In a move reminiscent of the Snyder Cut campaign, fans are calling for Sony to greenlight Sam Raimi's Spider-Man 4 years after it was scrapped. With the 2002 film Spider-Man, Raimi became the first director to bring beloved web-slinger Peter Parker to the big screen. He would go on to create a trilogy centered around Tobey Maguire's iteration of the character, but there was once a time when it wasn't intended as a trilogy. Back in 2007, Raimi had begun developing a Spider-Man 4 after the third film was released, with Maguire and Kirsten Dunst (as MJ Watson) set to return.
Spider-Man 4 would've introduced several characters from the comics, including the Vulture and Felicia Hardy, aka Black Cat. John Malkovich and Anne Hathaway were in talks for those roles, respectively, and a 2011 release date was set as various screenwriters tried their hands at penning the script. However, Sony later announced Spider-Man 4 would no longer be happening; the studio would reboot the character in 2012 with the Andrew Garfield-starring The Amazing Spider-Man.
However, now that Spider-Man: No Way Home has reignited interest in Raimi's trilogy, fans are calling on Sony to make the unmade film. Similar to how fans would frequently post #ReleaseTheSnyderCut on social media in an effort to get Warner Bros. to release director Zack Snyder's version of Justice League, many have begun posting #MakeRaimiSpiderMan4. This new effort is largely aimed at Sony, though it remains to be seen if the studio has caught wind of it. Check out a sampling of fans' posts down below.
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The MCU-set Spider-Man: No Way Home has a multiverse premise that allows for certain Raimi actors to return. In addition to villains like Alfred Molina (as Doc Ock) and Willem Dafoe (as Green Goblin), No Way Home features the triumphant return of Maguire as Peter Parker. Fans' enthusiasm over seeing Maguire back on the big screen as Spider-Man has fueled this new effort to get Spider-Man 4 made. The same has happened with Garfield's iteration of the character, who also appears in No Way Home; fans have flooded social media with calls for The Amazing Spider-Man 3.
Though fan campaigns have become incredibly popular following the success of the Snyder Cut, it remains to be seen if these new efforts can make a real difference. Raimi has moved on from Spider-Man and in fact recently boarded the MCU himself by directing Doctor Strange in the Multiverse of Madness. However, he admitted in 2019 that he still thinks about his Spider-Man 4. Should that lingering thought still hold, Raimi might be willing to return. However, that depends entirely on Sony. The studio is in the midst of building its own Marvel universe with movies like Morbius and Kraven the Hunter, and it isn't yet clear how it plans to integrate Spider-Man - or if it will at all. Additionally, there is already a fourth Spider-Man movie starring Tom Holland in development. If Raimi's Spider-Man 4 doesn't quite fit these plans, all the fan tweets in the world won't make a difference. Still, those who are passionate about Raimi's films are making their voices heard, and that is no small thing.
Sources: Various (see above)
