Spidey 3 Symbiote = Not Black?
Author: Stephen Gerding
June 29th, 2006
So, I’m watching the trailer for Spider-Man 3 again for the tenth time last night, and I noticed that at the very end when Peter’s checking himself out in the building’s window, the symbiote costume isn’t actually black. It’s really, really close, but it’s not that pure black I’d expected. Not that this is really matters as long as the movie kicks ass, but I thought it was interesting that they’ve not only decided to forego the traditional Secret Wars/Venom design, but they may also have continued to adjust their personal vision of the character to come up with something different that wouldn’t be nearly as visually effective on the printed page.
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73 Responses to “Spidey 3 Symbiote = Not Black?”
June 29th, 2006 at 7:17 am
If you look in the trailer, Peter’s wearing the regular costume while the symbiote covers him. So it makes sense that the symbiote would just “drape” over his costume. My guess is that Venom will look more like the black costume we know, since the symbiote will be his costume, and not just cover an existing one.
June 29th, 2006 at 11:16 am
Wow, that’s a good call! Imagine how badass it would be if we see Spidey come into frame, then watch MJ people shit her pants as the costume shifts and changes into the classic Venom look…
June 29th, 2006 at 11:25 am
um…isnt it light just reflecting off the costume…..
given this picture…wouldnt it make red spideys pants purple?
Also the symbiote is black earlier in the trailer.
again not that it matters…the movie will kick ass
June 29th, 2006 at 11:50 am
maybe you need to view the trailer a few more times. the scene in question is meant to symbolically represent spidey’s dual nature. the black costumed spidey hangs upside down as the red+blue spidey is reflected in the glass.
there is a reason why this scene involves a reflective surface.
June 29th, 2006 at 12:01 pm
This is accually more acurate to the book than you might think. It depends on what series your looking at but its very acurate as far as the black is concerned. In the original books venom/spider-man have a blue tint or “shade” around the costume, if they didnt it would just be a black blob with no real shape to the person wearing it. And now in the ultimate series it has a purple tint to it for the same obvious reason. So in all I think they are doing a great job so far except for the fact they half-assed it a little by using the same costume instead of makeing the real black costume. If I were going to complain about anything in the trailer it would be the “Green Goblin ” costume that is not Green or a Goblin. WTF up with that. Maybe they are trying to keep it more of a secret until a later date but if that is the new Goblin suit, thats is very dissapointing.
June 29th, 2006 at 12:18 pm
what do u mean it’s not pure black it’s black maybe very very dark purple in sun glare
June 29th, 2006 at 12:21 pm
It’s not that it has a blue/purple tint to it, it’s that the parts that are red on Spidey’s traditional costume have a red tint, while the other parts that are traditionally blue have a blue tint.
Yeah, I realize this is a symbolic scene, but I still find it interesting that as subtle as it is, it’s still visibly noticable.
June 29th, 2006 at 12:39 pm
It took you 10 times to tell the reflection wasn’t black? Dude, get glasses, oh and maybe a life.
June 29th, 2006 at 12:45 pm
I noticed that the spider logo on the front of the black suit is different than on the red costume …the four spider-legs pointing up hook inward now …also the width of the logo tapers down instead of up like before
June 29th, 2006 at 12:52 pm
No Paul, not the reflection - the costume being reflected.
I gots me a life, wife and a mortgage. Just thought this was something that could be fun to speculate about for a bit.
June 29th, 2006 at 1:34 pm
so is topher grace venom then, plus maybe the scene were parker is reaching for the ring and attacked by goblin is a dream, who knows, goblin costume sucks, spidy costume is coo but i hope they show how it enhances his powers not just makes him crazy
June 29th, 2006 at 1:43 pm
What was problematic about Spider-Man 1 were the scenes where Spidey and Goblin had masks on and were talking. They were really awkward scenes. I think that’s why in SM2, Spidey’s mask is always getting ripped off — so that you can actually see some emotion. Hence, no mask for Harry.
June 29th, 2006 at 4:05 pm
IN one of the set reports on superherohype the guy said he talked to sam r. and others involved in the production, and they both said that when the symbiote bonds with eddie brock and actually becomes venom the costume will more closly resemble the comic version. Sam always toys a little with comic but he knows what he’s doing. In my opinion, its to make venom visually different from spiderman so that the general (read: non-comic reading) audience really sees the seperation.
June 29th, 2006 at 4:11 pm
a scooper on superherohype talked to Sam R. and others involved in the production during one of the filming dates in New York and they all said this was true. Sam R. always tinkers a little with the comic to film translation, but he knows what he’s doing. In my opinion it so that the general (read: non-comic reading) audience that this is a really different incarnation of the symbiote. And the fact that the suit looks much more menacing on Eddie Brock/Venom will really drive home the hatred that both the symbiote and E.B. have for Parker. It makes sense to me.
June 29th, 2006 at 4:13 pm
And seeing the suit become more menacing on Brock will really drive home the hatred that both the symbiote and Brock have for Parker
June 29th, 2006 at 4:14 pm
sorry about the double post. I didn’t think it took it the first time
June 29th, 2006 at 5:05 pm
This movie is gonna rule.
June 29th, 2006 at 7:52 pm
I see what is being talked about, the color shining through the black, but I figure this:
Consider that Spidey is looking at a color reflection of himself in the glass… to film this, they either had to have the black costume being filmed and colored the reflection with SFX… or filmed in a colored costume and blackened it on the computer… now which do you think would be easier? Therefore, I deduce that perhaps this is just a mere editing mishap.
June 29th, 2006 at 9:40 pm
Is it not possible that in this particular scene the red and blue was just digitaly altered to look as black as possible. I mean we are looking at a reflection you know… the scene was probably filmed with the Red & Blue and later they altered the costume. Makes sense to me.
June 29th, 2006 at 9:44 pm
Sorry Zac
Didn’t read your post before i posted.
Totally agree!
June 30th, 2006 at 12:16 am
The new costume is black, look closer in the “lighted” image and you see the reflection is also brighter, it’s picking up back lighting so it gives it the effect of not so black. Remember the symbiote is from Promethium, the blackest material in existence, so the thing is gonna be black as pitch.
June 30th, 2006 at 2:19 am
Forget about the color and everything it is supposed to be as a divers suit, black as pitch. But it is the suit the Spidey wears in the movies but dyed in black, I still don’t understand why…
If you see the trailer there is a part where Peter tears his suit like it was made of rubber, but the symbiote its supposed to be THE suit so I went … WTF!?.
At least they got the Sandman very classic.
I agree with the other poster WTF with
Franco suit it has to be the WORST Gobling suit I have EVER seen.
And Gwen back from the dead…???
June 30th, 2006 at 8:18 am
I think the symbiote is trying to hide and Peter doesn’t know that it’s taking him over. When Peter see’s his reflection, nothing about the symbiote is revealed.
June 30th, 2006 at 8:32 am
The Symboite costume has always had a blue tint to it. look at the old comics or something its their. even on venom hes usually black and blue
June 30th, 2006 at 9:16 am
You know, I’m a big Captain America fan, and I notice that the cap that’s being created,(i.e: action figures, video games), is more or less the Ultimates version; noticing that the wings on his head are fading slowly into the past and a star “patch” on his shoulder is taking place. I’m a tradional Cap fan, but I don’t complain or debate whether it’s good or not to use the Ultimates version over the 616, I just live with it. To watch a Spider-Man TRAILER for 10 TIMES over to figure out if the costume is black or not, and figure out that the costume isn’t the tradional symboite costume sounds a bit ridiculous.
The James Bond franchise went away from the books as the movies kept coming out, and who’s complaining about that?
June 30th, 2006 at 9:37 am
as far as Zac’s speculation: there’s no reason to have to digitally change the color of either the suits (reflection or not) …because the shot is CG …I mean, do you really think they shot that extream, upsidedown close-up truck back to full-shot reveal on a green-screen stage? …you know that, even in the first two films, the digital stunt-double was often used
June 30th, 2006 at 9:42 am
Umm Gwen Is not back from the dead…she hasnt been in the movies yet. And as for the Black suit being rubber…i think from what we’ve seen elsewhere in teh trailer the symbiot is very obviously covering up the existing suit so if he were to tear off the one suit it would stand to reason that the symbiot stuck to it would go as well.
As for Haryy I think it’s a little to early yet. The shot of him on the glider looks like he only has a littel mask covering his face but his hair is completly exposed so maybe he hasnt gotten a full costume yet. There is a scene where a pumpkin bomb explodes in his face and my guess is that is why he has the little mask to cover up the damage.
GREAT TRAILER overall!!
June 30th, 2006 at 9:42 am
Who watched the trailer ten times to figure anything out? I watched the thing over and over again because I’m totally geeking out about it! I just happened to notice the coloring thing and thought it was intersting nerd-discussion fodder.
June 30th, 2006 at 11:26 am
Light is reflecting in the costume, of course is black
June 30th, 2006 at 11:44 am
I look at it like this, we all wanted Venom. There giving us Venom. Stop nit-picking and whinning weather or not the suit is black or purple. So what it’s not traditional. Is it really gonna matter that much? This movie is gonna frickin rock!!! Have Sam Rammi and Co. let you down yet. Besides we’re lucky to have a teaser this early anyway. So just be enjoy it and stop complaining.
June 30th, 2006 at 1:05 pm
Looking at that image with the reflection, and I wondered one thing… Is it possible that the movie version of Venom won’t cast a reflection, as well as not setting off Spidey’s Spider-Sense???
That would explain why Spider-Man sees his classic costume in his reflection, despite being covered in the Venom Symbiote.
June 30th, 2006 at 1:45 pm
Black, Blue, Purple…Who Cares? Quit being such a damn nerd and be happy that Venom’s in the big screen
June 30th, 2006 at 1:56 pm
Yeah. Quit being a nerd and get excited for Venom.
What?
June 30th, 2006 at 6:30 pm
Wow all i gotta say is too much time on your hands. I watched the movie trailer like 20 times too but i was too busy drooling to notice any possible mistakes. But as with most movies there most likely will be. I didn’t really like the new suit when i first saw it being a comic nerd I too wanted to see the traditional black spidey costume, but after seeing it in the trailer (black or not, white spider or not) i thought it kicked major butt. It is close enough to the black symbiote costume to keep me happy. My point on the bell tower issue and him ripping the costume like rubber is that the symbiote is weaked by load noises like the bell tower, maybe this noise also interferes with it’s ability to morph as it usually does. Not only that but upon watching the trailer oe more time to be sure…It still looks like spidey is having a helluva time ripping it off in the first place. These debated issues aside we all know what the real driving force behind the spidey franchise is…Peter Parker. When i read spider-man i could care less what happens to Spidey, I care about what happens to Peter Parker…Yes I want to see him look as faithful to the comics as possible. But as far as Peter Parker is concerned despite what some of us think about costumes Sam Raimi has not failed to deliver. I’m more interested in the movie ‘feeling’ like a spider-man movie not ‘looking’ exactly like one. My only hope and the only way i think this movie will not make me happy is if the venom story is rushed into this sequel. This movie should set the cards in place and the 4th movie (lets cross fingers that contracts are reached)should be venom. Am I the only one that thinks that Gobby #2, Sandman, and Venom are too much to cram into this installment?? Hopefully the very last scene of the movie will unveil Venom. ps, lets be glad Sam opted not to use the newest spidey costume (red and gold one)
June 30th, 2006 at 6:51 pm
The name calling should stop. You’re all nerds.
June 30th, 2006 at 7:06 pm
June 30th, 2006 at 10:49 pm
I agree lets just be happy to see Venom. Even though Topher Grace as Venom is stupid.Church as Sandman is awesome and just drop Green Goblin altogether and go with Hobgoblin.Just scrap him and bring in the Lizard they have already shown Dr. Conner so lets see the Lizard I,m tired of G.Goblin and MJ shes really bogging the flicks down.Anyway as far as the suit for Venom goes I have yet let me repeat I HAVE YET TO SEE A SUPER HERO MOVIE TRUE TO THE COMIC!^You got over the fact that spiderman shot webs out of his wrists(dumb)Hulk grew to 15 ft.(dumb)Dr. Doom getting his powers with the FF(dumb)Bullseye with an actual bullseye on his forehead & Daredevil getting his powers from a chemical spill.Iceman as a kid even though he’s as old as jean grey cyclops angel beast, 2 different shadow cats Toad with his shooting tongue. Blade may have been the only faithful adaptation.And as far as too many characters look at Xmen 3 way to many characters with 5 second parts.I’m actually looking forward to Ghost Rider.And how does the Hulks pants stay on after he shrinks and spiderman’s feet stick to walls with boots?
June 30th, 2006 at 10:50 pm
is there a place i can download this trailer because the off. site wont let me watch it
July 1st, 2006 at 8:25 am
I dont know if you can download movies from this place but I know you can watch it from youtube.com
But some of the trailers are fake. -_-”
July 1st, 2006 at 8:34 am
I think they will wait till movie 4 for venom. I think they will leave a cliffhanger at the end of this one where you would see venom. For now, i think it is mainly about inner conflict
July 1st, 2006 at 10:54 am
u dont have to introduce venom at the end to make it interesting , u can have all the villains in the movie, hell use the black costume to prolly take care of sandman , and venom comes in towards middle of movie, maybe good ending would be introduce cassidy i believe the name is, dont actually have carnage but mention his name or something like batman begins did, the fans want venom, so why wait for another movie, thats stupid, make this movie be able to stand on its own as one of the best, dont hold back.
July 1st, 2006 at 11:45 am
you cant tell who is the symbiote spiderman or who’s venom. so who is who?
July 1st, 2006 at 1:54 pm
In the cartoon he toses his spidy costum into the dirty longery thingy and then hes in his pj’s in the dream So since hes wearing the Spidey suit in the movie it just blends in with the costume
July 1st, 2006 at 1:58 pm
Perhaps I’m the only one, but could the symbiote be manipulating Peter Parker. I think this last shot occurs after he ripped off the symbiote. You see in the trailer as it reattaches itself to him while Parker is asleep. All of the comics, cartoons, and videos portray the symbiote as being intelligent. The symbiote learns and evolves; it’s offspring carnage shows that it can change over time. Unfortunately Sam Raimi won’t introduce carnage or he will have a cameo at the end of the movie - maybe Spiderman 4! A comic nerd like myself can only hope.
If you want to be disappointed then be irritated by the fact it emulates his previous costume. In the comic series the symbiote is part of Peter Parker and forms the costume according to Peter’s memories. I miss the days when comic writers developed intelligent villians; a well-rounded villian makes you question your loyalty. It will be fun to see Peter Parker’s struggle between the Sandman, Hobgoblin, symbiote, and his eventual marriage to Mary Jane. Oh how the mighty will fall, it should be a wonderful ride.
July 1st, 2006 at 3:11 pm
Maybe its just me, but damnit! I want the “traditional” black costume, not some spray painted BS. Im sure the movie is going to be great, but they F’ed up on the goblin suit the first movie, why do this to spidey? If anyone remembers, the scene with spidey looks in “mirror” and sees himself is similar to the cartoon scene. Does anyone remember that?
July 1st, 2006 at 5:59 pm
I f you can remember in the comics the symbiote was never affected by spider mans spider sense. This could also be another one of those things where the symbiote’s reflection just cannot be seen. Like a vampire, which it kind of is.
July 1st, 2006 at 6:01 pm
by the way there is going to be a fourht unannounced villian also.
July 1st, 2006 at 9:55 pm
All of you shit nit pickers are lame as fuck. Even this article is lame. Of course the costume will be black. God dammit it’s black. It’s fucking black. Get over it. Whoever said it was blue in the comics is mostly right. It’s always hued with blue and purple. You can’t show depth with a pure black character in print. Jesus. Can’t believe I just typed that. Get fucking real. It’s a black costume. Remove this lame article.
July 2nd, 2006 at 1:28 pm
JaJaJaJa, You folks of the “no reflection/vampire-like theory” … Read some Comics please,Ask for the “Saga of the Alien Costume”, you will notice a similar drawing is in there as is in animations based on this saga because it was sused since then to describe the two different beings “living” on the same body, Spidey and the Alien.
Is just a symbol as Comic books use illustrations to trasmit feelings to readers… You will see in the movie that the costume has reflection when Peter looks and examines it on a mirror… As in Comics.
Anyway I have asked myself too if the costume is “liquid” or “fluid” as in comics, I am not refering to the symbiote itself as it is shown on the trailer moving, but to the costume and if it does changes its appeareance because if it does, whats the point of having it under the clothes?
Ah, and by the way, ON Subject, I think the costume is indeed Black but it reflects light and its colors, so you need to know what building or thing is in front to know why the costume may look as if it has another shades of color.
This Movie will be way Cool, and will mark again a new standard for comic book super heoes based films to come.
July 2nd, 2006 at 8:30 pm
Seriously does this really matter????? “Oh Dear God in Heaven, did you see the symbiote costume isn’t black.”???? For real,this is the topic you came up with. So what now,the producers of the movie have made such a fashion faux pas that you aren’t going to plunk down your 9 bucks to go see this movie??? Please this kind of fan boy nit picking is the reason the hot chick in school thought you were a dork.
July 2nd, 2006 at 9:30 pm
Steve, Adam - it’s pretty obvious from your venomous (ha!!) remarks that neither of you actually read the initial post here. I’m not complaining or nit picking about the color at all - quite the opposite, rather. I’m intrigued by it and the potential storyteling aspects it may bring with it. If it’s just a quick CG job showing up in the HD trailer, that’s cool, but I kinda like seeing people geek out and speculate over this sort of stuff.
July 3rd, 2006 at 8:17 am
you all are fucking nerds. peter parker will have another love triangle or should i say………love square. and the fourth villian is SPOILER ALERT! mysterio! and the ring you saw was for mj but its going to end up in a pawn shop. beacuse another villian is going to fuck his life up again. and mj is going to flirt with harry. another reason the suit wants him because of his dark side rage. and stop bieng fucking dumb people. harry is wearing the dumb mask because his face got blown off buy a fucking attacker or should i say……..spider-man! and harry wears the dumb mask because he thinks he’s diffrent from his father. but eventualloy harry makes the right decision andjoins spidey but ulitimately dies and aunt may dies. and the final battle is between spidy alongside harry, versus sandman and venom.
July 3rd, 2006 at 10:33 am
Ok, I went back and re-read the post, and you are right I read it the wrong way. My apologies.
July 3rd, 2006 at 1:27 pm
This movie looks awesome….Cant’t Wait
July 3rd, 2006 at 3:53 pm
Okay, Steve here. Yeah, I re-read the post. And what I’m saying is, NO, in the movie there will be no plot points related to the suit being off-black. IT’S FUCKING BLACK. You photoshop-effected a shot from the trailer that MADE IT LOOK NOT AS BLACK, MAYBE REDISH. There’s no photoshopping going on during the actual movie while you’re sitting there, so for all intents and purposes, it’s FUCKING BLACK! Hence, I said, get this article off of here! You’re not going to see EW photoshopping scenes enquiring about whether or not the suit is pure black. Geezus. Go back, read YOUR original post, then RE-READ mine, then RE-READ YOUR RESPONSE, and then re-read this in lower case as I take a deep breath and wonder once again what the fuck I am doing here.
By the way, I’ll continue after quoting you:
I’m not complaining or nit picking about the color at all - quite the opposite, rather. I’m intrigued by it and the potential storyteling aspects it may bring with it. If it’s just a quick CG job showing up in the HD trailer, that’s cool, but I kinda like seeing people geek out and speculate over this sort of stuff.
Me again- A) You ARE nitpicking, you photoshopped the shot.
b) you’re NOT concerned with potential storytelling potential but WATCHING PEOPLE respond to your bullshit. Fucking freelance “journalists”.c) Hey Hollywood, what kind of potential stories would an off-black costume bring? Jameson- “Is Spider-man black, red and blue, or somewhere in between?” Oh yeah. Keep it up.
July 3rd, 2006 at 4:30 pm
Um, wow, Steve - you\’re quite hostile.
I\’m not picking a single nit. I noticed something I thought was interesting, and my first thought was \”I wonder if that\’s just a stylistic choice or if it\’s got something to do with the symbiote storyline.\” It wasn\’t until after I posted that I\’d even considered it might just be an early visual effect that wasn\’t totally right.
As for my using Photoshop to create the color difference, nope, didn\’t happen. The first screengrab - didn\’t touch it, the second, I used P-shop to increase the contrast so it was easier to see the color difference on all computers. That\’s all. I sincerely wanted to - and still would like to - have a fun conversation about the flick.
In short, you\’re ascibing an awful lot of malice and intent to troublemake where I assure you, none exists. I, on the other hand, am sorry to see that some folks have such an inescapable inability to operate online with common civility.
July 3rd, 2006 at 5:01 pm
Stephen is an old friend of mine. While he can be quite a jackass with very bad taste, I assure you, he is without Mailice. He’s not a huckster photoshopping things to create news. In fact, you can recreate exactly what he describes yourself by boosting the contrast.
Does it mean anything as far as the movie goes? Maybe, maybe not. Could be a stylistic thing, could be unfinished effects, could be the color interpretation of the costume filtered through a blow up of a weak NTSC colorspace. Could be anything. That’s the point of the article. Speculation on what it might or might not be.
July 3rd, 2006 at 8:25 pm
I think this scene in the trailer is metaphorical and will not be in the actual film.
July 4th, 2006 at 4:00 pm
“As for my using Photoshop to create the color difference, nope, didn\’t happen. The first screengrab - didn\’t touch it, the second, I used P-shop to increase the contrast so it was easier to see the color difference on all computers. That\’s all. I sincerely wanted to - and still would like to - have a fun conversation about the flick.”
That’s all I was talking about. Do you guys take nothing literally? By “photoshopped” how am I supposed to know you just adjusted the contrast? That’s all I was saying. You altered it. The contrast in the theater won’t look like that.
Jesus what a dang moron.
July 4th, 2006 at 6:01 pm
Steve,
You are a charmer.
July 4th, 2006 at 8:12 pm
I truely don’t care what the black costume looks like as long as it’s true that venom will look a lot different than black spidey.
Also I cannot let Dan Lopez comments go unchecked, Daredavil DID get his powers from a chemical spill, many times it is seen that the angrier the Hulk gets the larger he can grow, and if you are gonna complain about Iceman’s age but praise Blade you should be aware that Deacon Frost should have been one of the oldest vampires not that punk Steven Dorff. If you’re gonna come in complaining about accuracy to the source material you better know your lore. I truely cannot believe you would be brave enough to post something in a comic nerd showdown and not know the origin of Daredevil.
July 5th, 2006 at 10:43 am
Last post! Sweet!
July 5th, 2006 at 11:58 am
this movie is gunna kiss ass stop hissin about it damn
July 5th, 2006 at 1:19 pm
Hi, I haven’t read any of the other comments, but had a question: Does Spider-Man wear the black costume in Spider-Man 3, and if so, is it really black, or does it seem to have muddled highlights that become apparent when adjusting the contrast of still picture from the trailer? Thanks to anyone who can answer.
July 6th, 2006 at 7:39 am
lol, wow. Of course the suit isn’t absolutely black, it’d be very boring to watch on the big screen. I think it looks pretty cool with the night sky reflected in it. It’s obvious that the suit is black, but if you know anything about art, you have to give it something to pull it out of the background, thus, making it more reflective than the one in the comic. Movie should kick butt, just hope all the villians don’t weigh down a good story. As for the reflection in the window, it’s a metaphor for his dual nature.
March 8th, 2007 at 11:10 pm
all of u shut up it is a black costume but the blue parts of the orginal costume of spidey is super dark blue ok so shut up for god sake
April 1st, 2007 at 4:18 pm
In spider-man 3 carnage is crazy
May 10th, 2007 at 11:49 am
I heard that symboite is real. Is it?
May 10th, 2007 at 5:03 pm
Yes, the symbiote is real, just like the hover boards in Back to the Future 2: Back to the future.
May 14th, 2007 at 7:18 am
can people talk a about spider man 4
May 14th, 2007 at 8:49 am
Does everyone think there’ll be a SM4? My guess is there’s like a 70-75% chance at this point that they will.
May 15th, 2007 at 3:50 am
I agree with Duncan. I don’t think it’s a done deal, but if it makes $$, then I’m sure they’ll do it. Though I’d imagine Sam Raimi and the entire cast has to be a little sick of Spidey by this point.
May 29th, 2007 at 8:11 pm
i find it funny that some of u guys r getting so angry about it and calling ppl nerds. if they r such nerds, then y the hell r u on this site lookin at what they r saying? if u judgmental close-minded pricks are so much better than these “nerds”,than u wouldnt be on the computer maliciously trash talkng these comic book buffs. its u guys who need to get a life and stop stomping on ppls joy.