RUMOR: Marvel Wants Drew Goddard to Direct Next Spider-Man Movie

Movies

A new director may be giving Spidey his web shooters. While a fourth MCU Spider-Man movie hasn’t been announced yet (and we’re supposed to pretend that Tom Holland may not come back), given the success of No Way Home (and little else), it’s a no-brainer that Marvel wants another one. Jon Watts, who directed the Home trilogy, was supposed to helm Fantastic Four but dropped out, saying he needed a superhero break after three Spider-Man movies, but seemed enthusiastic about returning for another Spidey film. However, Marvel appears to be breaking precedent and planning for the worst (depending on whether you liked those movies, which I did); according to respected scooper Daniel Richtman (via JoBlo due to Richtman’s paywall), the studio is looking at Drew Goddard to replace Watts should he decide to step away from Spider-Man. Goddard has directed The Cabin in the Woods and Bad Times at the El Royale, and he’s written those things, plus several episodes of Buffy the Vampire Slayer and Angel, as well as the acclaimed sci-fi film The Martian. He’s also the guy who developed Netflix’s Daredevil before leaving to do that Sinister Six movie that never happened.

If that CV isn’t clear, I’m very happy about this possibility. Not that I don’t want Jon Watts to come back, but if he chooses to move on, Drew Goddard would be an incredible replacement. Among the Buffy and Angel episodes he wrote are “Lies My Parents Told Me,” which barely missed my Top 5 Buffy Episodes; “Lineage,” a fantastic character episode for Wesley; the severely underrated “Why We Fight,” which got into the World War II origins of the Initiative (and put Angel and Spike on a German U-boat); and “Origin,” which brought the Connor storyline full circle in an immensely satisfying way (and brought back a personal favorite villain of mine, Sahjhan). The Cabin in the Woods is a flat-out classic, albeit one he co-wrote with Joss Whedon. The Martian is an excellent film with dialogue that humanizes heavy science beautifully. And Bad Times at the El Royale is a movie that, after the first ten or fifteen minutes, I expected to hate, but it took me by surprise and turned into a great story. Daredevil speaks for itself, especially in terms of Goddard handling a Marvel property; he got Daredevil, and I have no doubt he’ll get Spider-Man, too. I know to keep my expectations in check, but if this is the kind of talent Marvel is going to be seeking out now, they may be serious about turning things around. (They may be serious.)