SPIDER-MAN 4 gets new writer

Zodiac scribe and one the guys brought in to save the Wolverine script before the Nov. 1 deadline has been hired to write Spider-Man 4.

Spider-Man movie, as Avi Arad and Sam Raimi sit down and talk about what direction they want the future of the franchise to go. One development this week has been to hire a new screenwriter for the fourth installment. David Koepp wrote the first movie but wasn't around for it's sequel or the third flick in the franchise, but earlier this year he was hired to return to scribe Spider-Man 4. Well news today is that Koepp has been replaced on the writing duties by James Vanderbilt, writer of Zodiac,The Rundown and Basic... and he's also one of the guys recently hired to save the X-Men Origins: Wolverine script. Indeed, he's probably slaving over the script right now as that midnight deadline approaches. Of course with said deadline, Vanderbilt won't be able to write any of the next movie for a while, but the strike won't stop him from jotting down a few ideas, attending meets with Raimi/Arad and just generally thinking in his head where he could take the next movie. The news comes from Entertainment Weekly who claim the next movie is aiming for a 2009 release. That seems a little early to me with all the mystery still surrounding the future of the franchise, and with the two upcoming strikes, I just don't see how that is possible. But I do think some early developments are now being made. Next step is for Raimi to decide what capacity he will be involved in.

Editor-in-chief
Editor-in-chief

Matt Holmes is the co-founder of What Culture, formerly known as Obsessed With Film. He has been blogging about pop culture and entertainment since 2006 and has written over 10,000 articles.