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.
Image used with permission by copyright holder

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…
Which Marvel villains should be in Tom Holland’s Spider-Man 4?
Tom Holland as Spider-Man in Spider-Man: Homecoming.

The MCU has plenty of upcoming projects that fans are excited about, but a potential fourth entry in Tom Holland's Spider-Man series is near the list's top. 2021's Spider-Man: No Way Home ended with Holland's Peter entering a new phase in his life. Forgotten by the world and with no one left by his side, Peter is now closer to the perpetually down-on-his-luck version from the comics that fans have come to know and love. The ending is the perfect setup for a new Spidey adventure, with Spider-Man acting as the street-level hero he was always supposed to be. But who should he fight in his new adventure, especially now that he has no Avengers or Avengers-adjacent allies by his side?

Well, the possibilities are limitless. After all, Spider-Man has some of the best and most iconic villains in Marvel comics, and while many have already appeared in the Web Slinger's numerous live-action projects, some remain untouched by the film industry. From fearsome crime bosses to chameleonic supervillains, these infamous foes would make worthy enemies for Holland's Spider-Man.
Chameleon

Read more
7 bizarre facts about Spider-Man you should know
spiderman no way home sony first 10 minutes spider man opening

As one of the most popular and longest-running superheroes in history, Spider-Man has had many weird and wild stories in the Marvel Universe. Since the character has been making comics for over sixty years now, the writers were bound to come up with some bizarre ideas for the web-slinger's adventures.

Even for a person who dresses like a spider and swings across New York fighting all sorts of wacky supervillains, these seven facts about Spider-Man are strange, even for him.
Spider-Man once killed Mary Jane!

Read more
The 10 best characters in Spider-Man: Across the Spider-Verse, ranked
The poster for Spider-Man: Across the Spider-Verse.

Spider-Man: Across the Spider-Verse has taken audiences on an animated roller coaster across the Multiverse with its colorful cast of characters. This sequel film took things to a whole new level by introducing hundreds of Spider-People from different dimensions and putting them all together for one mind-blowing superhero extravaganza.

Out of all the bizarre, quirky, and relatable figures that appear, these 10 have launched themselves to the top of the list of the best characters in the entire film.
10. Jefferson Davis

Read more