Sony has announced the casting of Aaron Taylor-Johnson for the titular Marvel foe in the upcoming film Kraven the Hunter.The actor has reportedly signed a multi-picture deal to portray the classic character, with the first film due to reach our screens on 13 January 2023.
Deadline has previously announced that J.C. Chandor will direct the film. Avi Arad and Matt Tolmach will co-produce alongside a team of screenplay writers – Art Marcum & Matt Holloway and Richard Wenk.
Our upcoming titular character, Kraven, is considered one of Marvel’s most iconic and notorious antiheroes. Across his numerous appearances in the comics, he has encountered Venom and Black Panther. Eventually he grew to become one of Spider-Man’s most formidable enemies.
Sony has previously considered a myriad of A-list actors for the role, including Keanu Reeves and Adam Driver.
Insiders at Sony told Deadline that, upon seeing footage for Taylor-Johnson’s upcoming action film Bullet Train, studio execs were so blown away they wanted to sign him up for the film immediately.
Aaron Taylor Johnson is no stranger to the superhero genre. Previously he has starred in the cult hit Kick-Ass (2010) and its 2013 sequel. Alongside this, in the Marvel Cinematic Universe as Pietro Maximoff in Marvel Studios’ Avengers: Age of Ultron (2015). As such, it’s very likely fans will be delighted to see him make a return.
The Kraven standalone entry will be one of the latest additions to Sony’s own gradually expanding superhero universe. Various Marvel characters associated with the character Spider-Man will feature in their own upcoming films. Amongst those characters popular enough to warrant their own spin-offs are villains Venom and Morbius. Venom (2018), starring Tom Hardy, set a great precedent for the success of the new franchise, grossing over $850 million at the worldwide box office. The sequel, Venom: Let There Be Carnage, will be released later this year. Morbius, starring Jared Leto, will be released in 2022.
Words by Katie Heyes.
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