The Spider-Man Family Enters the SSU in ‘Madame Web’s First Trailer
The first trailer for Madame Web has finally arrived. The female-led film marks Sony’s latest attempt to expand its Spider-Man Universe.
The SSU has been a bit slow to grow since it first started in 2018. It only consists of three films so far: Venom, Venom: Let There Be Carnage, and Morbius. However, the SSU will soon be doubling its titles with the releases of Kraven the Hunter, El Muerto, and Madame Web. While all of these upcoming films are exciting, Madame Web will be especially interesting, as the titular character is one of the most unique Spider-Man-related characters.
Most characters in the Spider-Man family acquired their powers from radioactive spiders or spider DNA. Cassandra Webb (a.k.a. Madame Web) is unique because her powers come from her mutant genes. In addition to being a mutant, she is one of Marvel’s few blind superheroes. She’s also one of the only ones who suffer from myasthenia gravis, an autoimmune neuromuscular disease that weakens the body’s muscles. As a result of the disease, Cassandra is paralyzed and relies on a life support system that her husband, Jonathan Webb, built for her.
However, Cassandra doesn’t let blindness or myasthenia gravis prevent her from being a heroine. She is a clairvoyant, and her mutant powers allow her to see the future. As a result, she mentored Spider-Man and the third Spider-Woman, Mattie Franklin. She is also the grandmother of the fourth Spider-Woman, Charlotte Witter. Webb is deeply embedded in the Spider-Man family and is one of the characters most deserving of film in the SSU. Here’s what we know about Madame Web so far.
Sony drops the first Madame Web trailer
Sony dropped Madame Web‘s first official trailer on November 15, 2023. The film is scheduled to arrive on February 14, 2024, after initially being slated for a summer 2023 release. Following Sony’s major deal with the Canadian streaming service Crave, Madame Web is also anticipated to land on the platform for streaming at an undisclosed later date.
The first trailer for Madame Web looks quite interesting. Seeing the team-up between Madame Web, two Spider-Women, and Anya Corazon is quite exciting. Given that it is the Sony Spider-Man Universe, it’s about time the Spider-family made their entrances. At the same time, it’s disappointing to see Madame Web change Web’s origin story so drastically that it’s almost unrecognizable. The film seems to be in danger of repeating the SSU’s mistakes with the Venom films and Morbius as the studio dives into this universe too fast and doesn’t take the time to execute its films properly and do justice to the source material. While Madame Web‘s trailer is intriguing, it can’t be ignored that it feels a little like a fan-made trailer rather than reflecting the big-budget blockbuster this movie should be.
Madame Web has quite the cast stacked up
Leading Madame Web’s cast is Dakota Johnson as Cassandra (a.k.a. Madame Web). Her casting is an interesting choice, as Madame Web is frequently depicted as an older woman. However, some iterations of the comics see her restored to a younger age and cured of myasthenia gravis. So, it seems the film will be depicting that version. Still, while not always elderly or suffering from myasthenia gravis, her character has always been canonically blind and some viewers felt that a blind actress should’ve been chosen instead of Johnson, as well as someone closer to the original character’s age.
Meanwhile, Euphoria‘s Sweeney has been cast as Julia Carpenter. In the comics, Carpenter was an iteration of Spider-Woman. She later became the second Madame Web after Cassandra passed her powers on to her. Celeste O’Connor, best known for starring in Ghostbusters: Afterlife, has joined the cast as Mattie Franklin, another iteration of Spider-Woman. Rounding out the female leads is Dora and the Lost City of Gold‘s Isabela Merced as Anya Corazon, a teenage gymnast who later gains Spider-like powers and takes on the alias Spider-Girl.
In addition to Sweeney and Johnson, Madame Web has also tapped Parks & Recreation’s Adam Scott and Holidate‘s Emma Roberts to join the cast. While unconfirmed, IMBD has the two actors listed as playing the roles of Ben and Mary Parker, respectively. Mary Parker is Peter Parker’s mother and a CIA agent. Ben Parker is Mary’s brother-in-law and the uncle who raised Peter. Meanwhile, The Prophet‘s Tahar Rahim will portray the lead villain role of Ezekiel Sims. Mike Epps, Zosia Mamet, and Josh Drennen will also appear in undisclosed roles.
What is Madame Web about?
The official synopsis for Madame Web reads:
In a switch from the typical genre, Madame Web tells the standalone origin story of one of Marvel publishing’s most enigmatic heroines. The suspense-driven thriller stars Dakota Johnson as Cassandra Webb, a paramedic in Manhattan who may have clairvoyant abilities. Forced to confront revelations about her past, she forges a relationship with three young women destined for powerful futures…if they can all survive a deadly present.
In the style of Venom and Morbius, Madame Web is shaping up to be an origin story for Cassandra. The trailer has revealed that Sims is the lead villain and is trying to harm Cassandra and the women destined to become part of the Spider-family, though Sims’ motives remain unknown. Cassandra must use her clairvoyant powers to keep the young heroes safe while also trying to understand why they were all drawn together and what Sims wants.
(featured image: Sony)
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