Some interesting casting news courtesy of Variety, it looks like Jake Gyllenhaal is in talks to join the Spider-Man: Homecoming sequel as Mysterio!
This is interesting because Gyllenhaal has – up until last year’s Life – has seemingly avoided the blockbuster realm, and favored smaller, independent, more director driven projects. He’s done a lot of stellar work over the years, and I don’t think anyone really holds Prince of Persia: The Sands of Time against him anymore. I can’t wait to see what he brings to this.
What I’m curious of is – why this? But I guess it might be a pretty straightforward answer, a villain role in a Marvel movie is a pretty easy paycheck, the work environment tends to be fun, and even if there isn’t a possible sequel return, there’s at least a renewed interest in the actor that can bring more attention to projects outside of Marvel. His last film, Stronger, despite solid reviews (I didn’t care for it, but whatevs), bombed pretty badly. So, this might be a smart move on his part if the negotiations go through.
Now, Mysterio! I’ve wanted to see this guy for a while because he’s a really fun character and his abilities lend themselves to some interesting visuals, sort of in the same way Scarecrow does with Batman. Although, Mysterio’s powers to tend to border on the ridiculous, so I’m curious at what the angle is for this interpretation of the character. With someone like Sam Raimi, you could’ve expected something close to the comics, but for the somewhat grounded approach in the MCU, there’s probably going to be a number of changes, and unfortunately, the awesome costume might be the first to go.
I wasn’t crazy about Spider-Man: Homecoming, but I’m still interested to see where they go with this. I still like the characters, and I’m glad to see them bring a character that we haven’t seen on screen yet. Gyllenhaal is a great actor, so I’m sure he’ll knock it out of the park, but we’ll just have to wait and see how this pans out.
Oh, and it’s also reported on the article that Michael Keaton will return as Vulture. So, that’s awesome. There’s no such thing as too much Michael Keaton in my book.
Though, I’m also keeping fingers crossed for Kraven The Hunter appearing in one of these movies at some point.
The Currently Untitled Spider-Man: Homecoming sequel is set for July 5, 2019.