Spider-Man (film series)
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The three Spider-Man superhero films are based on the Marvel Comics character of the same name, portrayed by Tobey Maguire. The rights to a motion picture based on Spider-Man were purchased in 1985 and moved through various production companies and studios, at one point having James Cameron to direct, before being secured by Sony Pictures Entertainment.
Sony hired comic book fan Sam Raimi to direct the films, and the series began with Spider-Man in 2002, continued with Spider-Man 2 in 2004, and became a trilogy with the release of Spider-Man 3 in 2007. Throughout the films, Spider-Man developed a relationship with his school crush Mary Jane Watson (Kirsten Dunst). To date, he has battled the villains Green Goblin (Willem Dafoe), Doctor Octopus (Alfred Molina), New Goblin (James Franco), Venom (Topher Grace) and Sandman (Thomas Haden Church) throughout the series. While the films' storylines have been concluded, the studio plans to develop more films, continuing Spider-Man's adventures.
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Development
Cannon Films development period
The disappointing performance of 1983's Superman III made comic book adaptations low priority in Hollywood, though the comic industry itself thrived. In 1985, after a brief option on Spider-Man by Roger Corman expired, Marvel Comics optioned the property to Cannon Films. Cannon chiefs Menahem Golan and his cousin Yoram Globus agreed to pay Marvel Comics $225,000 over the five-year option period plus a percentage of the film’s revenues. The rights would revert to Marvel if a film was not made by April 1990.
Carolco Pictures
James Cameron was officially revealed to be director of the film with pending approval of the studio, due to his success with The Terminator. It was also announced that Cameron would write, direct and produce the film, but aware of cost overruns on Terminator 2, the studio insisted that Cameron would not be paid his $3 million writer's fee unless he provided a completed screenplay which could be budgeted (in their estimation) for $60 million or less.
In the meantime, 21st Century’s Menahem Golan still actively immersed himself mounting "his" Spider-Man, sending the original "Doc Ock" script for production bids. In 1990, he contacted Canadian effects company Light and Motion Corporation regarding the visual effects, which in turn offered the stop-motion chores to Steven Archer (Krull, Clash of the Titans)
Toward the end of shooting True Lies, Variety carried the announcement that Carolco had received a completed screenplay from Cameron. This script bore the names of James Cameron, John Brancato, Ted Newsom, Barry Cohen and "Joseph Goldmari", a typographical scrambling of Golan's pen name ("Joseph Goldman") with Marvel executive Joseph Calimari. The script text was identical to the one Golan submitted to Columbia the previous year, with the addition of a new 1993 date. Cameron stalwart Arnold Schwarzenegger was frequently linked to the project as the director’s choice for Dr. Octopus. As late as 1995, internet industry sources such as Baseline Hollywood still listed both Neil Ruttenberg, (author of one of the 1990 "Doc Ock" variations submitted to Columbia) and James Cameron as co-writers.
In 1991, Carolco Pictures extended Golan’s option agreement with Marvel through May 1996 , but in April 1992, Carolco ceased active production on Spider-Man due to continued financial and legal problems.
Columbia acquired the rights to all previous scripts in 2000, but exercised options only on the "Cameron Material", i.e., both the completed multi-author screenplay and the subsequent "Scriptment." After more than a decade of attempts, Spider-Man truly went into production.
Film series
After this long development history, all of the Spider-Man films were produced by Laura Ziskin and distributed by Columbia Pictures, the primary film production holding of Sony. They were all directed by Evil Dead director Sam Raimi.
Spider-Man (2002)
See Spider-Man (film) Spider-Man follows Peter Parker as he is bitten by a genetically engineered "super-spider", which causes him to take on the traits of a spider. Following the murder of his uncle, Peter devotes his life to fighting crime. Norman Osborn, in an attempt to save his company, experiments with human performance-enhancing drugs. The drugs cause Norman to go insane, and he dons the mantle of the Green Goblin. When Spider-Man refuses to join the Green Goblin, the two face off against each other in an epic battle.
Spider-Man 2 (2004)
See Spider-Man 2 Spider-Man 2 picks up two years after the events of the first film. Peter is struggling with being Spider-Man and keeping the rest of his life in order. Peter's best friend, Harry Osborn, is out for revenge against Spider-Man, and the woman he loves, Mary Jane Watson, is about to marry someone else. Doctor Octopus develops four mechanical, artificially intelligent arms to handle a fusion reactor he's creating. The reactor malfunctions, and the mechanical arms are melded to his body. With the arms giving him direction, Octavius sets out to build a bigger, stronger fusion reactor and to ultimately destroy New York and the rest of the world.
Spider-Man 3 (2007)
See Spider-Man 3 Spider-Man 3 finds Peter basking in the spotlight as Spider-Man, and finding a balance between being a superhero and being with his love, Mary Jane Watson. Harry finally decides to take his revenge, becoming the New Goblin and later helps Spidey, and Peter learns the truth about who really killed his uncle. Flint Marko, an escaped convict, falls into a particle accelerator and becomes a shape-shifting sand monster later known as Sandman. A rival photographer, Eddie Brock Jr., threatens to take Peter's place at the Daily Bugle. All this happens while an alien substance crashes to earth on a meteor, and latches on to Spidey's suit, turning it black and manipulating him by amplifing his darker qualities. The substance (called a symbiote by Dr. Curtis Connors) eventually possesses Eddie Brock, creating the villain Venom.