While Sony’s Morbius movie might not have enjoyed as much financial success as the studio hoped, they are moving full steam ahead on other movies set in their universe of Spider-Man heroes and villains. In addition to Morbius, Kraven the Hunter is filming, and Madame Web is in development. With Dakota Johnson starring in the movie, the cast has been shaping up nicely, including Euphoria’s Sydney Sweeney, and more recent addition Isabela Merced, who previously starred in the live action Dora the Explorer movie and Netflix’s Sweet Girl.
As with all the casting surrounding the movie, Sony hasn’t announced what character Merced will be playing. Even which version of Madame Web Dakota Johnson will be playing has been kept under wraps. There are a lot of comic book characters associated with Madame Web, making the possibilities for Sweeney and Merced’s roles nearly endless. There are a few interesting possibilities for Merced though.
A Brand New Character
Comic book movies always encourage speculation from the audience. Comic book fans are always intrigued to see their favorite characters (or least favorite characters) brought to life on screen. That being said, Merced doesn’t have to be playing an existing comic book character. Comic book movies aren’t solely populated by characters who are already present on the page.
For example, the Agents Of SHIELD television series was largely populated by characters created for the screen before comic book characters were added to the lineup. Melinda May, Grant Ward, Jemma Simmons, and Leopold Fitz were all characters created for the show that ended up being included in comic book storylines after their introduction. Phil Coulson, likewise, was created for the Marvel Cinematic Universe, and then integrated into comics and was the original focal point for Agents of SHIELD. Merced’s character could be one created for the screen in that regard, or she could even be like Spider-Man’s MJ.
Zendaya’s Michelle Jones is inspired by Mary Jane Watson, but she is very much her own character in the Spider-Man movies for the MCU. Merced’s character could take a similar track.
Gwen Stacy
There has been a lot of speculation as to when audiences will see a live-action version of Gwen Stacy again. Emma Stone played the character in the Amazing Spider-Man movies opposite Andrew Garfield, and there have been plenty of animated versions of the character. Though Madame Web is set in Sony’s universe, and not the MCU, it’s still possible that Gwen could make an appearance there.
Merced might not be blond as Gwen is traditionally drawn, but as fans of modern comic book movies know, that doesn’t matter. In the comics, Gwen is a friend and classmate of Peter Parker’s who becomes his love interest, but dies at the hands of a villain. In alternate universes, she becomes a hero in her own right with Spider-powers as well. Madame Web is rumored to take on the Spider-multiverse, so it’s entirely possible it could feature one version of Gwen Stacy and the MCU could eventually feature another. Merced, at 20, is still at an age where she’s playing teen characters, so her version of the character would likely still be in high school.
Taran
In 2001, the Spider-Man comics delved heavily into a storyline involving the Great Weaver and the “Spider Totems,” beings that fulfilled a specific destiny across the multiverse who all had spider-related powers. The Great Weaver was the “weaver” of that destiny and was worshiped by some, including the Spider-Clan, who are based in Peru. Taran is one of the few named members of the Spider-Clan, and a priestess for the group.
Rumor has it that beginning with the Madame Web movie, Sony’s Spider-Man universe will begin to lean into the multiverse and the Spider Totems, making it entirely possible for characters like Taran to be introduced and start to flesh out the mythology beyond Peter Parker as Spider-Man.
May Parker
Though the MCU audience primarily knows Peter Parker as a teenager, in the comics, he and Mary Jane Watson marry and have children. In some timelines, those children also become super powered individuals. If Madame Web is going to delve into more of the Spider-characters in the multiverse, it might be fun to see what the families of Peter Parker variants are like.
May “Mayday” Parker is a good character to do that with, and one Merced could have fun with. She takes on the name Spider-Girl, and later, Spider-Woman, and has a lot of the same abilities as her father. She doesn’t actually develop her own spider-powers until she’s 15, and her parents hide Peter’s superhero past from her for most of her life. Though Peter didn’t want her to be a hero like him, Mary Jane allowed her to battle villains in order to keep her friends safe. That dynamic would be an interesting one to see.
Anya Corazon
Of all the Spider-related characters that Merced could play, the most likely seems to be Anya Corazon. Anya was gifted her abilities by a member of the secret group called the Spider Society in order to battle the Sisterhood of the Wasp. This particular group is more detached from Peter Parker than the other Spider-characters here, which would work in Sony’s favor if they want their Spider-universe to stand on its own without heavily relying on Spider-Man.
She also has ties to Madame Web in that she’s one of the characters kidnapped by the Kravinoff (of Kraven the Hunter fame) family alongside Madame Web. She’s one of the few members of the group to not end up as a sacrifice, and she goes on to become a member of the multiversal Spider Army. She would fit right into Madame Web’s movie, and could potentially appear in a Kraven the Hunter movie as well.
Madame Web is scheduled to hit theaters July 7, 2023.