Olivia Wilde to Direct Untitled, Female-Centric Marvel Movie at Sony Pictures

Olivia Wilde has signed a deal with Sony Pictures to develop and direct an untitled, female-centric Marvel film project for the studio, sources have told Variety.

Representatives for Sony and Marvel had no comment about the project. Speculation has arisen in the recent months about Sony developing a movie centering on the Spider-Woman character.

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The Spider-Woman title has been held by several Marvel Comics characters throughout the years, starting with Jessica Drew in the 1970s (whose origin story involves uranium exposure and spider blood), and also including Mary-Jane Watson and Gwen Stacy. The “Spider-Gwen” version of the character has most recently appeared in the animated feature “Spider-Man: Into the Spider-Verse,” voiced by Hailee Steinfeld.

The film will be written by “Booksmart” writer Katie Silberman with Amy Pascal producing. Rachel O’Connor will executive produce.

Wilde made her feature film directorial debut last year with “Booksmart,” which earned a Writers Guild of America nomination for the script for Silberman, Emily Halpern, Sarah Haskins and Susanna Fogel. Wilde is attached to direct the thriller “Don’t Worry Darling,” starring Florence Pugh, Chris Pine, Shia LaBeouf and Dakota Johnson. The New Line film will shoot this fall.

Variety first reported in May that veteran TV director S.J. Clarkson had signed on to develop the first female-centric movie from Sony’s catalog of Marvel characters. Insiders said at the time that there was a strong possibility that the film would be based on the Madame Web comic book character.

Wilde is repped by CAA, Untitled Entertainment and Ziffren Brittenham. Silberman is repped by UTA, MXN Entertainment, and Myman Greenspan. The news was first reported by Deadline Hollywood.

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