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Olivia Wilde, who's directing a Marvel film, wants to "reframe" the superhero narrative

Photo credit: Frazer Harrison - Getty Images
Photo credit: Frazer Harrison - Getty Images

From Harper's BAZAAR

Olivia Wilde is swinging into the Marvel universe.

After making her directorial debut with 2019's Booksmart, the actress and filmmaker will helm a female-led superhero flick for Sony and, although she hasn't confirmed the character at the centre of her project just yet, all signs are pointing to Spider-Woman.

Here's what we know so far.

Wilde is collaborating with fellow women.

Producer Amy Pascal, who's worked on films such as Spider-Man: Homecoming, Far from Home, and Into the Spider-Verse (and non-Spidey films including Little Women), is on board, reports Deadline. Katie Silberman, who penned Booksmart, is teaming up with Wilde again to write the script. Rachel O'Connor, who executive-produced Spider-Man: Far from Home and Little Women, will also EP this upcoming Marvel film.

Wilde is "honoured" to have the opportunity to "reframe" superhero stories

"Look, we are seeing this incredible influx of female directors and storytellers getting to take hold of this genre, of the superhero space, and infuse it with their own perspective," Wilde told Evan Ross Katz on the Shut Up Evan podcast. "So, not only do I get to tell this story as a director, but I get to develop this story, and that was what made it so incredible for me."

She added, "I'm just honoured to be amongst this wave of women who are showing up and saying, 'We are not only going to step in and try and tell this story like men do, we're actually going to reframe the stories themselves.'"

Spider-Woman has evolved through the years.

News of the new Marvel gig was first announced in August, which Wilde confirmed with a single spider emoji on Twitter, leading fans to speculate as to whether Spider-Woman would be at the centre of her film.

According to the storied comics brand, the character of Spider-Woman, whose real name is Jessica Drew, debuted in 1977 from creators Archie Goodwin and Marie Severin. As a child, she became ill from exposure to uranium, but her father, a doctor, saved her life by injecting her with a spider-based serum and placing her in a "genetic accelerator." The combination of factors resulted in her supernatural abilities. She went on to use her powers as a spy and private detective.

Spider-Woman has evolved over the decades. She had a cartoon TV show in 1979 and still appears in written comics today. In addition to Jessica Drew, other characters in the universe have adopted the Spider-Woman alias, including Mattie Franklin and Julia Carpenter. According to Deadline, Spider-Man figures Gwen Stacy and Mary Jane Watson have also taken up the alter ego.

We can't wait to see what version of Spider-Woman Wilde could bring to the big screen.

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