8 Superhero Films That Nearly Had Completely Different Directors

7. Spider Man - James Cameron

James Cameron Spider Man
Sony

In one of the weirder chapters in Marvel’s history, the Titanic director wrote an entire 80-page "scriptment" in the early 90s for the latex-clad hero, one that took on a distinctly adult tone.

Cameron seems to have been fixated by the idea that the Spidey powers could be a metaphor for puberty - not a bad idea, really, but one that sits at odds with the kind of lighthearted tone we've come to expect from our friendly neighbourhood Spiderman.

In one scene, Parker wakes up covered in a sticky white substance. In another, he spies on Mary Jane as she gets changed. Later she sleeps with him on a bridge, having been seduced by Parker's description of the mating habits of spiders: "the male will attach strands of silk to the female... tying her limbs." It's hard to imagine Tom Holland's preppy hero saying these lines, to say the least.

Things fell through when a contract dispute led Carolco Pictures (the studio Cameron was working for) losing the rights for the franchise, which went to Sony. It's probably for the best.

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Contributor

Another wayward English graduate who makes money by arranging words into the correct order. Is really at it good!