Spider-Man 4 Off Because Director Saw Avatar

The problems with the Spider-Man 4 script were genuine, but the real reason the flick got the ax is that the director saw Avatar. Sam Raimi became infatuated with the advanced computer graphics in the James Cameron blockbuster and wanted to take advantage of them, insiders tell New York. Sony said no, despite the fact that the sequel was the linchpin of its 2011 slate.

The cost of adding the CG gloss—which wouldn't have included 3D—was an issue, but time played a bigger factor. Sony had scheduled the release for May 6, 2011, and knew Raimi couldn’t meet that date. “The tipping point was that Sam wanted to do certain things that would push the envelope,” an insider says, “and Sony didn’t feel that was essential to the franchise.” Additionally, the script “threatened to torpedo the whole franchise.” (More Sam Raimi stories.)