‘Your desperation is showing’: Sony just made a shameless move to save ‘Kraven the Hunter’ — and it’s already backfiring

And so the superhero movie year ends just as it began. The first comic book film of 2024 was February’s Madame Web, Sony’s inexplicable attempt to keep its Spider-Man spin-off universe going after it died a chaotic yet anemic death with Morbius. Proving that the definition of insanity really is doing the same thing over and over and expecting different results, Sony is now back with yet another entry in its flailing franchise, with this December’s Kraven the Hunter. And, shock horror, it’s not looking good.

After Venom: The Last Dance became the lowest-grossing film in its trilogy this fall, Sony decided to make a desperate grab for tickets by revealing the first eight minutes of Kraven almost a full two weeks before it hits cinemas. If the intent was to blow fans away with this tease and send them flying to theaters to book their seats then Sony misjudged things big time, as this sneak peek has only cemented cinema-goers’ desire to give this one a wide berth.

Sony, honey, maybe let this franchise bow out with dignity.

So what don’t people like about this extended clip? While it’s a plus that the movie actually opens with some kind of blood-pumping action scene — a prerequisite of the genre that Morbius and Madame Web foolishly forewent — much criticism is being directed at the sequence’s choppy editing.

Not to mention there’s something shifty about Aaron Taylor-Johnon’s intro. Are we sure he’s hyping up this film of his own free will?

One plus? Surely this has got to be it for the SSU (Sony’s Spider-Man Universe) this time.

To be fair to Sony and Kraven, dropping the first 10 minutes of a movie is becoming an increasingly common marketing tactic. It’s not so much of a problem, though, when said first 10 minutes are actually, you know, good.

Bad is a comparative label when it comes to Sony’s Spidey flicks, of course. Although it’s true Kraven is clearly more competently manufactured than its forebears, it still suffers from the same intrinsic problem as everything from this whole sorry saga: Can villains just be villains, please?

On paper, Kraven the Hunter actually has a lot going for it. It features three classic Spidey villains who have either never appeared in live-action before or who haven’t been done justice — Chameleon, Rhino, and Kraven himself. Unlike Gladiator II, it has Russell Crowe in it. Not to mention it stars Taylor-Johnson, aka Schrodinger’s James Bond, in the lead. If this was our first SSU rodeo we’d probably all be hyped for it. As it is, we’ve been down this road too many times to fool ourselves again.

With limited box office expectations, and probably even worse critical notices, it’s entirely possible Kraven will prove to be Sony’s last hunt in the supervillain spin-off game. If you dare enter the jungle of knock-off Marvel movies once more, witness the not-so-mighty roar of Kraven the Hunter when it meows into movie theaters come Dec. 13.