In what has been viewed as a massive film business blunder, the
Spider-Man property dropped Tobey McGuire and Sam Rami after a dispute over script direction. But there's word that Avatar Director James Cameron still has "fire" to do a
Spider-Man film. And, speculatively, the stage could be set for Taylor Lautner to be the new Peter Parker.
Taylor Lautner
According to Nikke Finke at
Deadline Hollywood, the creative problems led to a dispute that on Monday, officially ended the
Spider-Man relationship between Columbia Pictures, Marvel Comics, Tobey McGuire, and Sam Rami, who starred in and directed the first three blockbuster films.
The problems started in December 2009, and with a
Spider-Man 4 script written by screenwriters Jamie Vanderbilt, David Lindsay-Abaire, and Gary Ross, that according to
Aint It Cool News, had something to do with Peter Parker, Mary Jane, and a baby. It's widely reported that Sam Rami hated the script, and didn't feel he could make a May 11, 2011 deadline with the technical demands it called for.
Finke reports that once Sam Rami said he was out, Columbia Pictures' Matt Tolmach and Sony Pictures co-chairman Amy Pascal wanted to "reboot" the franchise, in the way that J.J. Abrams was assigned to reboot the Star Trek franchise.
Reportedly, Rami wanted a script from Spider-Man Producer Laura Ziskin's husband and script writer for the Spider-Man 2 and 3 movies, Alvin Sargent. But Finke reports that her sources said the movie can't be made given the script issue, unless the script could be fast-tracked. To this date, as of this writing, that has not happened. Originally, the date for filming was February, and now it's undetermined. What is sure is that Alvin Sargent's working on a new script that involves Peter Parker in high school.
For several reasons, this blogger thinks Sony and Columbia have Taylor Lautner in mind for the new Peter Parker role. This is a hypothesis, but consider that Taylor Lautner is 17, right at high school age and has a strong 13 to 17 demographic that studios have been hot to capture of late (Miley Cyrus, for example). Moreover, Pascal says - and fans hate - that Sony and Columbia want to explore Peter Parker's teenage years and how he deals with those problems. That's a perfect vehicle for Taylor Lautner, who's now a hot property after the success of
Twilight: New Moon.
In other words, they didn't want to deal with an adult Peter Parker for business reasons.
As for the reaction to all of this, fans are divided over at Aint It Cool News, but some patterns are obvious: first, many didn't like Tobey McGuire as Peter Parker because they didn't feel he matched the comic book version. Second, fans hate the idea of a
Spider-Man reboot for a franchise that doesn't need one. Star Trek did and everyone knew it. Differences aside, the
Spider-Man formula worked, even if
Spider-Man 3 was too heavy on special effects and not on story. Tobey McGuire brought a certain innocence to the role that's hard to replicate.
Who will replace Sam Rami has not been determined, but Aint It Cool News reported a conversation with Avatar Director James Cameron at last year's Comic Con, who told Harry Knowles of AICN that he still has the "fire" in him to do a movie based on a treatment he penned several years ago, and is not intimidated by the success of the first three movies.
Stay tuned. The press release is below:
Culver City, CA (January 11, 2010) -- Peter Parker is going back to high school when the next Spider-Man hits theaters in the summer of 2012.
Columbia Pictures and Marvel Studios announced today they are moving forward with a film based on a script by James Vanderbilt that focuses on a teenager grappling with both contemporary human problems and amazing super-human crises.
The new chapter in the Spider-Man franchise produced by Columbia, Marvel Studios and Avi Arad and Laura Ziskin, will have a new cast and filmmaking team. Spider-Man 4 was to have been released in 2011, but had not yet gone into production.
“A decade ago we set out on this journey with Sam Raimi and Tobey Maguire and together we made three Spider-Man films that set a new bar for the genre. When we began, no one ever imagined that we would make history at the box-office and now we have a rare opportunity to make history once again with this franchise. Peter Parker as an ordinary young adult grappling with extraordinary powers has always been the foundation that has made this character so timeless and compelling for generations of fans. We’re very excited about the creative possibilities that come from returning to Peter's roots and we look forward to working once again with Marvel Studios, Avi Arad and Laura Ziskin on this new beginning,” said Amy Pascal, co-chairman of Sony Pictures Entertainment.
“Working on the Spider-Man movies was the experience of a lifetime for me. While we were looking forward to doing a fourth one together, the studio and Marvel have a unique opportunity to take the franchise in a new direction, and I know they will do a terrific job,” said Sam Raimi.
“We have had a once-in-a-lifetime collaboration and friendship with Sam and Tobey and they have given us their best for the better part of the last decade. This is a bittersweet moment for us because while it is hard to imagine Spider-Man in anyone else’s hands, I know that this was a day that was inevitable,” said Matt Tolmach, president of Columbia Pictures, who has served as the studio’s chief production executive since the beginning of the franchise. “Now everything begins anew, and that’s got us all tremendously excited about what comes next. Under the continuing supervision of Avi and Laura, we have a clear vision for the future of Spider-Man and can’t wait to share this exciting new direction with audiences in 2012.”
"Spider-Man will always be an important franchise for Sony Pictures and a fresh start like this is a responsibility that we all take very seriously," said Michael Lynton, Chairman and CEO of Sony Pictures. "We have always believed that story comes first and story guides the direction of these films and as we move onto the next chapter, we will stay true to that principle and will do so with the highest respect for the source material and the fans and moviegoers who deserve nothing but the best when it comes to bringing these stories and characters to life on the big screen."
Melissa Harris-Lacewell