Despite mixed reactions to Sony’s attempt at the Sinister Six so far, the studio is pushing on ahead with its slate of Spider-Man villain solo movies. Next on the list is Kraven the Hunter, an action movie led by Kick-Ass star Aaron Taylor-Johnson (or, as I know him, Robbie from Angus, Thongs, and Perfect Snogging).
However, as revealed in an interview with Variety, we can expect some pretty dramatic changes to Kraven’s character in the film, a one being that, according to Johnson, Kraven is an “animal lover and protector of the natural world.”
This in turn is a rather stark departure from the Kraven the Hunter fans know in the comic books. In the comics, Kraven, who is one of Spidey’s most formidable foes, is a ruthless hunter who desires to hunt down the web-slinger primarily to prove just how great of a hunter he is. He also wears the pelt of a lion he presumably killed, so take from that what you will. Yet, despite this deviation, other cast members have spoken highly about the way the movie is going.
For instance, Ariana Debose, who will be playing Calypso in the film, previously said in an interview that she feels “part of something that feels like it’s taking a step in a right direction.”
Either way, it looks like there’s plenty of time to reconcile Kraven’s hunting tendencies with his new eco-friendly and animal-loving ways. As previously reported, Taylor signed a deal not just for one Kraven movie, but for multiple, meaning that there’s a lot of scope to flesh this new origin story out.
Johnson added in his Variety interview that the thing he was most excited about with his character was the fact that he is “not an alien, or a wizard. He’s just a hunter, a human with conviction.” He also revealed that production has ended on the thriller movie, meaning it is way on track for its release date of 13 January, 2023.