Kraven the Hunter star Aaron Taylor-Johnson has recently shared details about Kraven's characterization in the upcoming Spider-Man spinoff movie. Taylor-Johnson was cast as Kraven the Hunter in May 2021, being the first actor to bring the character to the big screen since he was originally published. Kraven the Hunter is currently in production and scheduled for release on January 13th, 2023.
Created by Stan Lee and Steve Ditko and making his debut in The Amazing Spider-Man #15 in 1964, Sergei Nikolaevich Kravinoff is a Russian big-game hunter who aims to prove his superiority as a big-game hunter by being the man who defeats Spider-Man. From being a founding member of the Sinister Six to burying Spider-Man alive, Kraven has proved himself as one of Spider-Man's greatest adversaries through stories such as 1987's "Fearful Symmetry: Kraven's Last Hunt," leading to the character being adapted to both video games and animated TV shows. Now, Kraven is getting shown in a different light in the upcoming spinoff movie.
In an interview with ComicBook about his role in the upcoming action movie Bullet Train, Taylor-Johnson offered insight into his portrayal of Kraven in the Spider-Man spinoff movie. The actor explained that his version of Kraven would be a protector of the natural world as well as a hunter, contrary to previous misconceptions surrounding his portrayal of the character. Taylor-Johnson also emphasized because of his duel nature as a protector and a hunter, Kraven is also a complex character, with the film not only exploring him as an acclaimed hunter close to his comic characterization but also showing how he is flawed as well. Check out the actor's response below.
"I meant what really stated was that he was a protector of the natural world I said and he's a conservationist... he is a hunter and from that world of hunting and there's so many aspects. What I love about that character is that what is he humanizing is that he has flaws, right? Kraven is a beautiful character. Sergei Kravinov is a beautiful character because it's someone who's really understanding themselves and has flaws.
Taylor-Johnson previously teased the physical transformation and training that he did to prepare for the role of Kraven. Earlier this year, the actor revealed that he and his trainers had focused on capturing the character's physical appearance from the comics, bulking up his body to match Kraven's design in the weeks prior to filming. Taylor-Johnson explained that while there would be some room left open in his version of the character for interpretation, the actor hoped to capture the character in a faithful translation from page to screen.
While it is currently unclear whether Taylor-Johnson's villain will ever face a new or familiar version of Spider-Man, Kraven the Hunter promises to create a story that captures the character's surrounding lore and cast, with Ariana DeBose being cast as the villain Calypso and Fred Hechinger being cast as the Chameleon. With the spinoff film featuring many of Kraven's surrounding characters, Sony's next Spider-Man Shared Universe film will focus on exploring the villain's origins separate from the famous webslinger. Despite the absence of Marvel's iconic hero, it is clear from Taylor-Johnson's answer that the film will be faithful to the core of the character's hunter ways.
Source: ComicBook
