Amy Pascal, who produces the MCU Spider-Man films alongside Marvel Studios President Kevin Feige, commented on Anya Taylor-Joy's rumored involvement in Spider-Man 4.
Little is known about Spider-Man 4. Tom Holland is confirmed to return as the famed Web-Slinger, and the new film must deal with the ramifications of Doctor Strange’s spell that erased the world’s memories of Peter Parker.
Beyond that, however, neither Marvel Studios nor Sony Pictures have made any concrete announcements about the hotly anticipated follow-up to Spider-Man: No Way Home, whether it be a grounded and gritty tale or a large-scale cosmic epic.
Anya Taylor-Joy in Spider-Man 4? Amy Pascal Offers Clarification
On December 21, internet film scooper DanielRPK claimed that Furiosa: A Mad Max Saga’s Anya Taylor-Joy was eyed for a part in Spider-Man 4. DanielRPK never stated that Taylor-Joy’s potential character would be Felicia Hardy aka Black Cat, but fans seized upon the possibility.
At a press event only a day or two later, Sony‘s Amy Pascal, co-producer on Marvel Studios’ solo Spider-Man films, set the record straight on Taylor-Joy’s involvement in Spider-Man 4 (via ComicBookMovie). According to Pascal, the film is not yet at that phase in its casting process:
"She would be fantastic. She’s amazing, [but] we’re not quite at that stage yet. There’s a lot of fantastic female characters but I can't talk about all this."
As usual, the secrecy for upcoming MCU projects rivals that of the Pentagon. But it is interesting that Pascal specifically mentioned “a lot of fantastic female characters” for the fourth Tom Holland Spidey movie.
Another prominent scooper, Jeff Sneider of The Hot Mic podcast, expressed confidence that Zendaya’s screentime as MJ would be "severely reduced" due to the actress’ other filming commitments.
Alex Perez of The Cosmic Circus additionally contended that Spider-Man 4 is aiming to bring in Gwen Stacy to replace MJ as Peter moves into his college years:
" I heard she was being planned to be introduced as the new female lead for the trilogy a while back while Peter entered college and replace Zendaya’s MJ for a bit, but that was a while ago."
The working title for Spidey 4 is reportedly "Blue Oasis." This placeholder name might be inspired by the 2002-2003 Spider-Man comic story Spider-Man: Blue by Jeph Loeb and Tim Sale, which heavily features Gwen Stacy.
While the next Spider-Man sequel may or may not feature Black Cat or Gwen Stacy, either of whom could conceivably be played by Anya Taylor-Joy, Amy Pascal promised that the film would feature some well-loved female characters.
If Taylor-Joy were cast in Spider-Man, it would not be her first step into the world of Marvel. She previously portrayed Illyana Rasputin aka Magik in 20th Century Fox’s 2020 critical disaster, The New Mutants.
What Role Could Black Cat Play In Spider-Man 4?
Although Black Cat is unconfirmed for Spider-Man 4, much less with Anya Taylor-Joy attached to the character, there are several ways Marvel could utilize the New York City cat burglar and frequent fling of Spider-Man.
First introduced in 1979 in the pages of The Amazing Spider-Man #194, Felicia Hardy is a young woman who excels in stealing pretty things. Created by legendary comic writer Marv Wolfman and artists Dave Cockrum and Keith Pollard, Black Cat began as one of the Wall-Crawler’s villains but gradually shifted to become his ally, with a few romantic entanglements along the way.
Injecting Black Cat into the forthcoming Spidey film could be a fun way to shake up Peter’s story. Parker’s sweetheart, MJ, no longer knows who he is, leaving ample space for Felicia to slink her way into Peter’s love life. After all, Black Cat has traditionally only been interested in Spider-Man, not his civilian alter-ego.
Felicity Jones appeared as a version of Felicia Hardy in 2014’s The Amazing Spider-Man 2, but it was only a tiny role, and Jones did not suit up in Black Cat’s iconic fur-lined catsuit.
Sony and Columbia Pictures also had ambitions of a Black Cat and Silver Sable team-up movie called Silver & Black, but the studio split it into separate films later. Both the Silver Sable and Black Cat projects were scrapped.
Anne Hathaway was also attached to play Felicia in director Sam Raimi’s would-be Spider-Man 4. Still, much like many other Sony Marvel theatrical endeavors, the axe eventually fell upon it.
Whatever the case, with Zendaya seemingly not having much to do in Spider-Man 4, it’s the perfect time to bring in another one of Peter Parker’s most memorable love interests.
Marvel Studios’ Spider-Man 4 has no official release date, though early word suggests that Peter Parker’s next cinematic adventure will hit theaters in Summer 2026.
