Back when superhero movies were still rising in popularity – unlike now – Sony took an interest in Anne Hathaway for a role in Spider-Man 4. The Academy Award-winning actress recently explained how close she was to playing Catwo- whoops, sorry, Black Cat for the movie.
In an interview with Josh Horowitz on the Happy Sad Confused podcast, Hathaway revealed that she was set to star as Felicia Hardy aka Black Cat for the sequel to Tobey Maguire’s Spider-Man 3 before it was scrapped. Sony eventually opted not to produce a sequel and instead rebooted the Spider-Man universe with Andrew Garfield’s The Amazing Spider-Man.
“Uh, I did not get into costume and did not read a script past the audition slides,” Hathaway said. “I got the part and, yeah, it just…I think that’s probably more the producers’ story to tell than mine should they ever decide to tell it.” She adds, “The Spider-Man Universe has gone on to be so enormous and so thrilling.
According to reports, the plan was to cast John Malkovich to play Adrian Toomes, aka Vulture in Spider-Man 4. The villain would die in a clash with the web-slinger and Toomes’ daughter, played by Angelina Jolie, would eventually take on the mantle of Vulturess. Hathaway’s Black Cat would have aided Spider-Man in defeating the villain.
After the cancellation of Spider-Man 4, Hathaway eventually found a role in a superhero movie. The actress was cast as Catwoman in Christopher Nolan’s The Dark Knight Rises alongside Christian Bale. Interestingly, she reveals that she wouldn’t have landed the role if Spider-Man 4 moved forward.
“That’s how I hold it. The way I hold it is if that movie had gotten made, I don’t know if I would’ve been considered because I don’t know if (Nolan) would’ve said, ‘No, no, she’s occupied in another universe,'” Hathaway explained.
“As an actor, you don’t know this on day one, but you learn to just go, ‘You know what? The right role finds the right person, and sometimes it’s you and sometimes it’s not, so when it doesn’t happen just trust deeper and keep going. Just keep going.”
The actress went on to share that she missed a casting opportunity for a musical early on in her career due to other obligations. Missing the opportunity was devastating for Hathaway, but she feels that it made her eventual role in Les Misérables more meaningful.
It would be really interesting to see Hathaway star in a Marvel movie someday. There have been reports early this year that Marvel was in talks with the actress for a role in the MCU. However, there hasn’t been any development since.
One possible opening for Hathaway would be the introduction of the X-Men to the MCU. She could portray a mutant like Rogue or Destiny. She could even be cast as the long-rumored superhero Dazzler. Hopefully, Marvel will find a role that fits her stature within the film franchise.
