Kraven The Hunter Movie Casts Spider-Man Villain The Foreigner
Kraven the Hunter has cast a major Spider-Man villain known as the Foreigner. While Jared Leto's Morbius will be the next Spider-Man spinoff to hit theaters on April 1, following the success of Tom Hardy's Venom movies, Sony has a few more projects in development based on the web-slinger's rogues' gallery. Known for his portrayal of Quicksilver in Avengers: Age of Ultron, Aaron Taylor-Johnson will now take a villainous turn in the titular role as the big game hunter, Sergei Kravinoff, in Kraven the Hunter.
Since Taylor-Johnson was announced in the titular role last summer, Sony's Kraven movie has been steadily filling out its cast. Earlier this year, Russell Crowe was added in an undisclosed role as one of Sergei's family members, likely his father. The White Lotus star Fred Hechinger was cast as Chameleon, followed by West Side Story's breakout star Ariana DeBose as Calypso, and The Many Saints of Newark's Alessandro Nivola coming aboard in a mystery role that is said to be the movie's main villain. Now, Kraven the Hunter has added another name to its cast that is expected to play a major role moving forward.
Deadline is the first to report that Christopher Abbott has joined the cast of Kraven the Hunter. Though it is still unconfirmed by Sony, the publication's sources say that Abbot will play the role of the Foreigner, known as one of Spider-Man's biggest rivals in the comics. Audiences will know Abbot for his Golden Globe-nominated performance in the 2019 limited series Catch-22 and for his role as Charlie on HBO's Girls.
Created by Peter David and first introduced in the 1986 comic The Spectacular Spider-Man #116, the Foreigner went on to play a major role in Spider-Man comics over the years. Although he is not gifted with superhuman abilities, the mercenary/assassin is one of the greatest martial arts practitioners to ever grace the pages of Marvel Comics, frequently crossing paths with Spider-Man, future wife Silver Sable, Chameleon, and at times, Kraven. Thus, Abbott's introduction in the movie is likely just the beginning of a more substantial role in Sony's Spider-Man Universe for the future.
Like many Marvel movies, Kraven the Hunter will feature an ensemble of antagonists for its main character to clash with. Though with so many actors reportedly coming aboard in adversarial roles, the film runs the risk of being overstuffed with villains. This is something that Spider-Man: No Way Home managed to pull off, though it will be difficult for director J.C. Chandor to replicate, especially since this will be Kraven and many of these characters' first live-action appearances. Kraven the Hunter is still very much taking shape, as it won't be released until January 2023.
Source: Deadline