CEBU, Philippines — Sergei Kravinoff was not born a villain, but he was molded into it, turning into one of Marvel’s most iconic villains, Kraven the Hunter. “Kraven believes that he can make the world a better place through breaking basic tenets of society and fundamental rules of decency,” director J. C. Chandor says. “But he believes he’s doing that to serve the greater good. He absolutely does.”
At the core of the film, it’s the tragedy of a family falling apart that sets the ball rolling for Kraven’s violent turn. “Like any good villain story, there’s a price to pay when you try and take a shortcut to doing the right thing, or you try and step outside of who you really are. And like many gangster stories, this film is a family tragedy. There are a lot of things here that people will recognize in their own families, which is the complexity of your relationships with your parents, with your siblings, with your half-siblings,” Chandor explains.
Aaron-Taylor Johnson is tasked with the role of Kraven, tells of Kraven’s desire to break free from his family’s criminal roots, but in turn makes everything worse off, shaping him to be a more terrifying villain. “Sergei’s younger brother, Dmitri, has been shunned from the beginning as the inferior sibling,” explains Taylor-Johnson. “Dmitri has been living under his father’s disapproval and abuse, and Kraven decides he’s had enough. He can’t tolerate his father’s corruption anymore – he’s going to go on his own path and make things right. Kraven promises his brother that he’s going to protect him.”
“Ultimately, that promise is his biggest downfall,” Taylor-Johnson continues. “Because even though he says he’s going to be there, his actions show otherwise. By abandoning and neglecting Dmitri, he loses the trust of his brother, and mirrors everything he hates about his father.”
In a way, Taylor-Johnson thinks, the humanity in Kraven’s story, and the raw human skill and emotion that he exudes is what sets Kraven apart. “This is like no other Marvel superhero movie, because Kraven isn’t a superhero,” Taylor-Johnson says. “He’s not an alien. He’s not a monster. He’s a man who has been trained as a skilled hunter and killer.” And as the film continues, Kraven will make big decisions about how to use those skills.
“Kraven the Hunter” is the visceral, action-packed origin story of how and why one of Marvel’s most iconic villains came to be. Taylor-Johnson plays Kraven, a man whose complex relationship with his ruthless father, Nikolai Kravinoff (Russell Crowe), starts him down a path of vengeance with brutal consequences, motivating him to become not only the greatest hunter in the world, but also one of its most feared.
Directed by J.C. Chandor, it also stars Ariana DeBose, Fred Hechinger, Alessandro Nivola, and Christopher Abbott.
Opening in Philippine cinemas on December 11, “Kraven the Hunter” is distributed in the Philippines by Columbia Pictures, local office of Sony Pictures Releasing International.