With the Marvel Cinematic Universe's Spider-Man set to debut in next year’s Captain America: Civil War, then lead his own film in 2017, the race to get the creative talent behind the Wall-Crawler is nearing the finish line. This past weekend, it was reported that six actors had been screen-tested for the next live-action Peter Parker. Now, after an original list of 12 individuals, the director choices for the next Spider-Man solo movie have been narrowed down to five finalists, and they’re an eclectic bunch.
According to Deadline, Ted Melfi and Jonathan Levine are Marvel and Sony’s favorites being looked at for the next film. Ted Melfi’s most notable work is helming the 2014 Bill Murray film St. Vincent, while Levine has directed films like 50/50 and Warm Bodies. Also still in contention for the Spidey film are John Francis Daley and Jonathan M. Goldstein, the directors behind the upcoming National Lampoon film Vacation. The surprise fifth candidate that’s listed is Jon Watts, who was behind Clown and the upcoming Kevin Bacon vehicle, Cop Car. The article points out that it’s unclear whether whoever fills the director’s chair will also write the script, as Marvel and Sony are also meeting with several scriptwriters, as well. Whoever is chosen as director, they will inherit the mantle left behind by previous Spidey creative minds Sam Raimi and Marc Webb.
Although there hasn’t been much news on the Spider-Man director front, several of these names are already familiar. Melfi, Levine and Daley & Goldstein were all reported to be in contention last month, so it looks they made it through that round of vetting. Pitch Perfect’s Jason Moore and Napoleon Dynamite’s Jared Hess were mentioned to be candidates, but it looks like that either wasn’t true or they didn’t make the cut. It was also rumored earlier in the year that The Cabin in the Woods director Drew Goddard (who was also slated to direct the now-delayed Sinister Six film) was up for the gig, but it looks like that’s no longer in the cards, either.
With the Spider-Man solo film a little over two years away, Marvel and Sony will have to work fast to pick the right person to lead the project if they want to stay on schedule. Currently the Spider-Man film and Thor: Ragnarok are the only pre-2018 Marvel films that don’t have directors attached yet. If Marvel has already picked Joe and Anthony Russo to direct the Avengers: Infinity War films and is looking at candidates for Black Panther, it’s more than likely that we’ll find out who will take Spider-Man into their hands in the next couple of months, if not at the latest by the end of the year.
You can expect to see the new Spider-Man in action when Captain America: Civil War opens on May 6, 2016, with the Web-Slinger’s solo adventure swinging into theaters on July 28, 2017.
