Spider-Man reboot is being shot in RED EPIC 3D, has John Schwartzman all kinds of excited.


You know that untitled Spider-man project that's set to revitalize the franchise at some point in 2012? Yeah, that's being shot in 3D (not news) using 3ality rigs and RED EPIC cameras (superhotawesome news). Peter Jackson already scooped up 30 EPICs to help him shoot his next big venture, The Hobbit, in 3D, but he's been beaten to the digital cinematography punch by the producers of the next Spidey flick, who have cornered a quartet of the cameras and actually started shooting with them on set yesterday. John Schwartzman, the dude responsible for filming the whole thing, has been extolling the virtues of using such fancy gear over on the RED forums, which is also where he promises his crew will be making further comments detailing the user experience. In slightly less thrilling RED news, the Scarlet S35 is being renamed to the EPIC Lite and will suffer the upheaval of having its features and price changed

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The news dropped like a bombshell early this morning that Sony Pictures has signed Robert Pattinson (Twilight) to replace Tobey Maguire in the titular role in Spider-Man 4.



In the official press release, Amy Pascal, Co-Chairman of Sony Pictures and Chairman of Sony Pictures Entertainment Motion Picture Group, announced that Pattinson would not only be assuming the role of Peter Parker and his alter-ego, Spider-Man, in Spider-Man 4, but also in Spider-Man 5 and in a spin-off film to be announced at a later date.

It is no secret that Pascal has been shopping around for an actor to fill the red-and-blue tights for some time. Only a few months ago, negotiations between Sony and Maguire nearly broke down because of the actor's reluctance to return to what he described as a "worn-out concept."

Sam Raimi, the cult film director and mastermind behind the multi-billion dollar Spider-Man franchise, recently blamed the failure of Spider-Man 3 to meet expectations on corporate control interfering with his creative process. Is the Sony Pictures press release another example of the type of control Raimi was referring to or a step toward realizing the director's vision for the franchise?

When asked to comment on the press release, Raimi said:

Decisions like these are always difficult. I know the fans liked Tobey -- and I greatly enjoyed working with him -- but Robert is the future of the franchise.

The press release did not indicate what the spin-off film might be, but recent speculation has focused on Morbius, a mainstay in the Spider-Man comic book mythology. In the comics, Morbius is a "living vampire," a victim of an ill-fated experimental treatment involving vampire bats and shock therapy.

There has been no word from Tobey Maguire's representatives.

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