So, who’s going to follow Sam Raimi and Marc Webb as the director of the next Spider-Man film? With production underway on Captain America: Civil War and Marvel Studios and Sony Pictures deep in the hunt for the actor who will portray Spider-Man (first popping up in Civil War before leading his own film), the contest to direct the new Spider-Man movie is also heating up.

A previous report from March claimed that Drew Goddard, the filmmaker behind The Cabin in the Woods and Sony’s aborted Sinister Six, was in talks to write and direct the new Spidey pic. Goddard was a solid and sensible choice, having had experience with Sony on Sinister Six and with Marvel creating Daredevil. But a new report leaves Goddard’s name out of the picture entirely and instead reveals a familiar-feeling list of directors who are being considered to helm the new Spider-Man film instead.

Per Deadline, the contenders to spearhead Spider-Man include Jonathan Levine (50/50), Ted Melfi (St. Vincent), Jason Moore (Pitch Perfect), John Francis Daley & Jonathan Goldstein (Vacation), and Jared Hess (Napoleon Dynamite). The report cautions that this list is not all-inclusive, so a different filmmaker could very well end up landing the gig, but these are some of the names that are apparently being bandied about.

Deadline notes that producers Kevin Feige (Marvel) and Amy Pascal (formerly of Sony) are planning an arc that could span three or four separate films, each encompassing a year of high school. The tone they’re searching for is a coming of age tale with “John Hughes humor and emotion.” Hmm, I wonder which filmmaker could perfectly capture that tone if given a solid script? (hint: it’s Marc Webb).


This list is not entirely surprising if you’re familiar with the types of filmmakers that Marvel (now) seeks out. None of them have experience in the action realm nor do they have incredibly distinct filmmaking voices, but they’ve all proved adept at handling tones that walk the line between comedic and dramatic, and they’re all familiar with character. Levine is probably the most accomplished of the bunch and his name previously surfaced on the shortlist of contenders for Marvel’s Doctor Strange. Of this group I’d probably choose him for the gig.

But I’m a bit bummed that Goddard’s name isn’t anywhere to be found. Could pal Joss Whedon’s tension with Marvel on Avengers: Age of Ultron have something with him not being in the running anymore, or possibly his experience after leaving Daredevil? Or is he still a contender and just didn’t surface on this latest shortlist? It’s unclear, but as Sony and Marvel are barreling towards a July 28, 2017 release date, expect firm news on the director front fairly soon.

spider-man-reboot
Image via Marvel Comics

For a refresher on all of Marvel’s confirmed releases, see below. And for a catalog of all upcoming superhero movie release dates, click here.

  • Ant-Man – July 17, 2015
  • Captain America: Civil War – May 6, 2016
  • Doctor Strange - November 6, 2016
  • Guardians of the Galaxy 2 – May 5, 2017
  • Spider-Man Reboot – July 28, 2017
  • Thor: Ragnarok – November 3, 2017
  • Avengers: Infinity War – Part 1 – May 4, 2018
  • Black Panther – July 6, 2018
  • Captain Marvel – November 2, 2018
  • Avengers: Infinity War – Part 2 – May 3, 2019
  • Inhumans – July 12, 2019