Isabela Merced (Dora and the Lost City of Gold) has signed on to join Dakota Johnson (Fifty Shades of Grey) for Sony’s Madame Web film, as reported by Deadline. She will also be starring alongside Sydney Sweeney (Euphoria) and Celeste O’Connor (Ghostbusters: Afterlife) in the superhero flick. Johnson will play the titular role, but the roles are unknown.
S.J. Clarkson (Anatomy of a Scandal) is set to direct and is no stranger to the genre as she directed some episodes of Jessica Jones and The Defenders for Netflix, which are now properly with Marvel. Morbius writers Burk Sharpless and Matt Sazama will write the script, with Kerem Sanga (The Violent Heart), who wrote an early draft.
The SPUMC
Sony has been developing its own Spider-Man universe focusing on the villains like Morbius and Venom. How the Johnson-led film will connect is unknown as no plot details have been revealed. What is known is the release slate for the next Sony Pictures Universe of Marvel Characters, which includes Kraven the Hunter (January 13, 2023), Madame Web (July 7, 2023), and El Muerto (January 12, 2024).
In the comics, Madame Web has psychic powers. An elderly woman with health issues, she is not much of a crime fighter but has a major role to play in Spider-Man’s story. After he saved one of her students, she discovered his identity as Peter Parker. In the relationship that they form, she supports him on various adventures. With decades worth of stories, Sony can take this film in any direction.
Isabela Merced is no stranger to action-adventure films. She has been known for her roles in Dora and the Lost City of Gold, Sicario: Day of the Soldado, and Transformers: The Last Knight.
Sony’s films have found great success. The collaboration with Marvel to bring the crossover feast with Spider-Man: No Way Home has brought home $1.8 billion at the box office, making it the sixth highest-grossing movie of all time. Meanwhile, Venom was a hit with $800 million, and its sequel, Let There Be Carnage, with over $500 million.