Dakota Johnson in talks to play Madame Web for Sony

Sony's quest to build a cinematic superhero universe entirely out of Spider-Man characters continues. EW has confirmed that Dakota Johnson (The Lost Daughter) is in talks with the studio to star as Madame Web in a new superhero movie, though the deal is not yet closed. Deadline was first to report the news.

Sony has been sharing Spider-Man, their crown jewel and one of the most popular superheroes of all time, with Marvel Studios ever since 2016's Spider-Man: Homecoming. They've since been spinning off some of the web-slinger's villains into solo movies of their own. The two Venom films with Tom Hardy have been profitable (Venom: Let There Be Carnage ended up at number 3 on the 2021 domestic box office) while Jared Leto's Morbius continues to be delayed. The record-shattering success of Spider-Man: No Way Home certainly suggests that viewers remain very invested in Spider-Man and his world.

Two different characters have held the mantle of Madame Web in Marvel history. The original was Cassandra Webb, depicted as an older, infirm, blind woman with precognitive powers whose life support system resembled a spiderweb. It's difficult to imagine that character at the center of a superhero movie, but in a 2011 comic Webb died and passed on her powers (and blindness) to Julia Carpenter, the former Spider-Woman. Carpenter has been Madame Web ever since, and seems like more of a fit for Johnson.

According to Deadline, Madame Web is set to be directed by S.J. Clarkson, who previously directed several episodes of Marvel TV shows Jessica Jones and The Defenders. Matt Sazama and Burk Sharpless wrote the screenplay.

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