Skip to main content

Dakota Johnson to join the Spider-Man universe in Madame Web

Madame Web may be the first heroine to star in her own Spider-Man spinoff movie. And if you’re wondering who that character is, then you’re not alone. Regardless, Deadline is reporting that actress Dakota Johnson is in negotiations to headline the movie as the titular character.

Deadline’s report seems somewhat mystified by Madame Web because the original character, Cassandra Webb, was an elderly woman who was severely disabled with myasthenia gravis, an autoimmune disorder. The character, first introduced in The Amazing Spider-Man No. 201, was never a headliner of her own comic book series, and she was only a supporting cast member in Peter Parker’s adventures as Spider-Man. She possessed telepathic and clairvoyant powers that allowed her to have glimpses of the future.

According to Deadline’s sources, “it’s possible the project could turn into something else.” That said, we think it’s more likely that Johnson will portray the second Madame Web, Julia Carpenter. In Marvel Comics’ lore, Julia was also the second Spider-Woman, who briefly carried the mantle before she unexpectedly became the heir to Madame Web’s powers and abilities at the cost of her sight. Julia was also a single mother of a teenage girl named Rachel.

Dakota Johnson will portray Madame Web in an upcoming movie.

In the comic book realm, neither version of Madame Web is an A-list heroine. However, Sony’s deal with Marvel gives the studio control over all of the Spider-Man-related characters. Madame Web is simply the latest supporting character to get her own Sony film, following the first two Venom movies and the upcoming Morbius adaptation with Oscar-winner Jared Leto.

Johnson’s previous screen credits include Fifty Shades of Grey and its sequels, Suspiria, Bad Times at the El Royale, The Peanut Butter Falcon, The Lost Daughter, and Am I Okay?, which will be released later this year.

The Madame Web movie has a script by Matt Sazama and Burk Sharpless, with Jessica Jones veteran S. J. Clarkson attached to direct the film. Sony hasn’t officially set a date for the movie yet.

Editors' Recommendations

Blair Marnell
Blair Marnell has been an entertainment journalist for over 15 years. His bylines have appeared in Wizard Magazine, Geek…
Sony sets new date for Spider-Man: Across the Spider-Verse
Miles Morales in Spider-Man: Across the Spider-Verse.

In 2018, Sony Pictures Animation's Spider-Man: Into the Spider-Verse struck a chord with audiences on its way to critical and box-office success, as well as an eventual Oscar win for Best Animated Movie. Last year, Sony announced that the sequel, Spider-Man: Across the Spider-Verse Part 1, would arrive on October 7, 2022. But fans are going to have to wait another eight months to see it. Via Deadline, Sony Pictures has shuffled several release dates ahead of next week's CinemaCon. And Spider-Man: Across the Spider-Verse is now slated to hit theaters on June 2, 2023.

While Across the Spider-Verse no longer has "Part 1" in its name, it is still a two-part movie. Now, the sequel also has a release date. Spider-Man: Across the Spider-Verse Part 2 will arrive March 29, 2024. Sony didn't offer a reason for the delays, but animated films are sometimes more complex to create than live-action movies, so this could simply be a case of giving the animators more time to refine the sequels.

Read more
In a world of Spider-Men, is it wise to be a Morbius?
Jared Leto as Morbius.

Morbius, Sony's long-gestating project starring Jared Leto, finally premiered on April 1 after almost two years of delays. The film centers on Morbius the Living Vampire, one of the many antiheroes in the Marvel mythos, who rose to prominence mainly by antagonizing everyone's favorite friendly neighborhood Spider-Man. Morbius is the latest in Sony's so-called Spider-verse, its effort to create a cinematic universe mighty enough to compare with Kevin Feige's ubiquitous empire known as the MCU.

Sony's idea is not entirely ridiculous. After all, villains are often the most interesting and compelling characters in any given story. Would Hamlet be as timeless without Claudius? Would The Silence of the Lambs be as thrilling without Hannibal and Buffalo Bill? A great villain is vital for a successful story, perhaps more than a great hero. It's the villain that creates the conflict and drives the story, keeping audiences invested in the action. The comic book genre has the perfect example of this with The Dark Knight, by far the best live-action Batman movie and the outright best comic book movie in the eyes of many. Christian Bale's Batman might be the protagonist, but Heath Ledger's Joker is the star of the show, the puppeteer pulling Gotham's strings.

Read more
How VFX powered Spider-Man: No Way Home’s villain team-up
spider man no way home visual effects interview vfx digital domain  2022 oscars week

Marvel's friendly, neighborhood webslinger returned to the big screen in a big way with Spider-Man: No Way Home, franchise star Tom Holland's third solo adventure as the titular superhero and the biggest film to date for Peter Parker's corner of the Marvel Cinematic Universe.

Directed by Jon Watts, Spider-Man: No Way Home has Peter (Holland) dealing with the ramifications of his secret identity as Spider-Man being exposed at the end of 2019's Spider-Man: Far From Home. His efforts to turn back time go awry when a spell used by Doctor Strange (Benedict Cumberbatch) rips a hole between dimensions, causing villains from the prior Spider-Man franchises -- including Alfred Molina's Doctor Octopus and Willem Dafoe's Green Goblin, among others -- to invade the MCU.

Read more