Kraven The Hunter To Be Sony's First R-Rated Marvel Movie

Kraven The Hunter is going to push the limits for Sony’s Spider-Man Universe (aka SSU) as it makes its mark as its first R-Rated Sony-Marvel movie.

So far, all of Sony’s films are pretty much on the safe side, making sure that the films are PG-13. This has generally worked for Marvel Studios. While the company has found a lot of success with MCU’s Spider-Man, they have struggled to make it work with other related Spider-Man properties.

While we’ve seen a bit of success with Tom Hardy’s Venom, it’s still not the same level of success as most Marvel films. Also, Morbius has failed miserably at the box office, and they even tried releasing it twice and still got the same response. Right now, they might just be hoping these could become sleeper hits, maybe after a few years.

It’s hard to tell what is actually making it difficult for SSU to have a firm grasp on what its audience expects. Is it the fact that their films are missing any connection to Spider-Man, which is practically the heart of the franchise? Or is it because Sony is generally focused on making heroes out of characters we’ve grown to know as villains in the comics?

Will making Kraven The Hunter Rated-R be the key to making Sony’s film a success? Or are they just jumping on the bandwagon again? Marvel is officially deep in its production of projects that will cater to a more mature audience. This began as soon as they re-acquired the Netflix series and Deadpool through the Disney-Fox merger.

Sony’s Kraven The Hunter Is An R-Rated Movie

Sony has just revealed the trailer for Kraven The Hunter at CinemaCon 2023. Before it was shown to the audience, lead actor Aaron Taylor-Johnson introduced the trailer by saying:

A Marvel movie grounded heavily in the real world. We know he is a fierce hunter, a highly trained killer.

Variety has indicated that Taylor-Johnson believes that “the internet’s biggest question” is if Kraven The Hunter is Rated-R. He answered:

Fuck yeah, it will be rated R

After which, the trailer did not disappoint.

Sony’s upcoming Marvel film will be the first Rated-R film based on a Marvel property. It will also be the first Marvel film not under the 20th Century banner that will get that same rating. We have to keep in mind that the SSU is still part of Marvel’s multiverse. We’ve seen moments where Venom has crossed over to the MCU, and The Vulture from Spider-Man: Homecoming has also jumped to Sony’s Morbius.

Officially, Marvel’s first Rated-R film will be Deadpool 3. The Merc with a Mouth’s movie is still in early development and is set to release on November 8, 2024. 20th Century’s Deadpool films and Logan were Rated-R and were very much successful films.

Sony Isn’t Holding Back Kraven The Hunter

Kraven The Hunter To Be Sony's First R-Rated Marvel Movie

Credit: Marvel Comics Group

I’m fascinated to see that they aren’t holding back anything this time around. But I do have reservations about it, mainly because Sony hasn’t convinced me yet that the SSU is worth investing my time on. So far, only Venom has seen a successful box office track record for a movie in Spider-Man’s world but without a Spider-Man in the story.

Also, there was a time when the very description of Taylor-Johnson’s characterization of Kraven which was perceived as the polar opposite of that of the character from the comic books. In June last year, he said:

Kraven the Hunter, one of Marvel’s most iconic, notorious anti-heroes — Spider Man’s number one rival. not an alien, or a wizard. He’s just a hunter, a human with conviction. An animal lover and a protector of the natural world. He’s a very, very cool character.

Has he been corrected about this? It’s possible since the movie is not being announced as a rated R film. That classification can’t possibly have a ‘toned down’ villain, right?

What do you think of this news that Kraven the Hunter is set to be Sony’s first Rated R SSU movie? Let us know your thoughts in the comments below.

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