“West Side Story” star Ariana DeBose has joined the cast of Sony’s “Kraven the Hunter,” an upcoming superhero action-adventure featuring Aaron Taylor Johnson as one of Spider-Man’s most deadly antagonists.
She will play Calypso, a voodoo priestess who is the on-and-off lover of Kraven. The character first appeared in “Spider-Man” comics in the early 1980s as an adversary of Marvel’s teen web-slinger. In the comics, she has the power of mind control and a costume that barely covers her body.
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J.C. Chandor, who previously tackled “All Is Lost” and “Triple Frontier,” is directing “Kraven the Hunter.” The film, which also stars Russell Crowe, will be released theatrically on Jan. 13, 2023.
Avi Arad and Matt Tolmach are producing, with the screenplay written by Art Marcum, Matt Holloway and Richard Wenk.
DeBose is currently the favorite to win best supporting actress at this year’s Oscars, for her captivating turn as Anita in Steven Spielberg’s remake of “West Side Story.” Over the weekend, she took home the SAG Award for outstanding performance by a female actor in a supporting role.
“It’s taken a long time for me to feel comfortable calling myself an actor. My roots come from the dance world and the Broadway stage,” she said onstage at the SAG Awards while accepting the trophy.
Prior to her big-screen breakout in “West Side Story,” DeBose was a member of the original Broadway cast of “Hamilton” and landed a Tony nomination for playing the lead role in “Summer: The Donna Summer Musical.” She later starred in Ryan Murphy’s film adaptation of “The Prom” for Netflix, as well as the Apple TV Plus musical comedy series “Schmigadoon!”
Before immersing herself in the Spiderverse, DeBose will be seen in Matthew Vaughn’s action film “Argylle” from Apple, in which she will star opposite Henry Cavill, Bryan Cranston, Samuel L. Jackson and Dua Lipa. She will also star in Gabriela Cowperthwaite’s space thriller “I.S.S.” with Chris Messina and Pilou Asbaek.
DeBose is repped by CAA, AC Management, The Lede Company and Jackoway Austen Tyerman.
Deadline Hollywood first reported the news of DeBose’s casting.
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