Destin Daniel Cretton in Talks to Direct Spider-Man 4

Movies

Marvel has once again made the most boring creative choice they possibly could have, or at least one of them. Despite minor roadblocks like disagreements between Marvel and Sony, director Jon Watts moving on, and star Tom Holland pretending he may not return, Spider-Man 4 has been all but a lock, with reports saying production was supposed to start in the fall of 2024. (This is no longer happening; more on that later.) A couple of directors have been mentioned as possible replacements for Watts, the more interesting being Drew Goddard (The Cabin in the Woods, The Martian, Bad Times at the El Royale), a rumor that came courtesy of Daniel RPK. Several months later, Dan Schneider confirmed Goddard’s place on the Spidey director shortlist and said Justin Lin (Star Trek Beyond, a few Fast and Furious movies) was also on Marvel’s radar. Today, however, The Hollywood Reporter has exclusively revealed that Destin Daniel Cretton, the director of Shang-Chi and the Legend of the Ten Rings, will be the one to bring Spider-Man back to the big screen.

Talk about popping a balloon. How do you throw around names like Drew Goddard and Justin Lin and settle on Destin Daniel Cretton? He’s not even what I’d call a safe choice; he feels like an understudy. And I suspect that may be just what he is. Marvel has inarguably been on a downward trend since Spider-Man: No Way Home. (You can say Avengers: Endgame, but that leaves out both subsequent Spidey movies; we can call Black Widow a mulligan.) Making an MCU movie is perhaps not the career boon it once was, and if that’s the case, maybe talent is less inclined to sign on and put up with Marvel’s notoriously controlling attitude. Drew Goddard has agreed to direct a Matrix sequel (dear God, talk about a waste of talent), so he chose to take on a movie I don’t think anybody wants rather than Spider-Man 4. Justin Lin has a heist movie with Daniel Craig and Charlize Theron in pre-production and two more projects actually in production, so maybe he passed or was too busy. So, Marvel did what it’s been doing for the past few years and signed someone who made one of their lousy recent movies or shows like they did with The Fantastic Four: First Steps.

I think Marvel’s zeal to make this movie could be a factor in their decision. According to the THR piece, Marvel wants to get Spider-Man 4 going as fast as possible, with early 2025 being the new target. This makes me think they had a hard time finding a director; the two big names they mentioned didn’t pan out, so the production had to be delayed. And since modern Hollywood cares more about release dates than the quality of their films, Marvel scooped up the guy who ditched Avengers: The Kang Dynasty (which is now Avengers: Doomsday) to “focus on his other Marvel projects.” Speaking of which, there’s also the possibility that they need to move Cretton around; if Shang-Chi 2 isn’t happening, it could be they simply gave Cretton the empty Spider-Man slot and killed two birds with one stone. Yeah, it’s a bland choice that will excite no one, but at least they can make a checkmark on their calendar and high-five over it. There’s also the money problem; Deadpool & Wolverine broke a bad streak for Marvel, and it’s probably a blip that won’t be replicated until at least Fantastic Four. Marvel is breaking the bank for the Russo Brothers and Robert Downey Jr. Cretton’s biggest appeal may be his likely modest paycheck. As for his prestige, or lack thereof, I wouldn’t be surprised if they think nobody cares about the director because Spidey will bring the crowds in no matter what; maybe they’re right. And who knows? Cretton could end up making a much better Spider-Man movie than he did Shang-Chi. But it’s a shame they’re settling for Cretton when they’d set their sights on something more.

Let us know what you think of Destin Daniel Cretton directing Spider-Man 4 in the comments!

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