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After a number of false starts, Keanu Reeves could be finally playing a marvel character. It won’t be in the Marvel Cinematic Universe, however, as Reeves as reportedly been offered the role of Kraven the Hunter in a solo film.
The character would be part of the growing SUMC, or Sony Pictures Universe of Marvel Characters, which features members of the extended Spider-Man roster.
The first standalone film in the universe, Venom (2018), was a surprise smash hit, grossing nearly $900 million worldwide. Two more films in the universe are nearing release, with the Jared Leto-starring Morbius, about the ‘living vampire’, and Venom: Let There Be Carnage, which see Tom Hardy’s Venom taking on Woody Harrelson as the the serial-killer-turned-supervillain Carnage, set for release in 2021 and 2022 respectively. Other films are also in the works.
Illuminerdi reported that Reeves could be the next A-list star to enter the SUMC in a film titled Kraven, one of the key members of Spider-Man’s rogues’ gallery, who in the comic books is a big-game hunter who at one point tried to kill Spider-Man himself, but evolved into more of an anti-hero with a strict code of honour.
The film would apparently be similar in tone to the acclaimed James Mangold film Logan starring Hugh Jackman.
One surprising aspect of the story is that the film would fall outside of Marvel Studios, whose President Kevin Feige told comicbook.com in 2019 that he desperately wanted Reeves in the MCU. If Reeves joins the SUMC as Kraven, he wouldn’t be interacting with any Avengers, something fans have been dying to see.
“We talk to him for almost every film we make,” Feige told the site. “We talk to Keanu Reeves…I don’t know when, if, or ever he’ll join the MCU, but we very much want to figure out the right way to do it.”
Reeves seemed to be on a similar path to Jake Gyllenhaal, who was approached numerous times to join the MCU before joining Spider-Man: Far from Home in 2019.
Reeves was previously rumoured for the Disney+ series Moon Knight, a role that ended up going to Oscar Isaac. He was also reportedly approached for projects including The Eternals, starring Angelina Jolie and releasing later in 2021, and Guardians of the Galaxy vol. 3, set for 2023.
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