Calling a film based on a comic book a “superhero movie” may be inaccurate. Not every film focuses on a hero, as Morbius and Joker prove. Sony’s upcoming Marvel project focuses on an interesting villain from the Spider-Man canon: Kraven the Hunter. Ariana DeBose plays Calypso in the Kraven film, and she notes Kraven’s feature debut will be a bit different from other Marvel/Sony films.
DeBose Talks About Kraven the Hunter
One problem with spin-offs and sequels involves the films duplicating one another. DeBose suggests this will not be the case with Kraven the Hunter. In an interview with Deadline, DeBose noted that the movie goes in a different direction from the other Sony Spider-Man adventures.
“Different direction” could mean many things. The film takes place in the Venom/Morbius universe, and those two features come off as stylistically different from the Spider-Man franchise. In particular, Morbius is closer to a horror film than a superhero adventure. Like Kraven, Morbius is an anti-hero who started as a villain. Perhaps the success of Joker guided Sony’s decision to tap another villain for a movie. Two successful Venom films likely played a role.
A Interesting Villain
Kraven the Hunter does not rank as one of the top-tier Spider-Man characters. The villain debuted in 1964 and had his moments in some fun stories. It would not be until many decades after his debut that the story arc “Kraven’s Last Hunt” drew enormous fan interest. Reportedly, plans for a Spider-Man film based on “Kraven’s Last Hunt” were in the works but never panned out.
Sony’s Spider-Man films reflect licensed properties, and Marvel Studios does not produce them. Originally, they were not considered part of the Marvel Cinematic Universe but now are. The concept of alternate universes and multiverses changed the plans. Theoretically, Kraven could appear in other MCU films. A successful Kraven feature would likely launch a franchise similar to Venom. Sony may make franchises out of villains because Spider-Man comics did not produce many fellow hero characters.
