EXCLUSIVE: Fresh off her historic win at the SAG Awards on Sunday night, Ariana DeBose has her sights set on her next major project. The Oscar-nominated West Side Story star is set to join Sony Pictures’ Marvel movie Kraven the Hunter, starring Aaron Taylor Johnson in the titular role. Although it’s unconfirmed, sources say DeBose would play Calypso in the movie.
J.C. Chandor is directing the pic with Avi Arad and Matt Tolmach producing. Art Marcum & Matt Holloway and Richard Wenk penned the screenplay.
One of Sony Pictures’ universe of Marvel characters, Kraven is among Marvel’s most iconic and notorious antiheroes who has encountered Venom and Black Panther among many others as well as being one of Spider-Man’s best-known and most-formidable enemies. The film will be released theatrically January 13, 2023.
As for Calypso, she is a voodoo priestess who utilizes magic potions, and besides being an adversary of Spider-Man, she is also the occasional partner and lover of Kraven.
Sony is coming off a hot streak, with Spider-Man: No Way Home becoming the biggest film of 2021 with $1.8 billion in worldwide sales after Venom: Let There Be Carnage made more than $500 million worldwide. As for future films, the Jared Leto-starrer Morbius bows in the U.S. in April, and the studio just named Dakota Johnson to lead Madame Web.
DeBose’s stock has been skyrocketing following her scene-stealing role as Anita in Steven Spielberg’s Oscar-nominated West Side Story adaptation. Besides taking home the SAG Award for Supporting Actress, DeBose also has BAFTA and Critics Choice noms in the same category.
She will next appear in Matthew Vaughn’s action film Argylle from Apple, starring opposite Henry Cavill, Bryan Cranston, Samuel L. Jackson and Dua Lipa, and will also star in Gabriela Cowperthwaite’s space thriller I.S.S. alongside Chris Messina and Pilou Asbaek.
DeBose earned a Tony nomination for her role as Disco Donna in Summer: The Donna Summer Musical and appeared alongside Lin-Manuel Miranda in the Tony-winning musical Hamilton as a member of the original cast in both the Broadway and Off Broadway productions, as well as the Emmy-winning film version that was later released on Disney+. She also starred in Ryan Murphy’s film adaption of the musical The Prom for Netflix and Lorne Michaels’ musical comedy series Schmigadoon! at Apple TV+.
She is repped by CAA, AC Management and Jackoway Austen Tyerman.