WhileSpider-Man 3director Sam Raimi is busy putting the finishing touches onDoctor Strange in the Multiverse of Madness, it appears there was a time when the famed director was ready to leave superhero movies in the dust. In fact, he recently said that it took quite a while for him to get over the backlash thatSpider-Man 3endured among fans of the Marvel universe.
Raimi’s version of the friendly neighborhood Spider-Man came long before the MCU was even a glint in Kevin Feige’s eye. Tobey Maguire played Peter Parker and his alter-ego in the now oft-rebooted franchise, and the first two films in the trilogy are largely beloved by fans and critics. However,Spider-Man 3,the emo-Parker,and Topher Grace’s Venomwere panned to the point that it apparently deeply affected the director. Now, after a long hiatus, Raimi is returning to Marvel movies withDoctor Strange 2, and in a recent interview, he spoke about how joining the project actually required him to overcome some real angst.
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The director spoke to Collider about how hard he took the reactions tohis version of theSpider-Manmovies, saying in particular that people certainly went out of their way to let him know how much they didn’t like the third movie in the trilogy and why. Raimi said that the steady stream of complaints was so bad he didn’t know if he could face superhero movies again. However, things changed a bit when Marvel Studios came calling about directing the nextDoctor Strangefilm.
Raimi said that he had to weigh several different factors before he agreed todirectDr. Strange in the Multiverse of Madness. It turns out that part of the reason he eventually said yes is that he realized how demanding Marvel Studios was with these types of films. It appears he decided he wanted to be able to rise to the challenge.
Raimi added that Scott Derickson, the director for the firstDr. Strangemovie, had left the character in a really good place. There was a direction that the character could be taken in for the next movie thathe really liked forDoctor Strange 2.
And so, despite once believing that the hate aimed atSpider-Man 3was going to keep him away from Marvel movies for the rest of his career, he was able to overcome the anxiety that was caused by the backlash. Coincidentally, the release of the newVenomfilm has caused some on social media to take a longer look at the positives of Raimi’s last entry in the earlierSpider-Manfilms.
Doctor Stange in the Multiverse of Madnessis scheduled to be released in theaters on July 30, 2025.
