Sony's Spider-Man Universe presses onward despite box office bombs and little goodwill from audiences. Its most recent film Morbius was something of a disaster and has been memed into submission by the internet-at-large. Morbius followed a pair of Tom Hardy-led Venom movies which, by all accounts, do have their fans.
The studio's next two releases in this universe are Madame Web and Kraven, with Bad Bunny vehicle El Muerto also in the works. Sony's shared universe is notorious for many things, but chiefly among them is that it contains no actual Spider-Man as of yet. Theories and rumors have swirled that Tom Holland's MCU-native Peter Parker would swing into one of these movies, but that still remains to be seen.
However, with a recent casting for Madame Web, has a new Spider-Man for the SSU been hiding in front of fans' faces for a couple of weeks?
Adam Scott - Sony's New Spider-Man?
Speculation has been running rampant that Parks and Recreation star Adam Scott, who was cast in Sony's Madame Web in July, could be portraying a Variant of Peter Parker aka, Spider-Man. Set photos have been captured of the actor looking decidedly Peter Parker-ish.
Check out some of the Twitter theories and reactions to this potential casting below.
@Comic_Slap lays out the rumor, noting that Adam Scott could be playing an older, wiser version of the character than audiences are perhaps used to:
"Rumors of Adam Scott playing an older, retired Peter Parker are exciting. Not getting my hopes up but I like the actor and it’d be a cool and different take on Peter than we usually see on screen. If Sydney Sweeney is playing Black Cat, I don’t foresee them getting together tho"
@frankienava33 says Scott playing Parker would be the thing that gets them into the movie theater for Madame Web:
"Only reason I’d watch Madam Web is if Adam Scott is Peter Parker… never thought I’d need it but it’s so good!!"
@VLovesComics draws some comparisons between Ben Wyatt, Scott's character on Parks, and Peter Parker:
"I can’t stop thinking about Adam Scott as a retired Spider-Man, taking up the mantle one last time to help, I’d love to see a fresh take on Spider-Man. Plus I can’t help but think that this Peter Parker is just Ben Wyatt."
@HugoHouse7 wants to see something akin to Into the Spider-Verse.
"Adam Scott is the perfect 'old Peter' If they can make him like they did in Spiderverse it's gonna be a peak film"
@PanicJrCress adds some fuel to the fire.
"After seeing those Adam Scott Madame Web pictures… oh man. The adult Peter Parker agenda grows"
@NS616_ can see this happening if Scott truly is playing Peter Parker:
"Wait is Adam Scott playing Peter Parker in madame web…I see the vision I really do"
Additionally, scooper @Greatphase15 has claimed that Scott is not playing Peter in Madame Web, in a response to a message from another Twitter user who inquired about it. Of course, there's no way to verify any of this though.
Scott as Spidey Would Be a Much-Needed Win
It's no secret that many fans and members of the general audience just aren't excited about Sony's Spider-Man Universe, with some going as far as holding great contempt for it. After all, at the very least, these movies are using up characters, namely villains, that could be put to use in an MCU Spider-Man movie. Not to mention that, when compared to the competition, these Sony films are not of the same caliber as other superhero fare.
But Adam Scott is a fan-favorite actor. Viewers loved him as the buttoned-down but nerdy Ben on Parks and Rec and it seems like he has the right stuff to take on the iconic role of Spider-Man, even if it is a version of him that's closer to retirement.
Also important to factor in that fans are very accepting of an older 30 or 40-something Peter Parker. Look no further than the response to Jake Johnson's Peter B. Parker from Spider-Verse and Tobey Maguire's comeback as the original cinematic web-slinger in Spider-Man: No Way Home.
Sony wants a win. They want to be a player on the board when it comes to superhero content. If they continue operating as they have been, this is something that may be difficult to achieve. But if Adam Scott truly has been cast as an alternate-universe Spider-Man, that could be a smart step in the right direction.
Sony's Madame Web will hit theaters on October 6, 2023.
