'I Saw the FBI Swarm in and the Helicopters Fly Over the Studio' — Project Hail Mary Screenwriter Says Sony Hack Killed His 'Big' Spider-Man Movie About The Sinister Six

Project Hail Mary screenwriter Drew Goddard has said that the Sony hack of 2014 killed his “big” Spider-Man movie astir The Sinister Six.

Goddard has spoken earlier astir his program for a Sinister Six movie, telling IGN it was intended to beryllium a supervillain focused spinoff of Sony's present shelved Amazing Spider-Man franchise, starring Andrew Garfield successful the rubric role.

“The instrumentality with Sinister, is that I was making everyone the protagonist and little astir six-on-one and much astir coming astatine it a small differently,” Goddard said successful 2015. “That was the idea.” The Amazing Spider-Man 2's Harry Osborn situation country teased a Sinister Six lineup that would person included Doctor Octopus, Vulture, and Rhino, and Sinister Six schematics shown during the credits suggested Green Goblin, Kraven The Hunter, and Mysterio would person besides made the cut.

The Sony hack was devastating for the institution and, successful particular, Sony Pictures Entertainment. Leaked information included worker emails, idiosyncratic and household information, enforcement salaries, copies of then-unreleased films, aboriginal movie plans, and screenplays. Threats implicit then-upcoming movie The Interview, Seth Rogen‘s acheronian drama astir a program to assassinate North Korean person Kim Jong Un, caused Sony to cancel its premiere and mainstream merchandise and caput consecutive to integer release. The U.S. authorities would aboriginal reason the onslaught was sponsored by North Korea, which has denied responsibility.

The leak besides revealed behind-the-scenes authorities connected Sony’s Spider-Man movie series, and the licence would spell connected to beryllium shared betwixt Sony and Marvel Studios, sparking the existent Tom Holland iteration of the superhero. Meanwhile, Sony’s present defunct Spider-Man Universe saw immoderate villains, specified arsenic Venom and Kraven the Hunter, get their ain films.

Now, speaking to Variety to beforehand Project Hail Mary, Goddard has yet revealed the crushed his Sinister Six movie was canceled.

"I had a large Spider-Man movie astir the Sinister Six spell down due to the fact that of the Sony hack,” helium said. “My bureau was close connected the lot, and I saw the FBI swarm successful and the helicopters alert implicit the studio. I was bittersweet astir it, but determination was virtually thing I could bash to alteration the people of events. I accidental it was amended than if they hadn’t liked the script."

Goddard pivoted from The Sinister Six to penning 2015's The Martian, which earned him an Oscar information for Best Adapted Screenplay. He’s acceptable to constitute and nonstop The Matrix 5, though helium couldn’t corroborate if Keanu Reeves volition return.

Wesley is Director, News astatine IGN. Find him connected Twitter astatine @wyp100. You tin scope Wesley astatine [email protected] oregon confidentially astatine [email protected].