British TV director S.J. Clarkson has reportedly signed on to take charge of a new female-led Spider-Man spinoff movie. The movie will form part of the Sony Pictures Universe of Marvel Characters, which includes a host of Marvel characters connected to Spider-Man.
Upcoming releases from the SPUCM include Venom: Let There Be Carnage and Morbius. These movies follow on from the relative success of Venom, as well as the incredibly successful integration of Spider-Man into the Marvel Cinematic Universe, in the form of Tom Holland's webslinger.
Now Variety is reporting that Clarkson has signed on to direct Sony's new female-led Spider-Man spinoff movie. There is no confirmation of a cast, though the report mentions the movie could revolve around Madame Web, who in the comics is currently former Spider-Woman Julia Carpenter. No casting announcements have been made, but Variety says that an A-list actor is being sought to play the role, with Charlize Theron and Amy Adams heading the list.
Clarkson is best known for her extensive television career, which has spanned the past two decades. She started out working on British soap operas, before moving on to dramas, such as the BBC's Life on Mars. In the 2010s, Clarkson moved over to American TV, working on episodes of House, Dexter, and most notably two episodes each of Marvel's Netflix shows Jessica Jones and The Defenders. She was also attached to direct the now-cancelled Star Trek 4, as well as making the shortlist for Bond 25, now known as No Time to Die, back in 2018. Most recently, she directed the pilot for a Game of Thrones prequel series, which was ultimately not picked up by HBO.
The Brit will be hoping this time around she'll be able to move forward with a big-budget tentpole movie. She could be up against it again, though, with Sony Pictures not having the best track record when it comes to Spider-Man spinoff movies. A planned Sinister Six movie was scrapped when Sony signed their Spider-Man deal with Marvel, and back in the 2000s a fourth Sam Raimi Spider-Man movie was scrapped in favor of rebooting the character with 2012's The Amazing Spider-Man.
However, if the film does see the light of day, it should bring a fresh perspective to the SPUCM. A female-directed Spider-Man movie featuring a female protagonist will allow for new and interesting storylines, hopefully steering the Universe away from the testosterone-fueled direction its taken with Venom and Morbius so far. Added to that, Clarkson produces good television, and it will be exciting to see how she translates her talents to the big screen.
Source: Variety
