Spider-Man Spinoff Jackpot Movie in the Works

Sony’s post-Venom slate features some interesting choices from the Spider-Man universe, and could eventually include Jackpot.

Jackpot’s not a name you often think of when you think of big spinoff possibilities, but it seems Sony has different ideas. In a new discussion with Variety, Sony alludes to the fact that they are developing films based on Spider-Man characters like Silk and Nightwatch, as well as Jackpot. The report also makes a mention of the fact that the character is a hero in her mid-forties, something not really reflected in the current superhero landscape.

For those who aren’t familiar, Jackpot (real name Sara Ehret) was created by Dan Slott and Phil Jimenez in 2007, though she will be defined more by Marc Guggenheim and Salvador Larroca in subsequent appearances. The character of Jackpot has also been utilized by two different people. The first was Sara Ehret, who debuted as Jackpot but quickly gave up the title to another person, Alana Jobson. Eventually, Ehret would return to the role after the tragic death of Jobson.

Jackpot hasn’t been a big player in the comics in recent years, but the story following the two characters does have potential in regards to a film. In the comics, Ehret gets her powers after accidentally becoming infected with her own experimental gene therapy, and the lab is a subsidiary of Oscorp. She is pregnant at the time and ends up in a coma, but awakens and is able to have the baby. She discovers she has powers after defending her family from falling debris from a Spider-Man fight and decides to become a hero.

Here’s the thing: the story takes a big diversion from the typical superhero story when the identity changes hands. When Ehret exits the superhero life, her identity is purchased by Alana Jobson, but as Spider-Man eventually learns, she obtained powers from taking several drugs — including Mutant Growth Hormone — and actually dies as a result of the drugs in a battle alongside Spider-Man. Ehret eventually takes the identity back, but the rest of the story also has its share of tragedy.

This could actually work, provided that the right creative team gets ahold of it. Sony mentions in the report that it is open to making more mature films, and this could be the perfect project for that new stance.