Sequel lining up a second villain.
An interesting piece of news has popped up over at THR. According to the trade, the always excellent Paul Giamatti (‘John Dies at the End,’ ‘Sideways’) has entered into talks to take the role of The Rhino in Marc Webb’s ‘The Amazing Spider-Man 2.’ British actress Felicity Jones (‘Like Crazy’) is also said to be in negotiations for an unspecified role.
First appearing in ‘The Amazing Spider-Man’ #41 back in 1966, The Rhino is alter-ego of Aleksei Mikhailovich Sytsevich, a former thug for the Russian mafia who wore a superhuman suit that made him invulnerable while giving him super strength and super speed. In more recent comics, he became a sympathetic figure who found himself allying with Spider-Man.
Giamatti is a longtime fan of the character. Talking to ShowbizSpy in March 2011, the character actor was quoted as saying “I thought Rhino was the greatest thing when I was a little kid. It was a guy who was basically in this rhinoceros outfit and I always thought, ‘Why don’t they have The Rhino in one of their movies,’ but maybe The Rhino wasn’t that big of a deal for anybody but me…If they ever go with The Rhino I would be ready and waiting.”
‘The Amazing Spider-Man 2’ is set to go before cameras next month with release scheduled for May 2014 and has a cast that includes Andrew Garfield, Emma Stone, Sally Field, along with newcomers Jamie Foxx as Electro, Shailene Woodley playing Mary Jane Watson, and Dane DeHaan in the role of Harry Osborn.