The MCU is not a rated-R type place (at least not until Deadpool 3, which is its own weird thing). I don’t know! This is the most bizarre thing about these movies as they are R-rated Spider-adjacent films that Spider-Man - at least the current MCU version played by Tom Holland - can’t possibly fit into. Kraven The Hunter seems to have a more gonzo, violent take, and like, sure, why not? Kraven the Movie sure seems pretty violent! How is Spider-Man gonna fit in here? Kraven has had superhuman abilities in some stories, but they’re usually pretty muted, and not like this. At least some of this seems to be in the film, thanks to the presence of Russell Crowe as Kraven’s father and Dmitri Smerdyakov (Fred Hechinger), Kraven’s half-brother, better known as The Chameleon. Later comics introduced an elaborate backstory for him, detailing his heritage as a Russian aristocrat tied up in all manner of nefarious power jockeying - like Succession, but way more confusing. As one of Spidey’s earliest villains, it’s probably personal at this point. Why he’s never been as interested in, say, Wolverine or Captain America is anyone’s guess. Yeah! He just fancies himself the ultimate hunter, who will never be satisfied until he’s hunted all of the most dangerous prey.

Maybe the movie will explain more? But right now, it just seems like a lion bled into young Kraven’s open wound and now he has animal-themed superpowers. that sure seems to be what this Kraven’s deal is. So Kraven’s whole thing is he got mauled by a lion and it made him better? I am going to articulate these questions in a helpful “Q&A” format, which we are all going to then pretend isn’t just me arguing with myself. So I have some questions, and I presume you do too. We’re also getting a Madame Web movie starring Dakota Johnson and Sydney Sweeney in 2024. Kraven follows up Venom and its sequel as well as Morbius in Sony’s strange Spider-villain universe, which primarily exists because Sony has the film rights to all of the heroes and villains with a direct connection to Spider-Man, and has decided, for some reason, to make anti-hero movies starring Spider-Man villains. Kraven, which stars Aaron Taylor-Johnson ( Tenet, Avengers: Age of Ultron, Kick-Ass), is the latest in what I personally believe to be the most confusing sorta-franchise in Hollywood - not because it’s hard to follow, but because I cannot for the life of me figure out what anyone’s deal is, or why Sony is making these.

This week, we finally got a look at Kraven the Hunter, the next film in Sony’s burgeoning cinematic universe of films about Spider-Man villains without Spider-Man.

Download the new Big Hunter - Arrow.io