The reason behind Kraven the Hunter’s push to December has not gone down well with fans.

Aaron Taylor-Johnson’s Kraven the Hunter has become infamous for its constant release date changes and delays. The film was originally slated to release in January of last year. but it got pushed to August. The first trailer had dropped owing to this release but the strikes happened. This further delayed the film by more than a year to August 2024.

Sony’s track record with their Spider-Man universe spin-off films has not been going with Morbius and most recently Madame Web tanking at the box office along with mediocre reviews. Following Madame Web‘s release, the studio delayed Kraven the Hunter once again to December 2024. Fans are not impressed with the explanation behind it after they delivered two absolute duds.

Sony Is Very Optimistic About Kraven The Hunter‘s New Date But Fans Ain’t Buying It

The Sony Spider-Man universe (ironically without Spider-Man himself) has deteriorated significantly after a rather promising start with 2018’s Venom. While the two Venom films were profitable, Morbius and Madame Web were lambasted by fans and flopped hard. The initial anticipation that the upcoming Kraven the Hunter film dissipated completely after its ridiculous release date changes.

The Aaron Taylor-Johnson-led film is now scheduled for December 13, 2024, delayed almost 3 months from its previous release date of August 30. Fans are already disillusioned after the insufferable experiences of watching Morbius and Madame Web, and now Kraven the Hunter‘s producer has revealed the reason behind the delay, which is sure to raise some eyebrows.

Matt Tolmach told Collider that they pushed the film to December as they felt that Christmas would be the best release period for the film. He further stated that the studio feels very confident and excited about the film, hoping that they would come back to watch the film multiple times. Tomach said,

Kraven moved to Christmas because we’re excited about it and Christmas is the best release period there is when you get people with time to go back to the movies over and over again. That was a real reflection of how the studio felt about the movie. We’re really excited. But that’s a great move that reflects just the feeling about the movie.

Fans were obviously skeptical of Tolmach’s statements comparing it with the ridiculous decision by Sony to re-release Morbius after it had flopped badly at the box office in 2022. The studio’s tactics to provide an optimistic spin towards the release delay did not impress fans one bit. Here are some of the reactions on X,

Fans no longer have hope for the future of the Sony Spider-Man universe and this new explanation about Kraven the Hunter has added to the skepticism instead of raising their excitement for it. The only hope that Sony has is if the movie turns out to be actually good along with Venom: The Last Dance, to save themselves from further scrutiny.

Aaron Taylor-Johnson Promises a Unique and Exciting Experience With Kraven the Hunter

Venom: The Last Dance and Kraven the Hunter are the next films lined up for release this year for Sony’s Spider-Man universe franchise. The latter starring Aaron Taylor-Johnson was delayed several times before it landed on its current December release date. In an interview with Rolling Stone, the actor opened up about how the character felt unique and grounded which excited him as an actor.

The Bullet Train star also pointed out how recent franchise films and blockbusters have disappointed audiences and reduced the excitement of going to theatres. While Kraven the Hunter is also a big-budget superhero film, Taylor-Johnson promises that there is something special about the film and he wouldn’t have done it if he didn’t feel that way. The actor said,

I think there was something unique about this character and something grounded. We’ve all had enough of seeing certain studio films, a certain kind of pop culture… where they’re churning out stuff that dilutes wanting to go to the cinema. I wouldn’t have signed onto it if I felt there wasn’t something to really bring to life with this character.

While Taylor Johnson’s words are assuring, one can’t help but still be skeptical about it after Sony delivered back-to-back disappointments with Morbius and Madame Web. The film is directed by J.C Chandor and also stars Ariana DeBose, Fred Hechinger, Alessandro Nivola, Christopher Abbott, and Russell Crowe. Kraven the Hunter hits theatres on December 13, 2024.