Sony Demands Two Helpings of Spidey!

Rumours state the studio wants to shoot the fourth and fifth Spider-Man films at the same time.
by Larry_Chimp_Man

It's no secret that James Vanderbilt, scribe of David Fincher's Zodiac, has been hired by Sony to pen Spider-Man 4. Vanderbilt signed on to the film during the Writer's Strike last fall and has been cooking up a working draft since then. A few weeks back Vanderbilt turned in his draft to Sony and, according to Cinematical, they got more than they bargained for.



See, Vanderbilt didn't stop with one script, instead creating an arc spanning two Spider-Man films. Details of the plot aren't clear but one thing is; Sony is frantically reworking their deal with Vanderbilt to make his two-movie arc a reality.

As mentioned above, having scripts for both Spider-Man 4 and 5 completed simultaneously would allow the studio to shoot both flicks at the same time. Nothing has been confirmed but one can assume Sony is drooling over the possibility of two rapid Spidey releases and wants to make this two-picture deal happen.



If this is true and Sony decides to shoot Spidey 4 and 5 in unison who will return from the first three? Does Sam Raimi still have enough love for the character to return? What about Tobey MaGuire? Maguire almost dropped out of Spider-Man 2 because of his bad back. He also had complaints during the shooting of the third film, it looks doubtful he'd be willing to do two back-to-back. If MaGuire doesn't return one can assume Kirsten Dunst will drop out of the picture as well. Will Jake Gyllenhaal finally be given the chance to play Spidey? Who knows, Gyllenhaal has a full plate with Jerry Bruckheimer's planned Prince of Persia trilogy and he may not have time to fit Spider-Man into the picture.



Sony may have to clean house and bring in some new talent for Spider-Man 4 and 5 but I think it's a great idea to shoot the two films simultaneously. Releasing two films back-t0-back is great for the studio's wallet but it's also a treat for fans who don't have to wait years in-between flicks. Imagine the Lord of the Rings trilogy with three years separating each film, it just wouldn't be the same experience.

What do you guys think? Should Sony shoot Spider-Man 4 and 5 at the same time or should they take things slow and approach each film separately? Who do you think would make a great Peter Parker? What about Mary Jane? Post a comment and we'll start up a discussion.

Cheers.

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FILM: David Koepp to Pen Spider-Man 4

Writer of Jurassic Park, Mission: Impossible, and War of the Worlds, among others, to write the next Spider-Man flick.

David Koepp is one of those writers who's always in the Hollywood spotlight and seems to usually have some sort of input into the years' top blockbusters. He's worked with powerhouse directors to the likes of Steven Spielberg, Brian De Palma, Ron Howard, and David Fincher as well as directing some feature films himself such as Secret Window and The Trigger Effect I think he should stick to writing, but that's my opinion. Koepp also recently finished writing the script for Indiana Jones 4.

Koepp hasn't signed a contract for the fourth film as of yet, but Columbia is pursuing the project and has confirmed that he will write the screenplay for the film. Koepp co-wrote Spider-Man, but wasn't involved the second film or the third installment which hits theatres in May.

I'm not sure this is a good choice for the franchise. All of Koepp's great films have had other writers working on the screenplay alongside him. Most of the projects he attempts alone are nowhere near as good as the projects he works on with other people. Also, he's one of those writers who just abuses the one-liner to death. Watch a movie like Jurassic Park, Spider-Man, or Mission: Impossible and count the amount of quips, it's astounding.



Koepp also usually keeps the films he writes fairly light-hearted. This is fine and dandy for the average blockbuster but he may be brining Spider-Man away from the dark world he is in now. Since Koepp left the production of Spider-Man 2 the franchise has been getting darker and has started taking itself serious. The last thing I want for a fourth film is it to go back to the quick quips and cheesy dialogue found in the first Spider-Man film. I think that Koepp coming back to write the fourth might also be a hint that Raimi won't be returning to direct the picture, but that's just speculation on my part.

What do you think about David Koepp writing the fourth Spider-Man flick? Is it a good thing of is the film doomed? Post a comment.

Cheers.

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