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On the heels of Shang-Chi and the Legend of the Ten Rings’ warm reception, filmmaker Destin Daniel Cretton and Marvel Studios boss Kevin Feige went back and forth for a while about what superhero movie he would make next. At one point, his follow-up was going to be the still-in-development Shang-Chi 2. At another point, it was intended to be an earlier iteration of what is now Avengers: Doomsday.
In between it all, Cretton co-created and directed two episodes of the MCU’s Wonder Man series for Disney+. The critical darling chronicles a loner actor named Simon Williams (Yahya Abdul-Mateen II) whose secret superpowers threaten to derail the biggest role of his career. The show would ultimately land Abdul-Mateen II an Emmy nom, but while it was still in post-production, Feige approached Cretton about telling the story of another lonely guy: Peter Parker/Spider-Man (Tom Holland).
“After talking to Kevin Feige a little bit about it, I met with [Spider-Man producer] Amy Pascal. They were looking for a [more grounded] story that was going to explore some of the deeper issues that Peter might be going through during this time of isolation,” Cretton tells The Hollywood Reporter in support of Spider-Man: Brand New Day’s July 31 theatrical release. “I really gravitated toward exploring a character who is, by every sense of the word, completely alone. The character hasn’t really experienced this before in his life. I’ve been through those stages. And I think it’s a subject that a lot of people will relate to right now.”
