Spider-Man may have recently joined the Marvel Cinematic Universe, but that doesn’t mean Sony is done with their own spinoffs to the character. In addition to ongoing plans to develop a Venom movie, Sony is actively involved in bringing an animated Spider-Man to the big screen late next year. Ongoing rumors seem to point to this project starring the Miles Morales iteration of the character, which would certainly differentiate it from the Tom Holland’s current live action Peter Parker. For those in the dark, Miles originates from Marvel’s alternate 1610 universe (whose titles went by the Ultimate moniker). He took up the mantle of Spider-Man after the death of Peter Parker and has since universe hopped into the mainstream 616 continuity, which he now shares with the classic Spider-Man.
The benefit to the Ultimate universe (while it lasted) was in its ability to reimagine classic Marvel characters in a new light. Few of these changes were more impactful than that of Spider-Man’s classic frienemy, The Prowler. Initially imagined as Hobie Brown, a down-on-his-luck kid who turns to a life of superpowered crime (and later heroism), the character became Miles’ cat burglar uncle, Aaron Davis, in the Ultimate comics.
Heroic Hollywood’s Umberto Gonzalez has now suggested via Instagram that The Prowler will play a role in the upcoming film:
HOT RUMOR: Hearing The Prowler will be in Sony’s Spider-Man animated film. Not sure how large the role will be. A photo posted by Umberto Gonzalez (@umbertogonzalez) on Jan 13, 2017 at 12:16pm PST
This makes a lot of sense, especially if Miles is the animated Spider-Man in question. In the comics, his uncle Aaron is responsible for Miles’ superhero transformation. After a night of industrial theft against Oscorp, Aaron inadvertently brings home one of the genetically engineered spiders that first empowered Peter. Assuming Miles is the subject of the Animated Spider-Man project, it will be interesting to see whether this origin will play out verbatim or whether The Prowler will function as the film’s “big bad” (similar to the early issues of his comic). In the film, would Miles still be the successor to a dead Peter Parker? While it’s an important element of his origin, that seems like it would be a pretty heavy bomb to drop on casual filmgoers.
How do you feel about the possibility that the Animated Spider-Man film will follow yet another origin story? Let us know in the comments section, and stay tuned to Screen Rant for updates on the project as they hit.
The Animated Spider-Man Movie (official title TBA) will open in U.S. theaters on December 21st, 2018.
Source: Umberto Gonzalez via Instagram
