Prime Video is closing in on a series order for a new Spider-Man show based on the Clone Saga, the 1990s Marvel Comics storyline about the Spider-Man clones Ben Reilly and Kaine Parker, reports Deadline.
The series is written by Kelvin Yu, the creator of American Born Chinese, and is set in Sony Pictures’ Universe of Marvel Characters. Yu was one of the four writers with Spider-Man scripts in play at Amazon, and his is the one moving forward.
It’s the show taking the place of Spider-Noir, the Nicolas Cage series Amazon canceled earlier this month after one season.
Reps for Amazon MGM Studios and Sony TV declined to comment on the report.
Ben Reilly And Kaine Parker Lead The Series
The show is based on the second Clone Saga arc from the comics, which follows the two clones of Peter Parker.
Ben Reilly is the stable clone. His name combines the first name of Peter’s Uncle Ben with Aunt May’s maiden name, and he goes on to become the Scarlet Spider. Kaine Parker is the flawed first clone.
Details are scarce, and Deadline says there is conflicting information about the direction of the series.
Some say the show follows Ben and Kaine as they come to grips with learning they are clones while facing other clones. In the comics, another clone becomes the villain Spidercide.
Others say the series could change Ben and Kaine’s origins as clones, with the pair taking on new identities.
Sources also caution that the comics serve as source material and inspiration, so the adaptation could make significant changes.
The Clone Saga is also home to one of the most controversial twists in Spider-Man history. Marvel declared Ben Reilly the real Spider-Man and Peter Parker the clone, and the switch was reversed after backlash from fans.
Nicolas Cage Already Played Ben Reilly
Amazon canceled Spider-Noir on September 4 after one season, despite 11 Emmy nominations and solid viewership numbers.
Cage starred as Spider-Man Noir, and while the character is Peter Parker in the comics, the show made him Ben Reilly because of rights carveouts.
So Amazon is following one Ben Reilly series with another.
Cage reacted to the cancellation by calling the show’s single season a “perfect” run.
Like Spider-Noir, the Clone Saga series falls under the multi-title deal between Amazon MGM Studios and Sony Pictures Television to produce shows based on Sony’s Universe of Marvel Characters, most of them in the world of Spider-Man.
The new series will debut on MGM+ followed by a streaming release on Prime Video.
Amy Pascal, Phil Lord and Christopher Miller, who oversee the universe for Sony TV and executive produced Spider-Noir, are expected to executive produce alongside Yu.
When the cancellation was announced, it was reported Amazon and Sony TV were still developing multiple projects under the deal, with one close to a series order. The Clone Saga series is that project.
