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[gkfi]

Spider Man 4 To being Shooting In February

Sam Raimi has announced that principal photography will begin on Spider-Man 4 in February 2010.

Spider Man has become one of the most successful superhero franchises despite this Raimi would return to the third instalment to amend several things.

Speaking to the Los Angeles the filmmaker said: "What would I have done differently? I would have done everything differently, every single shot."

"I want to make the best [Spider-Man movie] of the bunch and I've always been touched by Peter Parker in a way that I've never been able to describe on film, even though I've got a great actor performing it."

The film will see Tobey Maguire return to the central role of Peter Parker however it is rumoured that Kirsten Dunst may only sign up to reprise her role Mary Jane if the screenplay is right.

David Lindsay-Abaire is penning the script, a first draft is expected to be ready this summer, and the film is tentatively scheduled for a May 2011 release.

Source: femalefirst.co.uk

[kforab]

Very bad news about one of the old cast of Spiderman 3 - found at http://www.theinsider.com/news/2195666_Spiderman_s_Lucy_Gordon_s_Suicide:

British actress Lucy Gordon, who starred in Spider-Man 3, has committed suicide in her Paris flat, her agent has confirmed.

Police in the French capital said the body of the 28-year-old, who was tipped to become the new Jane Birkin, was found hanging from the ceiling of her mansion block apartment near the River Seine.

"It was a horrific scene," said one officer.

"The young woman had taken her own life in terrible circumstances. We are not seeking anyone else. It was a clear case of suicide."

The Oxford-born actress and model played the character Jennifer Dugan in the third instalment of Spider-Man.

She appeared in around a dozen other films, having made her big screen debut in 2001, including two that are in post-production.

In one of those, a French film charting the life of late singer-songwriter Serge Gainsbourg, she played Swinging 60s actress and singer Jane Birkin.

Miss Gordon's fresh looks and passion for France had seen her compared to Birkin in real life.

The Gainsbourg biopic, Vie Heroique, is currently being previewed at the Cannes Film Festival.

A festival organiser said: "We are devastated by this news. All those attending the festival had been hugely impressed by Lucy's work.

"She was a star in the making."

Agents for Miss Gordon, who had recently moved to Paris from New York, confirmed she had "ended her own days".

[kforab]

News from the story - it looks like Morbius, the living vampire, will apear in Spiderman 4 - seen at http://www.movieweb.com/news/NEkoJtmqUE4Vol:

During their chat with director Sam Raimi this week, CHUD got wind that Morbius, the living vampire, may be showing up in Raimi's upcoming, Spider-Man 4.

The long-rumored villain, touted by Marvel CEO Avi Arad, has long been The Lizard, but it seems now even more plausible that Raimi is definitely going to be attaching Morbius to the storyline. Check out CHUD for video of the director's coy response to the overall vampire question.

[kforab]

seen at http://itn.co.uk/faf147fc355fae62e2b0b0ebd358b30d.html:

Spider-Man director Sam Raimi returns to his horror roots with Drag Me to Hell.

Raimi, who first came to prominence with the low-budget chiller The Evil Dead, knows a thing or two about frightening audiences.

He pulls out all the stops in Drag Me to Hell, which pits Alison Lohman's bank worker against the demonic powers of the underworld after she is cursed by a disgruntled customer.

Raimi said he was impressed by newcomer Lohman's willingness to roll with the punches.

He said: "We would beat her up and throw her against the walls and put her in a harness and have old ladies slobbering on her, and I would have corpses falling on her and have her run into cabinets, burying her alive under 800lbs of mud.

"And she would say: 'You want me to do it again, Sam?'"

The director also confirmed that Kirsten Dunst is to reprise her role as Peter Parker's girlfriend Mary Jane Watson in Spider-Man 4, scheduled for release in 2011.

He said: "I've talked to her and she's very excited to come back, and we're working on who the bad people are going to be who Peter Parker has to battle this time."

Anyone knows if this news has been confirmed?

[gkfi]

According to New York Post, kirsten "Definitely On Board" Spider-Man 4.

 Source: New York Post, Edward Douglas
June 6, 2009


Everyone's getting in on the action trying to guess what to expect from Sam Raimi's return to the Marvel superhero franchise with Spider-Man 4, slated for release on May 6, 2011. It's obviously still very early in development, but that didn't stop the New York Post from asking Sony producer Todd Black a few questions in order to clear up some of the rumors that have been circulating.

In the article, Black confirms that Kirsten Dunst is definitely on board, but that there are no plans to have a wedding between Peter Parker and Mary Jane in the forthcoming movie. He also squashed the rumors that Morbius the Living Vampire will be the villain in the movie, but that the villain will be very New York centric.

This is what he told the Post about the potential villain: "We're just coming up with who the villain's going to be now. We'll be shooting in New York again. Trust me, people will appreciate who we pick, because it'll be a big part of New York."

[kforab]

Dear gkfi,

I just did read the same news.... these are very goood news        

[mooniz]

this are really good news.

greets
ralf

[gkfi]

Michael Papajohn Returning for Spider-Man 4? 

During a Q&A with Ted Raimi and Michael Papajohn at Wizard World Philadelphia today, Papajohn (aka the carjacker/original killer of Uncle Ben from the Spider-Man films) said that he would be reprising his role for Spider-Man 4.

Source: http://www.superherohype.com/news/spider-mannews.php?id=8447

[kforab]

It’s being reported that Sony Pictures have hired Gary Ross to rewrite Spider-Man 4. Ross wrote, directed, and produced both Pleasantville and Seabiscuit — both which starred Tobey Maguire — and also wrote and produced Big and the upcoming new take on Creature From the Black Lagoon.

The writer is now the third man to be writing a draft of Spider-Man 4. Before him, David Lindsay-Abaire (Robots, Inkheart) wrote a draft, and then James Vanderbilt (Zodiac, The Rundown) wrote one as well. No word on if Ross will simply be working off what the previous two have put together or if he will be completely starting over with his script.

On one hand, it is a good thing that Gary Ross has written for Tobey Maguire twice before this. At the same time, those two films weren’t very similar to Spider-Man at all, which may cause one to worry. Naturally, director Sam Raimi will be closely watching the development of the script, so hopefully this all leads to good things.


Raimi, along with stars Tobey Maguire and Kirsten Dunst are all said to be returning for the fourth installment of the franchise. It’s also a movie that Raimi is incredibly passionate about doing right to make up for what happened with Spider-Man 3 (Read: Sam Raimi Is On A Mission For ‘Spider-Man 4′).

Spider-Man 4 currently has a May 6, 2011 release date reserved, but it’s fairly unlikely that the date will stick with no script or set production scheduled locked in yet.
seen at http://geeksofdoom.com/2009/07/09/spider-man-4-picks-up-yet-another-writer-in-gary-ross/

[gkfi]

Sony Rehires James Vanderbilt to Write Spider-Man 5 and 6

As Sony Pictures Entertainment preps a fourth installment of "Spider-Man" to begin production early next year, the studio has quietly engaged screenwriter James Vanderbilt to pen "Spider-Man 5" and "Spider-Man 6."

Vanderbilt was the first writer on "Spider-Man 4." Director Sam Raimi brought on "Rabbit Hole" playwright David Lindsay-Abaire to rewrite him, and Gary Ross is now rewriting that script. The studio is enthusiastic about where it stands as the picture begins prepping for an early 2010 production start for a May 2011 release.

Raimi didn't embrace all of Vanderbilt's ideas, but execs at Columbia Pictures and Marvel Studios have. Vanderbilt has been hired to pen the fifth and sixth movies, which have an interconnected storyline. That's what was originally discussed when Vanderbilt signed on to write "Spider-Man 4," but the idea of shooting a fourth and fifth film back to back with the original cast was scrapped.

Sources said it was unclear whether Raimi, Tobey Maguire and Kirsten Dunst will be back. If they aren't, Vanderbilt's script would be the blueprint for a franchise reboot. After committing to his fourth "Spider-Man" film, Raimi signed on to direct a new franchise based on the massively multiplayer role-playing online computer game "World of Warcraft" for Legendary Pictures and Warner Bros. Maguire and Dunst were locked into the first three pictures and made a new deal for "Spider-Man 4." It's unclear how long they want to continue with the series.

Then again, Raimi was initially doubtful for "Spider-Man 4" because he expected to direct "The Hobbit," but returned after Guillermo del Toro got the job.

Why is Vanderbilt writing when so many variables are undecided?

The most important thing is for Sony to prime the "Spider-Man" pump more frequently. The lapse between films has grown with each blockbuster. The second film came only two years after the first, but it took three years for a third installment, and four years will have passed when "Spider-Man 4" opens in summer 2011.

Sony Pictures toppers Amy Pascal and Michael Lynton may well have a new franchise following last weekend's strong opening of "District 9." And after "Angels and Demons" grossed some $500 million worldwide, they will certainly move forward and extend the "Da Vinci Code" franchise with an adaptation of Dan Brown's fall publishing release, "The Lost Symbol." But "Spider-Man" remains the studio's most important film franchise, and Sony doesn't want to wait half a decade for the next outing.

[kforab]

News from Sam Raimi - found at http://www.aceshowbiz.com/news/view/00027933.html

It is still unclear which villains will be picked to be Spider-Man's new nemesis in "Spider-Man 4", but director Sam Raimi has shared his opinion on the baddies fans are mostly looking forward to see. When presented with the result of MTV's fan poll on the desired villains, the 49-year-old opened up about the top two choices, Lizard and Carnage.

"I love the Lizard," the filmmaker told MTV in a recent interview. "There's a great story there in the Marvel comic books about Dr. Connors. I'm less familiar with Carnage." While giving his response to the poll, the director of "Drag Me to Hell" kept tight lid on which villains will be featured, saying "I'm not allowed to say at this point."

Still, Raimi did mention that the choice of the baddie will depend on how the villain will fit into the story arc of Peter Parker. "What we're trying to do right now is really understand the journey Peter is going to go on this time and have the villain maybe be a counter to that growth, something that he has to overcome," he explained.

"Or maybe he has to grow in a way to overcome the villain," he continued, "because there always seem to be stories of coming of age, of a young man growing up and learning things about life, so once we are identifying the exact movement that Peter has to grow to, I think the villain - and we're trying this right now; we're trying to choose a villain based on who would be the proper counter to that growth, so we really have dramatic conflict."

"Spider-Man 4" is produced by Avi Arad, Grant Curtis and Laura Ziskin. Tobey Maguire will return to star as Peter Parker aka Spider-Man, and Kirsten Dunst will reprise her Mary Jane Watson role. Production may start in March 2010, Raimi suggested earlier. This fourth "Spider-Man" movie is expected to open wide in the U.S. on May 6, 2011.

[kforab]

Now also Dylan Bake alias Dr. Curt Connors confirmed to return for 'Spider-Man 4', seen at http://www.aceshowbiz.com/news/view/00028228.html

While Dylan Baker, the actor who takes on the character in the 'Spider-Man' series, reveals he is on board, it is still unclear whether his character will become The Lizard in the fourth film.
--------------------------------------------------------------------------------
 

Another casting news came in for "Spider-Man 4" as Dylan Baker confirmed his return as Dr. Curt Connors. UGO reported that during a post-screening Q&A for "Trick 'r Treat" on October 21 press conference, the 50-year-old actor unveiled that "he had just gotten his first call" about him being on-board earlier on the day.

Rumors have been floating around on the possibility of The Lizard being one of the two villains in the movie, and Connors is known as the one who turns into that of Spider-Man's nemesis after trying to re-grow his amputated arm with reptilian DNA serum. Nonetheless, it is still unclear whether "Spider-Man 4" will indeed see Connors morphing into The Lizard as Baker joked that he'd be "just appearing in the background" like what he's done in the two previous installments.

Prior to the casting announcement, director Sam Raimi has opened up to MTV about the villains. "I love the Lizard," the filmmaker expressed his thoughts when responding to the poll result for the movie's desired baddies. "There's a great story there in the Marvel comic books about Dr. Connors. I'm less familiar with Carnage." He further explained that the selection of the villains will heavily dependent on how the villain will fit into the story arc of Peter Parker.

"Spider-Man 4" is produced by Avi Arad, Grant Curtis and Laura Ziskin. Tobey Maguire will return to star as Peter Parker aka Spider-Man, and Kirsten Dunst will reprise her Mary Jane Watson role. Production may start in March 2010, Raimi suggested earlier. This fourth "Spider-Man" movie is expected to open wide in the U.S. on May 6, 2011.

[kforab]

found at http://image01.otto.de/pool/formata/2520565.jpg

Rachel McAdams To Play The Black Cat in Spider-Man 4?
Mania reports that "reliable sources" have revealed that Rachel McAdams (The Time Traveler's Wife, the upcoming Sherlock Holmes) has met with Spider-Man 4 producers and may play "Felicia Hardy, known to comic fans as The Black Cat."

In the comic books, The Black Cat is a thief that ultimately becomes romantically involved with Spider-Man. Spider-Man 3 tried to create a romantic triangle between Peter Parker (Tobey Maguire), Mary Jane Watson (Kirsten Dunst), and Gwen Stacy (Bryce Dallas Howard). Spider-Man 4 may try the same tactic, though it will also contain a second villain, with the sources revealing that Sony is looking to cast a male in that role, debunking rumors that Spider-Man's professor, Dr. Curt Conners (Dylan Baker), will finally become The Lizard.

similar news I did find at http://www.fusedfilm.com/2009/11/black-cat-rumors-create-interesting-web-conversation-for-spider-man-4/:

So yesterday I posted about the rumor that Rachel McAdams has met with Spider-man 4 producers about portraying Felicia Hardy/Black Cat in the next installment of the Spider-man movie franchise. What we didn’t tell you is that this wouldn’t be your average slide in the story character for fans but rather this is the second villain for the fourth film, at least that is what the tangled ‘web’ of the internet tells us.

Our friends at SlashFilm found a post in The Observer regarding actress/columnist Romola Garai, who revealed she had an audition for a role in Spider-Man 4 thus giving the McAdams rumor some meat meaning there is likely an appearance of the character in the film.

What the character is not is a “new female lead”, a juxtaposition of sorts, what this means is that besides Mary Jane Watson (Kirsten Dunst), Felicia Day will play a role slighty greater than or equal to Bryce Dallas Howard’s Gwen Stacy from the third film. However you see the words, second villain, thrown around and you begin to wonder.

So what do we at Fused Film think?

There is probably going to be the character in the film that will ode itself to the film series’ popular formula of the villains troubling Peter Parker’s personal life while obviously entangling with his superhero life. Black Cat’s story includes a struggle with her unethical thieving ways and later a romance with Spider-Man.

Black Cat is a great character to bring into the series for a possible spin-off, the lack of feminine superheros in film mixed with their previous lack of success, make great arguments to bring her in. Secondly, Black Cat’s mythos is somewhat interesting and makes for a great platform and dynamic for a character driven Spider-man film.  Her father Walter was a world-renowned cat burglar who, before his arrest, encouraged her to never settle for second best. During her freshman year in college, Felicia was date raped by her boyfriend Ryan. Hating the idea of being a victim, she decided that despite the consequences she would murder her rapist. She put aside her studies and began training in various fighting styles and acrobatics. Finally, after months of preparing, she set out for revenge, but before she could find him, Ryan was killed in a drunk-driving accident.

Furious that she was denied the chance to steal the life of the man who had stolen hers, and feeling reckless, Hardy decided to utilize her new skills to follow in the footsteps of her father. After amassing a fortune in stolen items, Felicia adopted her costumed identity, the Black Cat. When trying to break her father out of prison she meets Spider-Man. Unfortunately for Felicia, her father dies while trying to break him out so she then fakes her own death. Despite all her apathy towards men, she feels kinship with Spider-Man as the first man she felt she could trust even believing herself in love with him. Felicia looked for a way to earn his trust and continued with the Black Cat persona as a misguided attempt to attract his affection. Seeing the good in Felicia, Spider-Man made every attempt to have her criminal record expunged.

Knowing all that we certainly can say that makes for some interesting drama and dynamics for the Spidey, as she can prove to be a distraction for Spidey, stalking him all the time, but also her affect on his personal life with Mary Jane. You mix all of that with the true baddie of the next film and you have a nice character driven film or at least one hopes. I feel like this may run the risk of failing like Daredevil did. Still all of this is unconfirmed speculative information so once we know something we’ll update you all.

Please check out FS.net’s interesting take on all this as well, Alex and I, had a discussion on the last episode of the Mixercast about SP-4 and the villain they should use, though Black Cat never came up it adds some more insight into our thoughts on the film.

[gkfi]

'Spider-Man 4' Officially Has No Start Date As Of Today Because Of Script Problems; Sony "Unlikely" To Make Scheduled May 5, 2011, Release Date

By Nikki Finke@deadlinehollywood

At that point, it wasn't well known that the Spider-Man franchise director who also is helming the 4th installment had huge problems with the script that has run through screenwriters Jamie Vanderbilt, David Lindsay-Abaire, and Gary Ross. I'm even told Sam Raimi had been very vocal inside Sony that he "hated" it. Now Raimi and Sony are anxiously waiting for still another version from screenwriter Alvin Sargent, who wrote Spidey 2 & 3 and is married to Spidey franchise producer Laura Ziskind. "It is unlikely that May 11, 2011, date will be made," a Sony insider just told me today. "It depends on how quickly the script can get in." However, agents have told clients in the movie to already expect the film to be pushed back.

My sources say Sony still intends to release that summer, even if the new date is July 2011. But Spider-Man has always owned that coveted early May date. Even as far back as September 2008 when I reported my exclusive that Sony Locks In Sam Raimi & Tobey Maguire in 'Spider-Man 4'. And now this is a giant opportunity for other studios planning their 2011 schedules to grab this big opening.

Spider-Man 4 was supposed to start filming in February, and star Tobey Maguire echoed that repeatedly in publicity appearances for Brothers. Then it pushed to March. Then late March/early April. And now there's no date at all, according to my Sony insiders who emailed me: "Some decisions have been made over the holiday about Spider-Man 4. We will be extending the production hiatus on the film. The studio is firmly committed to this franchise but, for us, the script must come first. We intend to notify members of the crew immediately. As you know, Alvin Sargent is currently working on the screenplay. When we have more news, we will keep you posted."

I do know that Sony Pictures co-chairman Amy Pascal and Columbia Pictures president Matt Tolmach, who have shepherded the Spider-Man franchise from Day One, has been wrestling with this script problem for months. "I'm going to do everything I can to make May," she has repeatedly told Hollywood types involved with the movie. "But I'm not going to start a movie where the script isn't right yet. Not unless I want my career to be over."

Fortunately for Pascal, Sony is not yet "pay or play" on some of the talent negotiations which were still only at the tail end. Raimi is insisting that John Malkovich play the villain, so that won't change. But I do hear that it's now unlikely Anne Hathaway will be cast.  "I'm not so sure we're going in that direction," an insider told me recently. Sony had been hot for her until bigwigs realized she'd cost too much and they probably don't need "such a big star" for the pic, I'm told. (See my previous, Anne Hathaway Wanted For 'Spider-Man 4')

As for those repeated rumors that Spider-Man 4 will and won't shoot in 3D, I've got to figure that's uppermost on Sony minds given the post-Avatar climate. Back in April, Sony Pictures' co-chairmen Amy Pascal and Michael Lynton told Forbes magazine they were considering making the 4th Spider-Man in 3D. Here were the quotes: "Could be," said Pascal. Lynton added: "People are paying a premium to see movies in 3-D and that's a very big deal. It's never been done before that someone says you have to pay more to see Spider-Man than a romantic comedy."

[gkfi]

Spider-man4 scrapped, reboot planned

As many of you probably have already knew, Sony is scrapping Spider-Man 4 after script and schedule concerns caused Sam Raimi to walk away from the film. The scuttled sequel has already been confirmed by a Sony Pictures press release, and the studio will now go for a full franchise reboot for 2012. New director, new cast.

Source:http://www.hollywoodreporter.com/hr/content_display/news/e3iddf4077045b31afc6088f148eaee3ac2