Sony's 'Kraven The Hunter' adds Russell Crowe to its cast

Alright, now we're invested

The Kiwi actor will join Aaron Taylor-Johnson in Sony/Marvel's expanded villain universe.

'Kraven The Hunter' had added another former actor from the MCU into its action film, with New Zealand star Russell Crowe joining the ensemble.

Well, we say he's a former MCU star, but actually his role has yet to be seen. Crowe is also part of the cast of Taika Waititi's 'Thor: Love and Thunder', which is due out later this year. He's joined the fourth 'Thor' film as Zeus, so it's likely that his Sony/Marvel character will be far removed from any Greek mythology connections.

Aaron Taylor-Johnson will lead the stand-alone film, starring as the character who has typically been a villain in the comic books. It's likely that 'Kraven' will feature Rusell Crowe as a person close to the main character, as the majority of the cast is expected to be made up of the villain's family.

Marvel fans will already be familiar with Johnson as the short-lived Quicksilver from 'Avengers: Age of Ultron', who was once a science experiment for HYDRA with his twin sister Wanda (Elizabeth Olsen). The arrival of the character on movie screens was decidedly ill-timed, as 'X-Men: Days of Future Past' featured a far superior version of the character (played by Evan Peters); a moment that was expertly alluded to in 'WandaVision' for all of the fanboys and girls out there.

So far, Johnson and Crowe are the only two stars attached to 'Kraven The Hunter'. Given that the villain has quite a history with Spider-Man in the comic books, could there be a cross-over? Expect an Easter Egg to appear in a post-credits scene at the very least.

'Kraven' has forged ahead to expand Sony's plethora of characters currently under their belt. Given the success of Tom Hardy's two 'Venom' ventures, and Jared Leto's upcoming 'Morbius', the studios are hoping that fans will be interested in more villainous and superhero adventures. Other female-led movies are reportedly in the pipeline, with Olivia Wilde attached to one which could be based on Spider-Woman. Another title, 'Madame Web', is also in the works. Animated sequel 'Spider-Man: Across the Spider-Verse (Part One)' will also release later this year.

'Kraven The Hunter' will be directed by J.C. Chandor, with Avi Arad and Matt Tolmach attached as producers. The film is scheduled for release on January 13, 2023.