The main topic of discussion back then was his Kevin Bacon-featuring micro budget thriller,Cop Car.
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Err, sort of.
[Laughs]
Yeah!
Ive always pre-vized my movies, just on my own.
I should really read those press notes, see what else theyre saying.
Is the film locked, or are you still fiddling with it?
No, its done.
Up to the very last second, yeah.
Yeah, we saw a few scenes.
The introduction of Michael Keaton…
And Peters behind the scenes footage?
Yeah, we saw that.
Thats another thing it says in the notes actually.
And Im like, It looks like he actually did make a film on a phone!
But Ive read that it was also your persistence that impressed them.
Yeah, I didnt think I was gonna get the job, at all.
Then I just, kind of, bothered them.
And everyone at Sony.
To show people the tone I was imagining.
And I storyboarded a bunch of sequences that I sent to them, and just…
I thought it was going to be really good practise for pitching to big studios.
I really didnt think I was gonna get it, until the very very end.
And how close have you ended up to that tone you wanted?
I havent gone back and watched that thing that I made, but I think its pretty close.
I was really clear upfront about how I saw the movie.
And everyone was on board, so I feel like we captured that tone.
We actually spoke on the phone once
Oh, we did?
Yeah, when they were doing the UK DVD ofCop Car.
Oh, no way!
Yeah, it was towards the end of 2015
Was I there?
I was at Marvel, probably.
I think you said you were in the trenches.
[Laughs] Yeah, oh thats crazy.
One of the things we spoke about was the first lines ofCop Carbeing wiener and boobs
Yes.
And you described that as real freedom, of being able to put that in your film.
In a way, I didnt have that same sort of responsibility to set up anything for later movies.
But not really knowing if hes ready or not yet.
So, I dont know.
I got to do kind of everything I wanted to.
Which is amazing, and surprising.
I mean, I watched a lot of action sequences, you know?
And I had pre-vized the shootout inCop Car, picked all my angles.
But I had done it all myself.
Now, I had like a pre-viz team who could do that all for me.
So, it was great to work with them.
You get a couple of rough drafts first, before you actually have to shoot it.
Speaking of the visual language, there was some web-slinging in the footage we saw today.
Yeah, I wanted it to always be shot as if it was real, you know?
So, its really cool to do that [the swoopy camera].
I always call it the Peter Jackson camera moves, where the camera is going like ten thousand miles.
And in terms of the script, I think theres three different pairs of writers credited on it.
What kind of changed when you and Christopher Ford did your draft?
The first draft was really fun and funny, and sort of established the broad strokes of the movie.
And then, whats nice as the director is you could write exactly what you wanna shoot.
You know, its all a little bit flexible when you get to set.
You try things out, and you just need someone to be writing while youre shooting.
And yeah, that was cool.
I could just go to sleep.
[Laughs]
And what is yours and Fords relationship like as writers?
This is your third feature together, so has the dynamic changed much since you were onClown?
We do it the same way.
And we let that sink in for a minute, and then we got back to work.
Did you have much say about what went into those trailers?
Would you have wanted to rein them in a bit more?
Well, if it was up to me, I wouldnt have revealed anything.
Like, I wish my movie could be just, only, a series of complete surprises.
But I can say that theres still a lot more to be revealed than whats in the trailers.
You know, weve made a pretty dense movie.
So, yeah, theres more to it than just what you see in the trailers, for sure.
Like, to show how a super villain could emerge from that base level of the universe.
Like, showing a regular kid becoming a superhero and then showing a regular guy becoming a super villain.
And there was just this really cool opportunity where hes the Vulture, right?
So hes scavenging things.
And, err, that made sense for him as the Vulture, being this sort of scavenger.
And how far into it, breaking the story, was it decided to put Tony into it?
Because hes like the embodiment of the penthouse level MCU, as you say.
He was always a part of it.
Like, just sort of the grand ambition to be like that someday.
And when you start thinking about it as a whole world like that, it gets really fascinating.
That would be crazy!
[Laughs] No, not really.
I mean, I like to just think about it one movie at a time.
And I think its a little…
I want to make this movie good, and work on its own.
Like, I want this movie to be its own good movie.
Well youd feel jibbed if a movie was only setting up things for the future.
You want it to be a good movie, and a satisfying experience on its own.
And be its own self-contained thing.
When we spoke on the phone, you talked a bit about the comics that inspired you onHomecoming.
We talked a bit aboutUltimate Spider-Man, and I think you mentionedSpider-Man Loves Mary Jane.
Yeah, I read everything.
All the different universes, and things like that.
You know, theres so much, like since 1962!
I know theres so many stories in there to draw from.
Have you been in those talks when theyve been happening?
No, not at all.
Like, thats its own Sony project.
That doesnt, right now, overlap with the Marvel universe at all.
There hasnt been any talks about that.
I do know Ruben Fleischer, whos doingVenom.
Which is him and Tom Hardy its gonna be crazy.
I dont know anything about it, so Im just as curious as you are.
Theres also the animated film, right, that Lord and Miller are making?
Yeah, with Miles Morales as Spider-Man.
I mean, the Spider-Verse plotlines are so cool, and you could do so much.
But yeah, my attitude is one movie at a time.
I dont want to get ahead of myself.
BeforeHomecomingcame up, you had a couple of other films in development Urban ExplorersandBarn Man.
Are they still happening?
Yeah, I hope so.
I mean, this [Homecoming] has been absolutely my whole life since it started.
Um, and I havent really thought about what Im doing after this at all.
That would be good!
Theres kind of not that much detail about those two films out there.
Could you give us like a sentence about each of them?
No, I want to keep them totally secret.
I want to keep them totally secret so I dont give anything away.
Just in case it all totally changes.
[The indie horrorClownwas Watts directorial debut.]
And just really make it, in the way thatAlienswas an action movie, do the same thing.
That would be great.
That ones all up to Bob Weinstein.
Oh, that would be so good.
[Laughs] Yeah, it would be fun, right?
Just a bunch of marines shooting up some clowns.
Did he give you any advice going intoHomecoming?
I did, and it was great.
It was great advice.
You got a Stan Lee cameo?
Oh man, it wouldnt a Marvel movie without a Stan Lee cameo.
And is it one that you shot?
Because I know that [Guardians Of The Galaxydirector] James Gunn shot a bunch of them at once.
Oh yeah, I shot it, while James was shooting his.
It was all, Stans in town!
Lets shoot his cameo!
Thats great, I look forward to seeing it.
Yeah, yeah, its fun.
The things hes done, its amazing.
Spider-Mans always supposed to be part of this universe, and not just on his own, you know?
Its just so great seeing him interact with other heroes.
Yeah, its so fun to watch, you know?
Jon Watts, thank you very much!
