Can you believe Spike Lee has been making movies for more than 30 years now? His greatest movie, “Do the Right Thing,” didn’t even get a Best Picture nomination in 1989, with the Academy instead opting for the safer, gentler, but nevertheless forgettable whimsy of “Driving Miss Daisy.” We all know which film stood the test of time and which film, as Lee pointed out recently, is taught in film schools all across the U.S. It wasn’t just that movie that made an impression, with Lee going on to helm bold pictures like “Malcom X,” “Jungle Fever,” “25th Hour” and “Inside Man.” The director’s movies have aged well and he keeps pushing the envelope forward, most recently in his undervalued poetry-musical “Chi-raq.”
With all that being said, this latest rumor concerning him might bewilder more than a few.
It is well-known that Sony is fast-tracking a non-Spider-Man universe which would include supporting characters from Spidey’s world. That’s exciting especially when you consider we’re going to have Tom Hardy leading “Venom” next year, with “Silver & Black” directed by Gina Prince-Bythewood also in the works.
A rumored third movie looks more and more to be an adaptation of the little-known superhero Nightwatch. Also known as Dr. Kevin Trench, the backstory of this character is quite intriguing. Trench was attacked by an invisible camouflage but then rescued by a Nightwatch, who is then unmasked to be an older version of himself. It’s trippy time-bending stuff.
On the latest episode of “Meet the Movie Press” host Jeff Sneider shared the peculiar rumor that Sony is eyeing Spike Lee direct “Nightwatch.” Consider this a mismatch between content and director, but nevertheless an intriguing one as it means we will see Lee tackle a major Hollywood blockbuster for the first time (yes, he also directed “Oldboy,” but that was fairly modestly budgeted at $30 million).
Sony originally wanted Nightwatch to appear in this year’s “Spider-Man: Homecoming,” but something happened along the way that made them cancel these plans. Perhaps it was the studio seeing potential in this character and having the idea of making a standalone movie. As always, this a rumor, so take it with a grain of salt and all that, and we’ll see how this develops. [via Screen Rant]