The SonySpider-ManUniverse remains one of the worst ongoing major film franchises. The Marvel Cinematic Universe has its flaws, but the first decade pumped out dozens of solid superhero movies with a few genuinely great entries. Even the DCEU dropped a decent entry now and again before it unceremoniously ended. AfterMadame WebandMorbius, it’s hard to imagine a new contender delivering a funnier bad experience.Kraven the Hunterisn’t guaranteed to be a disaster, but its repeated delays don’t bode well.
Every SSU film made less money than its predecessor.Venommade over $850 millionon a budget of just over $110 million. Its sequel still raked in profits, but it stopped at around $500 million.Morbiussuffered a massive decline, earning only $167 million despite hitting theaters twice.Madame Webmanaged to fall even further, bringing in only $100 million.Morbiusprobably didn’t make a profit, given its $80 million budget.Madame Webdefinitely didn’t make a profit, barely earning back its production budget without accounting for marketing.Kravenwill likely be the most expensive entry yet, raising new concerns.
Richard Wenk, Art Marcum, and Matt Holloway
Story by
Richard Wenk
Starring
Aaron Taylor-Johnson, Ariana DeBose, Fred Hechinger, Alessandro Nivola, Christopher Abbot, and Russell Crowe
Release Date
Jun 09, 2025
Kraven the Hunter is a character that multiple filmmakers considered introducing to the big screen. He remains exclusive to comics, animated shows, and video games like thelatestSpider-Manoffering. Sony hired Richard Wenk to write the screenplay forKravenshortly beforeVenomhit the screen. This was one of the earliest projects on the docket when Sony put together their Spider-Man universe. In May 2021, Sony announced Aaron Taylor-Johnson as the star of their long-awaitedKravenmovie and finally issued a release date. They planned the project for July 26, 2025. Several months passed without commentary. In September 2022, Sony pushedKravento July 14, 2025. This was part of a bizarre shuffling game withMadame Web. That film, which eventually found its release date this Valentine’s Day, also underwent two delays.KraventookMadame Web’sOctober release date as part of a widespread shift. Sony seemingly shifted everything forward for an unnamed horror movie it intended to drop a week beforeKraven’s original release date. Whatever film filled that role never came out, butA Man Called Ottowent wide on January 13.
Kraven’s second delay has an explanation, making it unique among the list.Kraven, Madame Web,and the rest of the 2023 blockbuster slate moved ahead to account for the strikes. As theWGA and SAG-AFTRA unionsfought for better working conditions, studios pushed their projects down the calendar. That landedKravenwith an May 23, 2025, release date. Finally, Sony announced a third delay this April. The studio seems to be playing a bizarre game with its big names.Kravenwas set for Labor Day weekend. Historically, the holiday has served as a suitable dumping ground for Hollywood’s weakest offerings. That tradition has started to turn around. Massive hits like Marvel’sShang-Chiand Columbia’sThe Equalizer 3dropped over Labor Day weekends.Kravencould have joined the new wave, but Sony pushed it to December. They filled the slot with a Blumhouse horror film calledThey Listen. Sony seemingly movedKravenas an afterthought. The bigger announcement was pushingtheir newKarate Kidto next May, withKraventaking its spot. These movements raise a lot of questions.
TheKravendelays could cause problems
Sony wisely putThe Karate Kidin a prime summer movie spot. Their choice to pushKravento the Christmas season may be less savvy.Kravenwill compete withLord of the Rings: The War of Rohirrim, which will almost certainly consume most of the market. Though the delays seem to have justifications, at least in some cases, they imply a lack of faith in the product. Setting this R-rated superhero action movie up for a period rife with family-friendly crowd-pleasers seems like a surefire way to create a flop. Issuing yet another delay won’t fix that problem. The limited marketing, quiet schedule shuffling, andbizarre final release dateall spell disaster for a film no one has seen yet.
Kraven the Huntercould be a good movie, but Sony seems to be doing everything in their power to tell the world it isn’t. They’ve got a decent director, a solid lead actor, anda long-awaited R-rating, but something must be wrong on the back end. EvenMadame Webreached its release date after only two delays. It may be unfair to fear the worst after these mysterious production events continue to occur behind closed doors, but the studio must know how their decisions look. Keep an eye onKraven. Don’t be shocked if news of a troubled production finds its way to the internet. Predicting thatKravenwill be bad doesn’t exactly requireMadame Web’s future sight, but Sony seems to be putting out all the signals.
