New Writer Set For 'Spider-Man 4'

Zap2It.com | October 31, 2007

'Spider-Man 3'

Discuss this story now

'Zodiac' scribe James Vanderbilt will take over Peter Parker and his friends

The original stars and director may not have signed on, but Columbia has settled on a man to write the latest "Spider-Man" sequel.

According to The Hollywood Reporter, the studio has tapped James Vanderbilt to write "Spidey 4," even if no deals are in place with Sam Raimi, Tobey Maguire and Kirsten Dunst.

The trade has no information about the potential "Spider-Man 4" plot except to promise that the franchise will return to its two-villain-per-film roots, after the "Spidey 3" triple-threat was lambasted by critics.

Of course, critics-be-darned, "Spider-Man 3" has taking in over $890 million worldwide since its release this summer, a figure that can be added to the $1.6 billion in worldwide grosses for the first two films.

The first screenwriter recruited to take a crack at "Spider-Man 4" was David Koepp, who also wrote the franchise original. Alvin Sargent was the credited writer on the past two sequels.

Vanderbilt's take is expected to be more character-driven, in keeping with his most acclaimed credit, the fact-based thriller "Zodiac." Other credits for Vanderbilt include "Darkness Falls," "Basic" and "The Rundown."