There’s a quench out there for villain stories that’s equal, if not greater than the heroes. Todd Phillip’s Joker will be the next film to exploit on that hunger, hopefully capitalizing on Joaquin Phoenix’s incredible skill and the character’s terrifying demeanor. But it looks like Sony, who’d tried (and arguably failed) this formula last year with Venom, will be stepping up to the plate again.
A source close to We Got This Covered says that the studio’s planning on making a project around Doctor Octopus, Spider-Man’s eight-armed foe. Apparently, this’ll be an origin film, more than likely focused on Otto Octavius’ fall from esteemed scientist to obsessed criminal.
From the few iterations we’ve seen of the character before – including director Sam Raimi and actor Alfred Molina’s take in Spider Man 2, and most recently in Marvel’s Spider-Man video game – we know that when done properly, Otto’s is a story of immense tragedy and darkness. Plot details are, of course, unknown at this time, but according to our source, the friendly, neighborhood web-slinger will not be a part of this film at all. Even so, Sony’s surely got some great source material to work from.
Again, this project’s in its developing stages at the moment, so there’s hardly any official information or announcements from the studio. But apparently, Spotlight star Stanley Tucci’s in consideration for the role, though his possible involvement as the Riddler in Matt Reeves’ The Batman could make scheduling an issue.
But another actor threw his hat in the ring for this character over a year ago: Luke Skywalker himself, Mark Hamill. Perhaps Hamill will finally get his chance now?
As we prepare to hear more and more on this project, tell us, what are your thoughts? Is a Doctor Octopus film something you’d like to see one day? Or are the memories of Alfred Molina’s iconic performance too difficult to shake from your mind? Let us know your early impressions on the movie in the comments section below.
