Jake Gyllenhaal to reportedly star in Spider-Man: Homecoming sequel as super-villain Mysterio

Jake Gyllenhaal has resisted being part of a superhero movie, but that all may be about to change. According to a report in Variety, Jake Gyllenhaal is all set to join the Spider-Man universe as the actor is in talks to play the classic Marvel villain Mysterio in the sequel to Spider-Man: Homecoming. Spider-Man creators Stan Lee and Steve Ditko introduced Mysterio in the comics in 1964. A special effects expert, Mysterio (real name Quentin Beck) uses his talents to create elaborate illusions to commit crimes and fight Spider-Man. Tom Holland starred as the Marvel hero in Spider-Man: Homecoming, and also recently appeared in Avengers: Infinity War. Jon Watts is returning to direct the sequel to Spider-Man: Homecoming, which earned $880 million worldwide. Chris McKenna and Erik Sommers, two of the screenwriters behind the first movie, are also back working on its sequel. [caption id=“attachment_4478049” align=“alignnone” width=“825”]  Jake Gyllenhaal and Mysterio/Image from Twitter.[/caption] Back in 2003, when Tobey Maguire was cast for the first Spider-Man movie, he injured his back while shooting 2003’s Seabiscuit in between Sam Raimi’s Spider-Man (2002) and Spider-Man 2 (2004). It was during this time when Gyllenhaal was briefly considered to take over the role if Maguire could not continue with his duties. That, of course, didn’t happen and Maguire resumed with his role of the original Perter Parker. Jake Gyllenhaal is best known for starring in highly-critically acclaimed movies such as Nightcrawler, Prisoners, Brokeback Mountain (for which he earned an Oscar nomination for the Best Supporting actor), and the cult classic Donnie Darko. Sony and Marvel’s Spider-Man: Homecoming sequel is set to open 5 July, 2019.