Next Spider-Man Villain Movie Is Massive For Sony"s Marvel Future

:0:1

Kraven the Hunter has become a huge test for Sony"s Marvel future with its Spider-Man villain movies. Sony Pictures is continuing down the path of having multiple Marvel franchises. In addition to the collaborations with Marvel Studios to make Spider-Man part of the Marvel Cinematic Universe, Venom"s release in 2018 marked the first Sony Marvel movie to center around one of the web-slinger"s villains. The studio has moved further in that direction with a sequel and another villain film with Morbius, and Kraven the Hunter represents the next installment in Sony"s Spider-Man Universe.
Aaron Taylor-Johnson stars in Kraven the Hunter, which will bring him into the titular role of Sergei Kravinoff. The film is scheduled to be the fourth entry in Sony"s Spider-Man villain franchise once it releases in October 2023. The impending release of Kraven the Hunter comes even after Morbius" reception hurt the overall excitement in the shared universe. Instead of making another middling superhero movie centered around a Spider-Man villain that average audiences might not know, Kraven the Hunter could help usher in a new era for Sony"s Marvel movie future with the latest updates.
Kraven the Hunter Will Be Sony"s First Ever R-Rated Marvel Movie

Sony"s presentation at Cinema Con 2023 brought the confirmation that Kraven the Hunter will be R-rated. This makes the superhero movie starring Aaron Taylor-Johnson the first ever R-rated Marvel movie for Sony. The studio has a long history of making Marvel movies that dates back to the original Sam Raimi and Tobey Maguire Spider-Man in 2002. All three entries in the trilogy had PG-13 ratings, and the same is true for Andrew Garfield"s two The Amazing Spider-Man films and Tom Holland"s MCU trilogy. Spider-Man: Into the Spider-Verse and Spider-Man: Across the Spider-Verse have PG ratings.
Sony has also avoided making an R-rated Marvel movie before Kraven the Hunter with its other villain films. Venom, Venom: Let There Be Carnage, and Morbius all had PG-13 ratings, even as there were campaigns for the studio to make more adult versions of these films that leaned into the darkness and violence of the villains. Sony even stopped Nicolas Cage"s two Ghost Rider movies from veering into R-rated territory despite their supernatural connections. This means that Kraven the Hunter"s R rating breaks a 21-year-old streak for Sony regarding its Marvel movies. It is a decision that could be big for the future.
Kraven"s R Rating Opens To Door For New Kinds Of Sony Marvel Movies

The decision to make Kraven the Hunter R-rated is not a decision that was made arbitrarily by Sony. It instead is a signal that the studio is willing to push the envelope of their Marvel movie ratings depending on what is best for the character. The entire premise of Kraven as a character means that a movie centered around him would need to include a lot of violence as the big-game hunter turned villain goes to war. The first Kraven the Hunter footage confirms that Sony is not holding back and letting the movie"s R-rating open the door for new levels of violence that this character in particular could require.
This move then is a great sign for the types of Sony Marvel movies that could be made in the future. It indicates that Sony is willing to expand the genre and tone associated with their superhero films. Kraven the Hunter can be an R-rated revenge action film, while something like Madame Web could be a PG-13 adventure film with female heroes and El Muerto could be a comedic action film starring Bad Bunny"s wrestler villain. It helps make more sense out of some of the Sony Marvel movie announcements, including Donald Glover"s Hypno-Hustler.
What Kraven Being Rated-R Means For Sony"s Marvel Future

The confirmation that Kraven is R-rated could be something that provides more confidence in Sony"s Marvel movie future. Audiences have responded positively in the past to other R-rated superhero movies. Both Deadpool movies starring Ryan Reynolds were massive box office hits, while 2019"s Joker made over $1 billion at the box office. The track record of R-rated superhero movies having success goes back to Wesley Snipes" Blade trilogy, but Kraven the Hunter will join a limited list of mainstream comic book movies that are R-rated.
Kraven"s R rating might be a swing by the studio to try and capitalize on the hunger for more adult superhero content that is becoming more popular across Hollywood. Invincible, The Boys, and Peacemaker are a few examples to come from TV, but that audience is still underserved in movie theaters. 2021"s The Suicide Squad was the last R-rated superhero movie to release in theaters before Kraven the Hunter, which leaves almost two years exactly between them. For context, 16 non-R-rated superhero movies will release during that span.
This could mean that Kraven the Hunter is much more than just the next Sony Marvel movie being released. It could be an attempt by the studio to carve out a space for its Spider-Man Universe among the gluttony of superhero movies. If Kraven the Hunter"s R-rating leads to the film being a success, it could mark a turning point for the franchise and usher in a confidence from the studio to make more R-rated Marvel movies.
Will Other Sony Marvel Movies Be Rated R - Like Venom 3?

Sony has currently not announced any plans for future Marvel movies to be rated R like Kraven is. The studio has a number of confirmed projects to be in development: Madame Web, Venom 3, Spider-Man 4, El Muerto, and Hypno-Hustler. Even though Spider-Man: No Way Home was a bit darker, it would be a real shock if Spider-Man 4 became an R-rated film for Sony and the MCU. Even as the MCU itself expands into R-rated territory with Deadpool 3, Marvel is unlikely to want a character as recognizable as Spider-Man headlining an R-rated film.
Kraven"s update does make it more likely that Venom 3 will be R-rated, though. There have long been calls for Tom Hardy"s character to take a turn into a more mature territory and fully unleash the symbiote in an R-rated film. With both Venom movies performing well at the box office with PG-13 ratings, Sony could understandably be hesitant to change up a working formula. However, Kraven the Hunter"s R-rating helping contribute to the film becoming a success could give the studio the push it needs to do the same with Venom 3"s rating.
The truth is that the likelihood of other Sony Marvel movies being R-rated depends entirely on how well Kraven does. Hollywood is often reactionary to the box office for better or worse. Just like how Morbius" box office failure might have helped push Sony to switch up their approach with Kraven, that film disappointing could once again leave the studio"s future Marvel movies in uncertain territory. So if Kraven the Hunter"s R-rating does not work, help improve the movie, or make it stand out from the competition, Sony likely will not be as eager to try it again, whether that be with Venom 3 or something else.
Key Release Dates