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THE AMAZING SPIDER-MAN 2: Paul Giamatti is Rhino, Felicity Jones cast

Paul Giamatti Rhino

Paul Giamatti, Felicity Jones cast in The Amazing Spider-Man 2. Paul Giamatti and Felicity Jones’ casting in The Amazing Spider-Man 2 (2014) answers the questions of who will play Rhino / Aleksei Mikhailovich Sytsevich (Paul Giamatti) in the Mark Webb directed film. “Giamatti has publicly expressed his desire to play the character in the past.” Felicity Jones’ role remains unspecified.

On Rhino:

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The character of Rhino made his debut in 1966, as a Soviet thug named Aleksei Mikhailovich Sytsevich whose special suit [he volunteered to participate in an experiment that bonded a super strong polymer to his skin] granted him superhuman levels of strength, speed, and durability. His name comes from the costume, which features a deadly horn on top. Rhino has become a more sympathetic character in recent years, even allying with Spider-Man.

Speculation on Rhino and his origin in the first The Amazing Spider-Man film from visual evidence in the film and his appearance in the video game adaptation:

Unlike all of the other cross-species, which were created after Curt Connors terrorized the city as the Lizard, Rhino was the result of a pet project of Connors’ direct superior, Rajit Ratha. As Connors and Peter Parkerworked to develop the serum that would ultimately turn Connors into the Lizard, Ratha applied what he had learned through Connors’ research to black-market dealings. Without the knowledge or consent of his superiors at Oscorp, Ratha forcefully enlisted the help of Dr. Michael Morbius, threatening to end the reclusive biochemist’s career if he refused to help. Morbius reluctantly complied, applying the rhinoceros DNA with which Ratha supplied him to a cross-species serum similar in nature to Connors’ own for the Lizard.

Ratha’s next step was to test the serum, and his underworld clients were all too happy to providce his oblivious human test subject: a low-level thug named Aleksei Sytsevich. If it worked, the mafia would have a new weapon on its hands; if not… no great loss.

After and excruciatingly painful transformation, Sytsevich was now a hybrid of man and rhinoceros, ready to tear apart anything in his path – Ratha’s clients would be pleased. Unfortuanetly for the corrupted businessman, however, his own life was taken by the Lizard before the transaction could be completed. Morbius would soon claim that he created Rhino entirely of his own volition, with help from Connors’ notes. Also, knowing that animalizing a human crossed an ethical line even at Oscorp, Morbius furthered the lie to suggest that Rhino was in fact originally a rhinoceros that was infused with human DNA. Only Sytsevich knows otherwise.

After the breakout of all the cross-species at Oscorp, the Rhino was found in a parking lot, surrounded by cars and trucks: things he loved to smash.

Remember the photo of Rajit Ratha in Dr. Connor’s secret lab, a picture that ended up being from a The Amazing Spider-Man deleted scene or an alternate scene? Since the scene was not in the regular cut of the film (I did not believe there is an extended or Director’s Cut of the film), Ratha is technically still alive and can appear in The Amazing Spider-Man 2, those bolstering the possibility of this plot-line.

On the future of Webb’s Spider-Man universe:

The addition of Rhino to The Amazing Spider-Man 2‘s rogues gallery suggests that the series could be building up to a showdown against the supervillain group he Sinister Six in the third film. The Amazing Spider-Man 2‘s Rhino and Electro (Foxx) and The Amazing Spider-Man‘s Lizard (Rhys Ifans) have all been part of the group at various points of the comic book timeline. In addition, DeHaan’s upcoming character Harry Osborne is the son of the Green Goblin, and in one comic storyline eventually becomes the Green Goblin himself. If he suits up as a villain, that leaves just two more characters to be introduced in the third film to potentially round out the group.

The Amazing Spider-Man 2 also stars Jamie Foxx, (we wrote about his casting here: The Amazing Spider-Man 2 (2014): Jamie Foxx, Dane DeHaan Cast), Dane DeHaan, Andrew Garfield, Emma Stone, and Shailene Woodley (we wrote about her casting: The Amazing Spider-Man 2: Shailene Woodley cast, may get Divergent).

Watch Paul Giamatti say he would love to play the Rhino in a Spider-Man film and leave your thoughts on the his and Felicity Jones casting in The Amazing Spider-Man 2 in the comments section below. The Amazing Spider-Man 2 will be released in US theaters through Columbia Pictures on May 2, 2014. For more The Amazing Spider-Man 2 photos, videos, and information, visit our Spider-Man Page, subscribe to us by Email, follow us on Twitter or on Facebook.

Source: Latinoreview, Amazingspiderman.wikia, Wikipedia, Slashfilm

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Rollo Tomasi

Rollo Tomasi is a Connecticut-based film critic, TV show critic, news, and editorial writer. He will have a MFA in Creative Writing from Columbia University in 2025. Rollo has written over 700 film, TV show, short film, Blu-ray, and 4K-Ultra reviews. His reviews are published in IMDb's External Reviews and in Google News. Previously you could find his work at Empire Movies, Blogcritics, and AltFilmGuide. Now you can find his work at FilmBook.
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