Why We've Never Been Closer To Raimi's Spider-Man 4

It's strange to think that, in one form or another, Marvel fans have been discussing Spider-Man 4 since 2007. There's not just the cancelled follow-up to the much-maligned third entry in Sam Raimi's trilogy (which, for the record, is not as bad as has been made), but also the upcoming confirmed sequel to 2021's Spider-Man: No Way Home. Rumours regarding the latter have expectedly picked up over the last few months, with speculation pointing towards a 2025 release, but so too, strangely, have discussions surrounding the former. Raimi's fourth Spider-Man film - a project that was abandoned some 14 years ago - is still garnering attention, with Raimi and Mary Jane Watson actor Kirsten Dunst recently as only a month ago being questioned on the prospects of it somehow happening.

The responses from each party were both honest and, for those Raimi fans still hopeful of a belated fourth Spider-Man film, potentially even a bit encouraging. Speaking to CBR (via Deadline), Raimi said that while he isn't involved in any current discussions regarding Spider-Man 4, he is aware of the rumours and that he would be the first to know if such a project was put in motion. (Raimi had previously stated in a 2022 interview with ComicBook that "all things are possible" and how he'd "love to work with Tobey [Maguire] again.") Dunst was equally candid when quizzed on the matter by IndieWire, saying of a potential Spider-Man 4, "I don't think we need that."

At the same time, the Civil War star did say that she would've accepted a role in No Way Home had it been offered, and just the other month admitted in an interview with Marie Claire that she'd happily do another superhero movie "because you get paid a lot of money, and I have two children, and I support my mother." (Honestly? The most "hell yeah"-inducing response of the bunch.)

While it's easy to chalk up chatter of Raimi somehow reviving his lost Spider-Man movie as pie-in-the-sky fanboy musings - even with Raimi and Dunst leaving the door slightly ajar for such a thing to happen - it may not be as ludicrous a sounding prospect as it would've seemed a few years ago. Maguire's return was a key draw behind Spider-Man: No Way Home, as were fellow returning castmates Alfred Molina and Willem Dafoe as Doctor Octopus and Green Goblin respectively. Factor in a willingness from competitor DC to have multiple incarnations of Batman on the big screen at once, as well as Sony's enthusiasm to milk the Spider-Man license for all its worth with tawdry adaptations like Morbius and Madame Web, plus overall nostalgic trends in recent releases, and suddenly the idea of Spider-Man 4 getting made doesn't seem all that silly after all.

This will either inspire eye-rolls or fist-pumps depending on your mileage with superhero glut, and to confess, I'm not even sure how I feel about the prospect of it happening either. What I do know is that I love that incarnation of the character, as well as Raimi's films more generally, and with the right concept in mind, it could be a killer. Should it happen? Maybe not, but in the event its prospects are genuine, then there's every chance that Spider-Man 4 could be worthwhile, adventurous, and better than the sum of the nostalgic trends that resulted in films like No Way Home and The Flash.

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