8 'Next Big Thing' Movie Directors Who Didn't Live Up To The Hype

4. Marc Webb

Although there were plenty of names thrown into the hat when Sony decided to reboot the Spider-Man franchise following the cancellation of Sam Raimi's fourth movie, nobody could have expected Marc Webb, of 500 Days of Summer fame, would be the man for the job.

Still, it was seen as an interesting choice; 500 Days was a huge success both critically and commercially, establishing Webb as a master of the kind of awkward, quirky character drama present in the best Spidey stories. Also, he had a stupidly relevant last name.

His first attempt at a blockbuster, The Amazing Spider-Man, wasn't the home-run many wanted it to be, but it was still a promising start for a filmmaker obviously getting accustomed to a completely different genre and production style. Unfortunately, the faith fans had in the director was extinguished - along with the newly-rebooted franchise itself - once the dreadful sequel rolled around.

While many believed the director's strengths simply didn't lie in big-budget blockbusters, Webb's next movie, a disastrous small-scale romance titled The Only Living Boy in New York, pointed toward 500 Days of Summer being a charming fluke.