Summary
Spider-Man 4 is one of the MCU‘s most anticipated movies, and it could potentially bring Kraven the Hunter into its story after his initial planned debut did not happen. Spider-Man has had a complex history with the MCU due to Sony Pictures holding his film rights, but Sony and Marvel Studios’s eventual deal to share the Web-Slinger has blown the doors off the Spider-Verse like never before for both studios. In Sony’s case, it also is helping to expand the possibilities of their universe of Spider-Man villains, including its next new series, Kraven the Hunter.
Despite Kraven being a long-time Spidey villain, Spider-Man will likely not appear in Kraven the Hunter, but that does not mean they will not eventually meet. With the multiverse heavily in play in the MCU and Sony’s Marvel films, there are already multiple avenues for Kraven to finally embark on his hunt for the Wall-Crawler after the release of Kraven the Hunter. Here is how Kraven the Hunter was almost introduced in the MCU and how Spider-Man 4 could bring him into the fold.
Kraven The Hunter Almost Appeared In Black Panther
Just prior to the release of Black Panther in 2018, director Ryan Coogler revealed in an interview that Kraven the Hunter was originally set to appear in the film. It’s not fully clear exactly what Kraven’s role in Black Panther would have been, in terms of whether he would have been the main protagonist, a secondary villain teaming up with Michael B. Jordan’s Killmonger, or simply appearing in a minor cameo. However, Kraven’s backstory and animal-like powers make it easy to see how he could have potentially fit into Black Panther‘s story.
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In theory, Kraven might have been featured in a scene or two showing him hunting African wildlife and encroaching on Wakanda’s territory. Given Wakanda’s secretive nature in the film, it would make sense for Kraven to be expelled from the nation in such a scenario, and this could have potentially set up his subsequent meeting with Spider-Man. On the other hand, Kraven’s eventual debut in Sony’s universe of Marvel villains seems likely to serve him better as a character.
Why Sony’s Kraven Solo Movie Is Better Than His Original MCU Plan
As a Spider-Man villain and member of the Sinister Six, Kraven is in good company already in Sony’s Spider-Man universe with Tom Hardy’s Venom, Jared Leto’s Morbius, and Dakota Johnson’s forthcoming Madam Web. With the Rhino (Alessandro Nivola) also to appear in Kraven the Hunter, Aaron Taylor-Johnson’s Kraven is in a setting much more directly geared towards an eventual Spider-Man showdown than his Black Panther role likely would have been. While Spidey has yet to arrive in Sony’s universe of Marvel villains, that status quo will surely not last forever.
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The fact of the matter is that, in a universe headlined by Spider-Man villains, it is a virtual certainty that Spidey himself will eventually appear. Venom: Let There Be Carnage and Spider-Man: No Way Home‘s end credits scenes laid the groundwork for exactly that with Eddie Brock being transported to the MCU and seeing Tom Holland’s Spider-Man on television, so that expectation has clearly been primed by Sony. The infinite doorways of the multiverse make it possible for anyone from Andrew Garfield’s Peter #3 to Miles Morales of Spider-Man: Across the Spider-Verse to be that very Web-Slinger, while Kraven the Hunter is undoubtedly as prepped as Venom to battle Spidey.
Will Kraven Come To The MCU?
While Kraven the Hunter is set within Sony’s universe of Spider-Man villains, there is also the potential that he could cross over into the MCU and meet Tom Holland’s Web-Head. Venom’s aforementioned journey to the MCU – brief though it may have been – already shows the door is open for Aaron Taylor-Johnson’s Kraven to do the same. With Peter Parker in a difficult situation with the world’s memory of him erased in No Way Home‘s ending, one particular Spider-Man comic story could even be perfect for where he picks up next. Namely, Kraven’s Last Hunt, which is already serving as the partial basis for the Kraven the Hunter film.
In Kraven’s Last Hunt, Kraven seemingly kills Spider-Man and assumes his identity in New York City, with the surviving Peter returning to stop him. With Peter forgotten by the entire world, someone else taking on Spider-Man’s identity would be much easier to pull off if they were to get Peter out of the way, even temporarily. If Kraven is teleported into the MCU after his own movie, Spider-Man 4 could also easily adapt Kraven’s Last Hunt as its story, with Tom Holland’s Spidey battling his most vicious enemy yet in a battle where the stakes are higher than ever for him.
Key Release Dates
Madame Web
Venom 3
Kraven the Hunter
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