It’s too early for all this ‘Kraven the Hunter’ Rhino debate!

The first trailer for Kraven the Hunter is here. And while the focus remains unsurprisingly on Aaron Taylor-Johnson’s titular character, Alessandro Nivola’s divisive-looking Rhino is shaping up to be the real talk of the internet.

Kraven’s father, played by Russell Crowe, describes Rhino as “an animal stronger than you can imagine.” Flash forward to the trailer’s final moments, and we discover Crowe’s description was pretty spot on. A half-man, half-literal-rhinoceros version of Rhino rams and punches his way through trucks as a stampede rages around him. His appearance is a far cry from the comics, suggesting Sony plans to make some changes to his origin story. And this is where the fanboys get predictably angry.

But let’s be real here for a moment. Can we all just admit that taking Rhino from page to screen isn’t exactly easy? He is a big guy in a rhinoceros suit! Of course, he is going to look ridiculous in live-action. That doesn’t mean the movie is going to bomb. (Man, did Morbius and Madame Web really hurt us all that bad?)

Can we please stop blasting CGI before release?

I get it. Trusting studios with beloved properties is beyond difficult. However, in the case of Kraven the Hunter, it’s a bit too early to cast judgment. Trailers use “vertical slices” of the movie’s best and most finalized shots. However, that doesn’t mean there aren’t CGI improvements performed before release or even sections of the trailer lacking CG effects entirely. That’s not to say criticism or concern is invalid, but let’s hold the angry click-clack of keyboards until Kraven the Hunter’s December 13, 2024, release date.

Yes, we all know Rhino looks different in the comics

Could the CGI still look terrible? Absolutely. However, we might be pleasantly surprised. As mentioned, Aleksei Sytsevich, aka Rhino, is a challenging character to adapt. In Marvel Comics, Sytsevich wears a muscle-hugging polymer suit covering everything but his face. The suit varies across iterations, and in his The Amazing Spider-Man #41–43 debut, an experiment involving chemicals and radiation bonds it to his skin.

So, while Kraven the Hunter features an … interesting … version of Rhino, his origin story might not be that far removed from the comics. A close-up of Sytsevich’s gray, rocky arm suggests his “Rhino form” takes place on a cellular level. Instead of his suit bonding with his skin, it’s literally his skin. It’s a departure from the comics, but it’s one that might work, depending on how it’s done.

Sam Raimi’s beloved Spider-Man movies prove source material deviation is possible, lest we forget Tobey Maguire’s Peter Paker had organic web shooters after his run-in with a radioactive spider. Raimi went in that direction to add realism, which seems to be what Kraven the Hunter is also shooting for.

With Paul Giamatti’s giant mech suit Rhino failing to impress in The Amazing Spider-Man 2, Kraven the Hunter has a chance to change Rhino’s live-action reputation for the better. His appearance might not be comics-accurate, but something tells me having a large man wearing a skin-tight rhinoceros suit would look pretty silly, too.