Ultimate Spider-Man 2

Ultimate Spider-Man 2 is a 2014 American computer-animated superhero film based on the Marvel Comics character Spider-Man and the comic book of the same name by Brian Michael Bendis. Produced by DreamWorks animation in association with Marvel Entertainment, and distributed by 20th Century Fox, it is the sequel to the 2010 film Ultimate Spider-Man. The film was directed by Dean DeBlois, written by Greg Weisman, Victor Cook, and Brian Michael Bendis, and stars the returning voices of Jay Baruchel, Jared Padalecki, Tara Strong, Vincent D'Onofrio, Helen Mirren, and J.K. Simmons, along with Russell Crowe, Anne Hathaway, Cillian Murphy, and Tony Todd joining the cast. Set four years after the events of the first film, the film follows the new 18 year old Peter Parker as a high school senior finally getting the hang of being a hero and encountering an a new symbiotic suit that attaches itself to him, and allies himself with Black Cat, and fights big game hunter Sergei Kravinoff, and has to help out his teacher, Dr. Curt Connors as he transforms into the Lizard.

A sequel to Ultimate Spider-Man was announced in April 2010. DeBlois, who co-directed the first film, began drafting the outline in February 2010. He had agreed to return to direct the second film on the condition that he would be allowed to turn it into a trilogy. He cited The Empire Strikes Back and My Neighbor Totoro as his main inspirations, with the expanded scope of The Empire Strikes Back being particularly influential. DeBlois and his creative team visited sewers in New York City to look for inspirations for the scenes with the Lizard. Composer John Powell returned to score the film, and rock band Skillet returned to provide the songs for the film. The entire voice cast from the first film also returned, while Crowe, Hathaway, Murphy, and Todd signed on to voice Sergei Kravinoff, Black Cat, Dr. Curt Connors, and Venom, respectively. Ultimate Spider-Man 2 was DreamWorks' first film to use scalable multi-core processing and the studio's new animation and lighting software.

Ultimate Spider-Man 2 premiered at the 2014 Cannes Film Festival on May 16, 2014, and was released in the United States on June 13. It received positive reviews for its animation, voice acting, musical score, action sequences, emotional depth, and darker, more serious tone compared to its predecessor. It grossed over $621 million worldwide, making it the 12th-highest-grossing film of 2014. It earned less than its predecessor at the US box office, but performed better internationally. The film won the Golden Globe Award for Best Animated Feature Film and six Annie Awards, including Best Animated Feature, and was nominated for the Academy Award for Best Animated Feature. The final installment in the trilogy, Ultimate Spider-Man 3: Rise of the Sinister Six, was released on February 22, 2019.

Plot
Four years after first becoming Spider-Man, the now 18 year old Peter Parker is finally getting the hang of being Spider-Man, at least until he gets his hands on a new, synthetic, black costume that alters his behavior, while also reluctantly allying herself with cat burglar Felicia Hardy, and fighting big game hunter Sergei Kravinoff. Not only that, but his teacher Dr. Curt Connors, has transformed himself into the lizard, and is on Kraven's hunting list.

Cast

 * Jay Baruchel as Peter Parker/Spider-Man - An orphaned teenager who received spider-powers after being bitten by a genetically-altered spider. Peter first uses his powers to try and make money as a wrestler in the first film, but after the death of his uncle, he soon decides to use his powers to fight crime as the vigilante known as Spider-Man.
 * Russell Crowe as Sergei Kravinoff/Kraven the Hunter - A big game hunter who came to New York, and he came for the reason of not only hunting Spider-Man, but also the Lizard.
 * Cillian Murphy as Dr. Curt Connors/Lizard - Peter's science teacher and close friend who attempts to engineer a revolutionary regeneration serum to help regrow limbs and human tissue. Something goes wrong, and he is transformed into a large, savage, mindless reptilian creature with a lot less intelligence and more animalistic instincts.
 * Jared Padalecki as Harry Osborn/Venom - Peter's best friend who blames Spider-Man as the reason that his father is currently in prison, and becomes Venom when Peter rejects the symbiote.
 * Tony Todd as the Venom symbiote - A black shapeshifting substance that initially attached itself to Peter Parker, before finding a new host in Harry Osborn.
 * Anne Hathaway as Felicia Hardy/Black Cat - A cat burglar who becomes an ally of Spider-Man, and flirts with him at every turn.
 * Tara Strong as Mary Jane "MJ" Watson - Peter's love interest
 * Vincent D'Onofrio as Wilson Fisk/Kingpin - A powerful businessman and crime lord whose interests in the future of New York City brings him to conflict with Spider-Man.
 * Helen Mirren as May Parker - Peter's independent aunt, who is in her 50s working as a secretary and regularly sees a therapist to deal with the death of her husband Ben. May hates Spider-Man because she believes he has no regard for innocent bystanders and hid his face behind a mask.
 * J.K. Simmons as J. Jonah Jameson - The grouchy, loudmouthed editor-in-chief of the Daily Bugle and Peter's boss. He despises Spider-Man and considers him a criminal, and constantly takes delight in carrying out an unrelenting smear campaign against him and driving a rift in public opinion on his heroics.

Production
After the success of Ultimate Spider-Man (2010), the sequel was announced on April 27, 2010. "Ultimate Spider-Man … has become DreamWorks Animation's next franchise. We plan to release the sequel theatrically in 2013", said Jeffrey Katzenberg, DreamWorks Animation's CEO. It was later revealed that DeBlois had started drafting the outline for a sequel in February 2010 at Skywalker Ranch, during the final sound mix of the first film. The film was originally scheduled for release on June 20, 2014, but in August 2013 the release date was moved forward one week to June 13, 2014. ''

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