The ladies of Madame Web and their marvelous powers
The new trailer for Madame Web looks to expand the Spider-Man movie verse! However, some folks may be confused as to who these new heroines are, so here’s a quick guide to prepare for this new film!
Directed by S.J. Clarkson (who co-wrote the screenplay with Claire Parker), Madame Web isn’t actually part of the MCU but rather Sony’s own “Spiderverse” which also includes Venom. It thus looks to take a bold new take on the Spider-Man mythos.
The film focuses on Cassandra Webb, a New York paramedic who discovers she gains flashes of the future. She realizes a trio of young women are being targeted by a superhuman killer and tries to protect them. Along the way, the women realize they’re being targeted as someone wants to stop them from being costumed heroines and now must achieve that destiny.
It’s a good setup, but newbies may not understand who these characters are. So here’s a quick recap of each lady!
Dakota Johnson as Cassandra Webb aka Madame Webb
Appearing in 1980, Cassandra Webb is usually shown as an elderly woman in a high-tech wheelchair. While blind, she can see the future, often via a mystical “web,” and tries to aid Spider-Man in stopping dangerous events. She was eventually killed but passed her powers onto Julia Carpenter to keep up her legacy.
In the film, she’s played by Dakota Johnson, much younger than her comic book counterpart and more action-oriented as she takes on a protective role over the others. She still gets the “future flashes” which she tries to prevent with varying levels of success.
Sydney Sweeney as Julia Carpenter aka Spider-Woman
Debuting in 1984’s Secret Wars event, Julia Carpenter was a government agent who became the unwitting guinea pig in an experiment to replicate Spider-Man’s powers. That gave her much the same abilities of strength, reflexes and clinging to walls with “psychic webbing.”
After working with the Avengers for some time, Julia inherited Madame Web’s powers and now works as a psychic aiding Spider-Man. She’s played in the film by Sydney Sweeney (Euphoria), who looks to take on the Spider-Woman role later with much of the same powers.
Celeste O’Connor as Mattie Franklin aka Spider-Woman II
During a time when Peter Parker briefly gave up being Spider-Man, Mattie Franklin gained lookalike powers in a ritual gone wrong. She has much the same powers but can gain the ability to unleash four spider-like “legs” from her back. Mattie was actually killed off in the comics but is around in the film.
She’s played by Celeste O’Connor (Ghostbusters: Afterlife), and the trailer showcases her with the same “extra legs” in some action sequences as well as a costume more like Spider-Man’s (a running gag in the comics was Mattie constantly changing her suit).
Isabela Merced as Anya Corazon aka Arana
A typical teenager, Anya Corazon, was caught in a battle between two warring mystical clans and badly injured. To save her life, a mystic from the Spider Society gave her a magical tattoo that also bestowed spider-like powers on her. So it’s the same deal as the others, enhanced strength, speed, agility, wall-crawling etc. She’s gone between Arana and a new Spider-Girl while working with other Spider champions.
She’s played in the film by Isabela Merced (Dora and the Lost City of Gold) with a look at her taking on a Spider-Girl-like costume.
Will other Spider-Women appear in the movie?
Notably absent is the original Spider-Woman, Jessica Drew, with rumors Sony is developing a solo movie about her. Also not showing up is Silk, another teenager with Spider-Man-like abilities. However, there’s always the possibility either might make a cameo of some sort to set up their solo films.
It should be noted the cast also includes Emma Roberts and Zosia Mamet in undisclosed roles, so it is possible either might play another Marvel character. Indeed, Roberts as Drew would be intriguing casting.
With this unique mix of characters and a fun cast playing them, Madame Web looks to be another big part of the growing Spider-Man movie web.
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Madame Web premieres in theaters on Wednesday, Feb. 14, 2024.