There are few IP properties as financially lucrative as Marvel’s Spider-Man. The friendly neighborhood superhero is already raking in billions for the MCU, and his supporting characters are not far behind.
They are getting the chance to show off their stories now as well. After Venom and Kraven, the trailer for Sony’s Madame Web, starring Dakota Johnson as Cassandra Webb, is here!
But what’s her story, and is she a villain?
In Marvel comics, Cassandra Webb/ Madame Web was a paralyzed woman suffering from myasthenia gravis. She first appeared in 1981’s Amazing Spider-Man #210. She was a hero who helped Spider-Man with her clairvoyant visions. Her powerset includes clairvoyance, telepathy, astral travel, mind reading, and immortality.
Who Is Madame Web? Is She A Hero Or A Villain?
Madame Web was introduced in Amazing Spider-Man #210 (1981). In that issue, Cassandra Webb appeared as an older woman who was Spider-Man’s ally. She helped him with his clairvoyant visions.
She was born blind and suffered from myasthenia gravis, a chronic neuromuscular disease. As a result, she had immense difficulty trying to move and breathe on her own. So, she was connected to a life support system that resembled a spider’s web.
In the end, after many adventures, Cassandra gets killed in the battle between Spider-Man and Kraven’s family in Amazing Spider-Man #600 when she goes to help the wall-crawler. Julia Carpenter, the second Spider-Woman, was also involved in this fight.
Before passing away, she gives Julia a gift and a curse.
She gets Webb’s powers as well as her blindness. Thus, Julia Carpenter becomes the next Madame Webb. So, two characters have held the title of Madame Web- Cassandra Webb and the other is Julia Carpenter.
Both are in the upcoming Sony film. Dakota Johnson plays Webb, while Sydney Sweeney portrays Carpenter. As such, it looks like the film is already setting up a potential sequel if the first one does well at the box office.
What Are Madame Web’s Powers?
In the pages of Marvel comics, Madame Web/ Cassandra Webb can read minds and project her thoughts. Moreover, she can astral travel since she can project her consciousness out of her living body.
However, she has three central powers- clairvoyance, telepathy, and immortality. The trailer shows that Dakota Johnson’s heroine is a paramedic, so it’s not a stretch to think that maybe, in some way, she will become immortal.
After all, it will help cement her role as an immortal hero more. The trailer also clearly showed her powers of prophecy. In fact, the entire clip focused mainly on that. She can see the future, the only tool/ power she has at her disposal for a while.
But it looks like she will have super strength and Spidey sense in the film. This is because, at the tail end of the trailer, she stops a massive chunk of wall from hitting her without even looking at it.
It will be interesting to see how she gets those last two powers. Current fan theories state that it’s because of the spider her mother was researching when she was killed while still pregnant with Cassandra. Although the name Madame Web sounds sinister, the character is a hero, not a villain.
Madame Web will be released in theaters on February 16, 2024.
Are you excited about Sony’s Madame Web? Did you spot any more differences in the power set of Madame Web in the comics and the trailer?
Let us know in the comments below.
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