The superhero genre continues to be wildly popular, with a number of shared universes competing for box office supremacy. While the MCU (which is streaming with a Disney+ subscription) is still going strong, Sony's Spider-Man universe seems to be struggling without the web slinger. Kraven the Hunter concept art revealed a scrapped Venom connection (and now I’ve got Spider-Man related FOMO).
Kraven The Hunter flopped at the box office, continuing the legacy of other Sony titles like Morbius and the infamous Madame Web movie (which is available to stream with a Netflix subscription). Part of the reason for this box office performance could be a lack of fan interest, since the movies haven't crossover over with each other or (more importantly) Tom Holland's Spider-Man. But it turns out that Kraven could have included a tie to Venom, with fan art on Instagram showing a scrapped idea. Check it out below:
Well, my mind is suddenly spinning. It's unclear exactly how Kraven The Hunter would have brought symbiotes into the story, but smart money says moviegoers would have been thrilled to finally see Sony's universe of movies connecting with each other. Alas, this idea was scrapped in Aaron Taylor-Johnson's comic book flick.
While Sony reached a joint custody agreement with Marvel over Tom Holland's Spider-Man, the same cannot be said for projects like Venom, Madame Web, Morbius, and Kraven. And as such, Peter Parker has yet to factor into any of those movies, and they aren't crossover-heavy like other shared universes. And that makes each of Sony's releases less essential viewing than upcoming Marvel movies that might influence the future of the shared universe.
Kraven The Hunter's trailers showed off the R-rated action of the blockbuster, as well as just how jacked Aaron Taylor-Johnson got to play the titular role. While the battles looked bloody and epic, they failed to get audiences in theaters to see the blockbuster. And a result, that title made just $59.4 million worldwide on a budget of $110–130 million.
While almost all of the Sony Spider-verse movies disappointed at the box office, Tom Hardy's Venom stands out as a property that audiences seemed to actually connect with. So if Kraven the Hunter actually included ties to the Tom Hardy franchise, perhaps moviegoers would have actually showed up to see the Spider-Man villain's solo flick.
Given how Kraven bombed at the box office, I have to wonder if Sony is going to give up on its shared universe altogether... especially the Venom franchise seemingly coming to an end. We'll just have to wait and see what villains factor into Tom Holland's Spider-Man 4.
Kraven the Hunter will be available on VOD January 14th. For now, check out the 2025 movie release dates.
