The new phase of Kraven the Hunter’s marketing campaign has me concerned about where Sony’s Marvel film is headed. Sony’s Spider-Man franchise has been wildly inconsistent; although the Venom movies have done good box office, the rest of the universe has not. Nevertheless, much that is known about Kraven points to a sinister, violent, thrilling movie with a decidedly R-rated quality. Despite the studio’s best efforts to convey confidence in the work they have produced, a number of factors imply that this may not be the case behind closed doors.

Sony’s universe of Spider-Man characters needs another win. While the Venom films have been successful, Morbius was a massive miss for critics and audiences, and Madame Web is arguably one of the most bafflingly inept superhero movies ever made. Following these failures, Sony really needs one of their Marvel films to connect. They have worked hard on this film and are trying to introduce iconic characters and images which, at least when compared to the Rhino in The Amazing Spider-Man 2, may be effective. Still, I can’t help but worry.