Sam Raimi’sSpider - Mantrilogy had been carefully setting up the Lizard - but unfortunately , Spider - Man 4was canceled , and the build - up never paid off . Spider - Man has one of the most well - developed rascal ' galleries in comic , 2nd only to Batman , and as a result the film have had a lot of bad guys to take from .

Director Sam Raimi had long been interested in the character of the Lizard , with concept prowess paint a picture he ab initio regard him as the baddie of 2004’sSpider - Man 2 . Raimi return to the idea ofthe Lizard when   developingSpider - Man 4 , although in interviews he did also advert characters as diverse asMysterio and the Vulture . In the remainder , Spider - Man 4was canceled by Sony when Raimi withdrew from the project , and Marc Webb was place in complaint of a relaunch , The Amazing Spider - Man .

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Spider-Man Noir

It was something of a shame , given Sam Raimi had been build up to the Lizard for years . There was a throwaway reference to Dr. Curt Connors in 2002’sSpider - world , and he   then made his big - silver screen entry in 2004’sSpider - Man 2 , play by Dylan Baker . Connors was one of Peter Parker ’s lecturers , print by his answer to a unmanageable head , but generally interested about his scholar ’s tardiness . He returned again in 2007’sSpider - Man 3 , this sentence acting as a scientific advisor for Peter ; Connors take on the role of Reed Richards in the comic Koran story of theVenom symbiotecostume , helping Peter translate just what he was dealing with .

This was an entirely comic - Koran - accurate use for Dr. Connors , who in   Marvel   Comics had serve as both a lecturer and a scientific consultant to Peter Parker / Spider - Man . Crucially , Raimi’sSpider - Manmovies introduced Curt Connors as an amputee , augur his experimentation   with Lizard DNA to rectify his right arm .

In an consultation withIGNback in 2007 , Baker revealed thatSpider - Man 4was supposed to continue this comic - inspired trajectory . " Well , I would say I ’m still the guy that Peter Parker has to come to when he has interrogation , " he explained . " Scientific questions .   And I hear to help him out . " He did n’t give any indication whether or not the Lizard would be part ofSpider - Man 4 , but insisted it was coming . " I ’ll be trying to get on the Lizard costume when I ’m 80 , " Baker quip . Concept artistry for the movie suggests it might have occur a lot sooner than Baker was suggesting , of course .

A collage image of Luke Skywalker in A New Hope

The cancellation ofSpider - Man 4sadly meant there was never any issue for all this build - up . Ironically , Marc Webb chose to make the Lizard the first villain of hisAmazing Spider - Manfilms , casting Rhys Ifans for the part . It remains to be seen whether or not Marvel Studios will eventually choose to do their own translation of the Lizard as part of the MCU ; so far , they ’ve avoided repeat any characters who ’ve appeared on the big screen before , but it ’s surely only a subject of time .

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The Lizard in The Original Spider-Man Movies

Dylan Baker as Dr. Curt Connors stares with furrowed brows slightly off camera in spider-man 3

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