LOS ANGELES — Newcomer Tyler Cruise has been cast as Peter Parker/Spider-Man in "Spideypool XXX: An Axel Braun Parody" from Wicked Pictures.
Last month, Kenna James was cast as female lead Mary Jane Watson; Seth Gamble will reprise his XBIZ award-winning role as Deadpool.
Braun noted filming is already underway.
“Tyler is a fantastic Spidey,” the director enthused. “He’s a great performer, as evidenced by the accolades he’s already getting on his first year in the business. He’s intense, very committed and he absolutely nailed the character with all its nuances. Also, he’s meticulously prepared, a real trooper and a warrior, which comes as no surprise given that he’s represented by the amazing folks at Nexxxt Level Talent."
"The other day, we were filming exteriors in 39-degree weather for several hours, and the Spider-Man costume is extremely thin," Braun said. "Tyler handled it like a pro, bringing out the energy and delivering his lines perfectly over and over again without a single complaint. It’s easy to predict that this kid is looking at a very bright future in the industry."
Braun's most recent parody, "Black Widow XXX," earned an array of 2022 XBIZ Awards nominations, including "Feature Movie of the Year."
"When I was told Axel chose me to play Spider-Man in his upcoming movie I was absolutely blown away,” said Cruise. "It’s not every day you get a chance to play the lead role in Axel Braun's biggest movie of the year. The costumes are amazing, the story is hilarious, the cast is incredible and I get to share the screen with acting legend Seth Gamble. It’s a huge honor and a phenomenal opportunity to learn from the best people in the industry, and I am super-excited to be a part of such an epic project."
The 20-year-old swordsman takes over the role from Xander Corvus, who played the webslinger eight times in the "AxelVerse."
“Tyler is definitely a different kind of Spidey,” Gamble said. “This story and the character's dynamic with Deadpool required a very specific type of performance and Tyler tuned into that perfectly. He’s a great kid and our characters have a very funny bromance thing going on where I get to be the outrageous one and he barely tolerates my shenanigans. We are having a lot of fun and it totally shows on camera. I think the fans will love what we bring to the table."
Braun added the Spider-Man costume "once again not only rivals mainstream in terms of quality, but also showcases an interpretation of the character never seen onscreen before."
He noted "timing could not be more perfect" for the costume reveal, given the latest mainstream film "Spider-Man: No Way Home" opened in theaters Thursday.
“Costumes are extremely important to me," he said. "As good as the Marvel Spider-Man suits have been so far, I was really hoping to see the PS4 version onscreen in 'No Way Home,' and when I realized it wasn’t gonna happen, I decided to do it myself. The big white spider on the chest really makes the character more dynamic and also helps separate him from Deadpool, since they share the screen so much, so I’m very happy with my choice and I hope the fans will share my enthusiasm.”
"The world is flocking to theaters to find out if, in fact, former Spideys Tobey Maguire and Andrew Garfield will be returning to the screen," the director added, noting he is "a notorious comic book geek and self-professed Spider-Man super-fan."
"I’ve already seen 'No Way Home,' but I’m not telling,” Braun concluded. "All I can say is that it’s an amazing movie and the fan service is massive. And while I may not have Tobey or Andrew, I’ve got a couple pretty good surprises of my own, so stay tuned."
"Spideypool XXX: An Axel Braun Parody" will premiere in 2022 exclusively on Wicked.com; follow Wicked, Braun, Seth Gamble and Tyler Cruise on Twitter.
