Spider-Man 4

## Chronology

***Spider-Man 4*** is a cancelled 2011 film, based on the Marvel Comics superhero of the same name. It was planned to be the fourth film in the film series and became an abandoned project as of January 2010. The film was headed for a May 6, 2011 release.

The film was directed by Sam Raimi and would star Tobey Maguire as Peter Parker/Spider-Man, Kirsten Dunst as Mary Jane Watson, John Malkovich as Adrian Toomes/Vulture, Dylan Baker as Curt Conners/Lizard, Anne Hathaway as Felicia Hardy/Vulturess and Bruce Campbell as Quentin Beck/Mysterio.

Two sequels, *Spider-Man 5* and *6*, were planned to be scripted by James Vanderbilt. These were also cancelled, of course.

## Cast

* Tobey Maguire as Peter Parker/Spider-Man
* Kirsten Dunst as Mary Jane Watson
* John Malkovich as Adrian Toomes/Vulture
* Dylan Baker as Curt Conners/Lizard
* Anne Hathaway as Felicia Hardy/Black Cat
* Bruce Campbell as Quentin Beck/Mysterio
* Undecided actor as Aaron Davis (or Hobart Brown)/Prowler
* Undecided actor as Aleksei Sytsevich/Rhino
* Undecided actor as Herman Schultz/Shocker

## Appearances

### Locations

* Earth
	+ New York
		- New York City

### Events

* Arrest of Quentin Beck
* Chase of the Vulture

### Items

* Vulture Suit
* Spider-Man Suit
* Mysterio Suit
* Organic Webbing

## Production

In 2007, *Spider-Man 4* entered development, with Raimi attached to direct and Maguire, Dunst and other cast members set to reprise their roles. Both a fourth and a fifth film were planned and at one time the idea of shooting the two sequels concurrently was under consideration. However, Raimi stated in March 2009 that only the fourth film was in development at that time, and that if there were fifth and sixth films, those two films would actually be a continuation of each other. *Zodiac* screenwriter James Vanderbilt was hired by Sony Pictures in October 2007 to pen the screenplay after initial reports in January that Sony was in contact with David Koepp, who wrote the first *Spider-Man* film. The script was being rewritten by David Lindsay-Abaire and Gary Ross in November 2008 and October 2009. Sony also engaged Vanderbilt to write scripts for *Spider-Man 5* and *Spider-Man 6*.

In 2007, Raimi expressed interest in depicting the transformation of Dr. Curt Connors into his villainous alter-ego, the Lizard; the character's actor Dylan Baker and producer Grant Curtis were also enthusiastic about the idea. Raimi also discussed his desire to upgrade Bruce Campbell from a cameo appearance to a significant role, later revealed to be Quentin Beck/Mysterio. It was reported in December 2009 that John Malkovich was in negotiations to play Vulture and that Anne Hathaway would play Felicia Hardy, though she would not have transformed into the Black Cat as in the comics. Instead, Raimi's Felicia was expected to become a new superpowered figure called the Vulturess. Several years later, in 2013, Raimi said that Hathaway was going to be Black Cat if *Spider-Man 4* had been made. Concept art revealed in June 2016 showed the inclusion of an opening montage of Spider-Man going up against C and D-list villains, such as Mysterio, the Shocker, the Prowler, and the Rhino, with the Vulture serving as the main antagonist.

As disagreements between Sony and Raimi threatened to push the film off the intended May 6, 2011 release date, Sony Pictures announced in January 2010 that plans for *Spider-Man 4* had been cancelled due to Raimi's withdrawal from the project. Raimi reportedly ended his participation due to his doubt that he could meet the planned May 6, 2011 release date while at the same time upholding the film creatively; he admitted that he was "very unhappy" with the way *Spider-Man 3* had turned out, and was under pressure to make the fourth film the best that he could. Raimi purportedly went through four iterations of the script with different screenwriters and still "hated it".

## References

The Spider-Man Wiki has a collection of images and media related to **Spider-Man 4**.
1. ↑ *Spider-Man 4* on Wikipedia