Is Kraven the Hunter destined to join the ranks of all-time cinematic disasters like Morbius and Madame Web? It’s safe to say Sony Pictures’ attempt to forge a cinematic universe out of whatever minor Spider-Man characters they still had the rights to hasn’t done entirely to plan.
Sure, Venom was fun and Let There Be Carnage was… fine, but audience confidence in Sony putting out a quality superhero adventure is at rock bottom after Madame Web, and the writing may also be on the wall for Aaron Taylor-Johnson’s turn as Marvel’s premiere big game hunter.
In an ominous move, Kraven the Hunter has found it very difficult to settle on a release date. It was initially supposed to land on Jan. 13, 2023, then on Oct. 6, 2023, and then – for a long time – Aug. 30 2024 was locked in.
This would have put it at the tail-end of the summer blockbuster season and put it up against relatively light competition at the box office. On that weekend it would have opened opposite horror They Listen and sci-fi movie Slingshot, and, as the sole action movie release, it would probably have done well.
Now it’s been delayed until Dec. 13 2024, a decision which producer Matt Tolmach has said is a good move. Speaking to Collider, he said:
“Kraven moved to Christmas because we’re excited about it and Christmas is the best release period there is, when you get people with time to go back to the movies over and over again.”
We love optimism, but Kraven is about to go up against some very big – and surprisingly appropriate – box office competition.
The lion Kraven can’t hunt
Kraven the Hunter will share an opening weekend with the first Lord of the Rings movie since 2014’s The Hobbit: The Battle of the Five Armies. Animated movie The Lord of the Rings: The War of the Rohirrim will see the return of Mirando Otto as Eowyn (as narrator), and boasts Succession‘s Brian Cox as Rohan King Helm Hammerhand.
If The War of the Rohirrim were live-action it would probably crush Kraven, but perhaps it being an animated movie would mean lower box office projections. But it’s the next weekend’s competition that’s destined to snuff out Kraven the Hunter in multiplexes.
First comes Sonic the Hedgehog 3, with the franchise in rude health after the fun Knuckles series and riding the hype of Keanu Reeves as Shadow. But it’s what’s opening alongside it that’ll snack on Kraven – the hugely anticipated The Lion King prequel Mufasa: The Lion King. We suspect after its opening weekend Kraven will have the number of screens it’s playing in quickly cut to make room for Sonic and Mufasa, curtailing its box office prospects very quickly.
You probably don’t need us to point out the irony of a character famed for wearing a lion’s head vest getting financially obliterated by The Lion King, but it is still pretty funny.
With enthusiasm for Sony’s superhero movies (and superhero movies in general) at an all-time low, the only thing that could conceivably save Kraven is incredibly positive reviews. Somehow I doubt this will happen and, at this rate, I wouldn’t be surprised if Sony bumps it to a graveyard slot in Q1 2025.
