking here.
Not part of the HitFix Nation yet? Take 90 seconds and sign up today.
You can e-mail me at drew@hitfix.com or follow me on Twitter, where I'm DrewAtHitFix.
News From Our Partners
-
Box Office: 'Star Trek Into Darkness' Misses $100M Domestic Mark on Opening Weekend
Beyonce Pregnant Again? Sources Confirm 'Epic' Star Is Carrying Baby No. 2
'Hangover 3' Red Band Trailer: Take a Walk Down a NSFW Memory Lane (VIDEO)
-
Box Office Guru Wrapup: Star Trek Softer Than Expected at #1
Weekly Ketchup: Will Smith to Star in Wild Bunch Remake?
Critics Consensus: Star Trek Into Darkness is Certified Fresh
-
Cannes Film Festival: Cannes 2013, Day Four: The Coen brothers return to the festival with a folk-rock flashback
Cannes Film Festival: Cannes 2013, Day Three: Cheers for the young stars of The Selfish Giant, jeers for the new films by Hirokazu Kore-eda and Arnaud Desplechin
Watch This: With Beavis And Butt-head Do America, Mike Judge skewered the idiocy of cinematic adventures
-
A Final 'Office' Farewell
Stefon Marries Anderson Cooper In Final Show
Creed Bratton: Closing Creed Thoughts
-
FTW vs. WTF: The TV Week in Review (May 19)
Doctor Who "The Name of the Doctor" Review: The Impossible Girl Made Possible
What to Watch This Weekend: The Season Finales of Nikita, Doctor Who, The Simpsons, and Family Guy
-
Carly Rae Jepsen's 'Call Me Maybe' Captures Top Digital Song Honor at 2013 Billboard Music Awards
Macklemore + Ryan Lewis Win Best Rap Song for 'Thrift Shop' at 2013 Billboard Music Awards
2013 Billboard Music Awards Gets a Tour From Taylor Swift's '22′ Performance [Video]
-
'Anchorman 2' Trailer Had Us At 'Hello': Watch Now!
Fiery 'Star Trek Into Darkness' Scene Hurt The Most: Ouch!
How Far Will 'Star Trek Into Darkness' Boldly Go At Box Office?
-
'Doctor Who' Season 8 Confirmed, Steven Moffat to Return
The Wrap Up: Behind-the-Scenes Image from 'Godzilla' Shows a Train in Peril
Batman: Arkham Origins Will See the Return of Kevin Conroy
Get Instant Alerts on Motion/Captured
Latest Posts
-
The director's next film promises to be packed with talentSunday, May 19, 2013
-
This is one you'll want to watch as soon as you've seen the movieFriday, May 17, 2013
-
Plus we look back at a more spirited encounter with the comic actorThursday, May 16, 2013
-
The Channing Tatum/Mila Kunis science-fiction action movie is shooting nowThursday, May 16, 2013


Comments
Option 1
Comment instantly as a guest GuestOption 2
Option 3
Login or create a HitFix account Login SignupHeath
January 5, 2010 at 7:28PM EST Reply to CommentThis makes no sense for everyone involved. It boggles the mind how mixed up this all is. I hope Raimi gets to do what he wants and delivers something special as he did with the second Spider-Man movie. If not, we're looking at something easily worse than the third movie. Amazing.
stormshadow4life
January 5, 2010 at 7:33PM EST Reply to CommentWell, there is ONE flaw with this story....NONE of the Spiderman movies were any good. As a life long fan, nothing has made me more sad than that.
Trekscribbler I'm one of those rare folks, too, who haven't enjoyed any of the Spidey flicks. I'd hope for a new creative direction entirely.
January 6, 2010 at 5:33AM ESTCorben
January 6, 2010 at 12:07AM EST Reply to CommentWell, here's to hoping it actually does fall through. I wouldn't be upset if it ended up with an entirely new cast and director. The franchise needs fresh air. No one involved in that franchise is irreplaceable after SM3, and I could do without any more MJ altogether.
tgilders
January 6, 2010 at 1:29AM EST Reply to CommentI second both Corben & stormshadow4life's comments.
January 6, 2010 at 7:12AM EST Reply to CommentSam Raimi should do what the Studio has not done and come out saying if there is another film been considerd to be made before spidey 4 or not, the studio should get behind Sam Raimi and say for def there will be a spidey 4 and get on with it.