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Spider-Man has some of the best villains in the entire Marvel Cinematic Universe, but I can’t help but be disappointed about how one of the most interesting recent villains was totally wasted. While there are still many Spider-Man villains to appear in the MCU, Sony has simultaneously built out a universe of their own featuring Venom, Morbius, and Kraven the Hunter. Alongside all of these characters who have recently been seen on film, however, one who worked surprisingly well does not seem likely to return any time soon.
I want my Marvel villains to last. Too many Marvel villains have been weaker than the heroes they fought, and the films have not given enough time to build up the threat of some of these exciting characters. Figures like Thanos were able to be as impactful as they were because the franchise gave the Mad Titan time to grow in post-credit scenes and cameos before unleashing him across two movies. While single appearances can work, I believe some of these characters would work really well for more, including one who recently appeared in a maligned film.
Kraven The Hunter’s Rhino Is A Truly Interesting Take On The Character
The Film’s Villain Is A Marvel Highlight
The best part of Kraven the Hunter was its iteration of Rhino. In the film, Aleksei Sytsevich is played by Alessandro Nivola, and provides the best live-action take on the Rhino yet, following Paul Giamatti’s much-derided version in The Amazing Spider-Man 2. In Kraven, Sytsevich is a Russian mercenary who is at odds with Kraven and Dimitri’s father. He kidnaps Dimitri and winds up fighting against Kraven in the film’s exciting climax, showing a very cool version of the familiar villain.
Rather than always being a Rhino, like many iterations of the villain, this version is held at bay with a serum that Sytsevich continuously has pumping into his system. This keeps his transformation from always taking over his body, as taking on the Rhino form is incredibly painful for the character. This inherent contrast between Rhino and Systevich, as well as between weakness and strength, is an interesting one, which could have been examined more in further appearances of the character.
Kraven The Hunter’s Rhino Is Arguably Better Than The Amazing Spider-Man 2’s
Paul Giamatti’s Rhino Did Not Get Nearly Enough To Do
One of the strangest appearances of Rhino in any medium was in The Amazing Spider-Man 2, where Paul Giamatti played the character in a very brief role. Rather than being transformed into a human-rhino hybrid, the character in the film uses a giant mechanical rhino suit to fight against Spider-Man. This role was promoted in the trailers, which wound up being disappointing to the film overall, as the fight between Spider-Man and Rhino was actually included in the final few moments of the film.
With a barely-fleshed out performance that saw the excellent Giamatti yelling with a weird accent, many just felt confused by this Rhino. Following this, the Kraven version, even if there has been some criticism about the CGI, is a better execution and a massive Rhino upgrade. Both in and out of his Rhino form, Nivola’s performance is strong, and the character comes off as a truly intimidating villain. While the world may still be without a definitive Rhino performance, I’d certainly argue the Kraven version is the superior one.
Kraven The Hunter’s Reception Means The Movie’s Rhino Already Looks Doomed
The Film’s Box Office And Critical Response Were Both Poor
Many Marvel villains appeared in Kraven the Hunter, and it seems likely that none of these iterations will be seen again. The film’s box office was worse than Morbius, and considering the studio doesn’t have any films in development, it seems Sony is reconsidering the trajectory of its villain-centric universe and whether it will continue at all. While the Venom trilogy was commercially successful, and certainly had its many fans, it seems that the larger universe they created didn’t connect with most audiences. Regrettably, this means this Rhino will likely not be seen again.
There is still a future for Spider-Man, with the upcoming Tom Holland sequel set in the Marvel Cinematic Universe, and there is certainly the potential to see Rhino appear there. However, if Rhino does appear in Spider-Man 4, or in another Spider-Man sequel, it will almost certainly be a new version of the character entirely. While Rhino was great in Kraven, I would argue that he wasn’t so great that he couldn’t be replaced. Still, it is exciting to see the potential of Rhino achieved, at least in part, despite Kraven‘s negative reviews.
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The entire world of Spider-Man and his villains will surely see some notable evolutions soon. While Sony does not have plans to follow up on Kraven or Madame Web, some of their Spider-Man properties are still viable, and it is only a matter of time before the studio figures out their next steps. A version of Rhino could appear in the Spider-Verse films, or even in Spider-Noir. Unfortunately, however, it seems that the iteration of the character that appeared in Kraven the Hunter will likely not be seen again.
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“}]] One of Spider-Man’s greatest foes is gone forever. Read More