A ‘Spider-Man’ Horror Movie Nearly Happened in the ’80s
Written by SOURCE on June 18, 2019
The cinematic incarnations of Spider-Man are numerous and varied, though a botched one circa the ’80s likely takes the cake in terms of originality at the arguable expense of honoring the character’s legacy.
Digital Spy gave a rundown of the abandoned reinvention, which spawned from Cannon Films gaining Spider-Man rights via a five-year option worth $225,000. Cannon, per the article, then “targeted” Texas Chainsaw Massacre director Tobe Hooper and Outer Limits creator Leslie Stevens for a take on Peter Parker’s beginnings that flipped the typical spider bite origin into a case of radiation bombardment from Dr. Zork.
In the would-be film, Parker was written as an ID photographer and would have morphed into a presumably terrifying human-spider hybrid who’s suicidal. The late Stan Lee, however, ultimately made a successful push for Cannon to leave this idea alone in favor of something a bit more traditional, though that incarnation (which aimed to land a young Tom Cruise in the title role) was also later abandoned.
The current version of the Spider-Man story, of course, stars Tom Holland and will continue its saga with the July 2 release of Spider-Man: Far From Home. Director Jon Watts has been celebrating the release with a polite call for The Mysterio Challenge to become a thing.
