Now that Spider-Man is officially part of the Marvel Cinematic Universe thanks to his epic debut inCaptain America: Civil War, everyone is more eager than ever for next year’sSpider-Man: Homecoming, which will be the character’s first solo film as part of the MCU. We know thatTom Hollandwill be playing Peter Parker, but we don’t yet know for sure who Spidey will be squaring off against. Word has it we are very close to finding out for sure. According to a new report, The Vulture will be the bad guy in the newSpider-Manfilm. Today, it is confirmed thatMichael Keatonwill very likely play him.
According toTHR, the Oscar nominated actor is in final negotiations to join the superhero flick and is very close to closing a deal. This is far from the first that we have heard of Keaton flirting with the role inSpider-Man: Homecomingthough. Recently, reports were circulating thatKeatonwas being pursued by Marvel Studios and Sony to take on the role ofThe Vulture, but talks fell through after an offer was made and other actors were being pursued. However, as luck would have it somehow, someway Keaton has come back around and it is looking like he’ll be back in a big superhero franchise.
Keatonbrought Bruce Wayne to the big screen in Tim Burton’s 1989 landmark superhero movieBatman.Keaton’s career has enjoyed a massive resurgence as of late, ever since the actor decided to poke a bit of fun at himself, and at superhero movies in general, in the Oscar winningBirdman, for which he was nominated for best actor, ultimately losing out toEddie Redmaynefor his work inThe Theory of Everything. The actor continued his hot streak last year, starring inSpotlight, which took home Best Picture at the 2016 Academy Awards.
The Vulture is one of Spider-Man’s mostclassic villainsand has been rumored to be making his way to the big screen for quite some time. Long before Sony decided to reboot the character of Spider-Man with theAndrew GarfieldfrontedThe Amazing Spider-Man, Sam Raimi had plans to make a fourthSpider-Manfilm, after the disappointment that wasSpider-Man 3, and The Vulture was rumored to be the villain for that film and was to be played byJohn Malkovich. That would never come to pass, but now the MCU is in a position to bring Adrian Toomes to the big screen for the first time.
Civil Warhas already crossed$1 billionworldwide and the film still has a long way to go before it wraps up its theatrical run, so the world will be very familiar with the new Spider-Man by the timeSpider-Man: Homecominghits theaters on June 10, 2025. The standalone reboot is being helmed by newcomer Jon Watts, who also directedKevin Bacon’sCop Carlast year.
