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Chris Cooper joins Amazing Spider-Man 2 as Norman Osborn/The Green Goblin

Feb. 27, 2013by: Eric Walkuski

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As if Peter Parker didn't have enough to worry about already...

THE AMAZING SPIDER-MAN 2, which already counts Jamie Foxx's Electro and Paul Giamatti's Rhino among its villains, has added a new bad guy (or future bad guy) in the form of Norman Osborn, who will be portrayed by Oscar winner Chris Cooper. Not easy to fill Willem Dafoe's shoes, but Cooper is rather terrific casting.

Chances are Norman won't become his alter-ego, The Green Goblin, in this installment, as those other two super-villains are more than enough for one movie - at least, that's what we're hoping Marc Webb and company are thinking. SPIDER-MAN movies don't fare very well when there are three villains hanging around.

Of course, Osborn is a central character in Spider-Man/Peter's life, starting off as a mentor and brilliant industrialist before transforming into a pumpkin bomb-hurling madman and arguably Spidey's greatest nemesis. Gwen Stacy, you had better watch your back...

THE AMAZING SPIDER-MAN 2 is currently in production in New York City, as recent set-pics have proven. Andrew Garfield, Emma Stone and Sally Field will reprise their roles from the first film, while Dane DeHaan (as Norman's son, Harry), Foxx, Giamatti, Shailene Woodley - and now Cooper - all appear for the first time. The film will wrap you in its web on MAY 2, 2014.

Extra Tidbit:	What do you think of the casting of Chris Cooper as Norman Osborn?

Source:	THR

Tags:	2014, action, Adventure, Alex Kurtzman, Andrew Garfield, Chris Cooper, comic book, Dane DeHaan, Emma Stone, jamie foxx, Marc Webb, Martin Sheen, Roberto Orci, Sally Field, Shailene Woodley, The Amazing Spider-man 2

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TeoAgete

12:50AM on 03/01/2013

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He's great, but he's nowhere near as fucking terrifying as Willem Dafoe. That said, I'm excited

gr689

5:25PM on 02/28/2013

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Bad Feeling...

I really like Chris Cooper..he can play a great bad guy and is a terrific actor. That all aside, I'm getting bad feelings about this next Spiderman. I think we may be dealing with too much studio involvement again. Everyone knows that when the studio steps in and starts changing too many things, the movie falls apart and does so without grace...very much like Spiderman 3. The costume change seems like the first step in the wrong direction; I'm all for costume upgrades and everything but they changed the costume to exactly, minus the eyes, what it was in the original Spiderman movies. That's like watching a Nolan Batman movie and suddenly Batman is wearing the original Keaton costume. They again may try to squeeze too many characters into the movie. Also, TAS just came out on Bluray and in a few months they are going to finish photography on the second movie? Did someone say RUSHED?? no, well it is. IK, the costume needed some tweaking, but it was too much to change it to the original, just too much. I bet they also used the original costume creator to make it, again not a big deal but its just too much of the same thing. There are new pics of the costume in action that haven't hit Joblo yet, from the set. That's probably why they quickly released an official image. Dont know if we can give a link but I'll try. [link]

> 1 Reply

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DareDevil

6:03PM on 02/28/2013

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If Sony goes a year without starting production on the Spider-Man films the rights revert back to Marvel. But the studios know if they make a crappy movie and it grosses less than TASM there's a pretty good chance Marvel gets the rights back, so Sony understands how important it is to make a good well received Spider-Man movie, if they will succeed, time will tell?

retlaw

3:52PM on 02/28/2013

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Nice choice

And good they already put him in the mix, now they can slowly bring in his character and also slowly put in his decline, first let him manipulate people and do some damage without the suit but more on the background, maybe at the end of part 3 bring in the goblin.

Desh Bouksani

1:09PM on 02/28/2013

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Chris Cooper is so demanding, such a strong actor, and he'll do great. He was great in The Bourne Identity and Syriana. Love this guy.

machinelovers

11:50AM on 02/28/2013

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john laroche !!! awesome!

Can Ispeak To Ken

-9

10:59AM on 02/28/2013

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Good actor but... they just went for a Willem Dafoe look-a-like. Folks can talk trash about the Raimi's films all they want but the bottom line is, the reboot keeps going back to the trilogy as a textbook.

> 2 Replies

DoB

11:53AM on 02/28/2013

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How the fuck does Chris Cooper look like Willem DaFoe? That he's a white male?

In addition, how has this series gone back to the Raimi films at all? They both feature Spider-Man, which, I will grant you, is kind of a rip off, but other than that?

Can Ispeak To Ken

4:15PM on 02/28/2013

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Where have you been? Have you not seen the latest updates? They've dropped the spidey suit used in the first one and went with one that resembles the Raimi suit. So that's 1 example. 2.) The reboot contains another subway fight scene. Why choose the subway setting and not a different location? Because we all know how cool that shit was in Spidey 2. (3.) There's a deleted scene in the reboot that mimics the scene where Parker-Tobey tries to see MJ at her show but is denied entrance by Bruce Campbell. 4.) The reboot contains a scene where once again, Parker is trying to save a person that's dangling from the edge of a bridge. It's MJ in Raimi's version and it's a kid in a car in the reboot. ......But you know.. the reboot did have its differences. Such as that awful plot device sequence with the cranes.

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backtothecritic

11:54PM on 02/27/2013

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This is great casting!

jgt24

10:47PM on 02/27/2013

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YES!

This is an excellent casting choice. The Amazing Spider-Man had a some issues, but overall I enjoyed it, especially Andrew Garfield and Emma Stone. Now add Chris Cooper to the mix? I'm definitely looking forward to part 2.

Stratburst

9:55PM on 02/27/2013

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This is amazing casting

Chris Cooper is one of the best actors working today; I've always been impressed every time I've seen him onscreen. I hope they're putting him in as a cameo (Peter Parker's best friend's dad) and waiting to make him Green Goblin in the next movie.

anomaly7

8:56PM on 02/27/2013

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I like Chris Cooper and think he will make a good Norman, but I'm not too excited about seeing Green Goblin return as a villian in part 2 or 3, whichever the case may be. The main issue I had with the first movie is it really didn't distinguish itself enough from Raimi's film(s), and using the same villains isn't going to help that. They already made the new suit look a lot like Raimi's. Heck, at this point I wouldn't be surprised to see Joel McHale cast as a bank teller again.

Rev. Slappy

8:54PM on 02/27/2013

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Great casting

I didn't like the Spider-man reboot at all, but I thought they did a really nice job casting it. I really liked Andrew Garfiled. Cooper is a really great actor, should kill in the role.

The_Soloist

-6

8:29PM on 02/27/2013

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Wow. Brilliant casting. Seriously, I love inspired casting and this is inspired casting. Chris Cooper is a great actor and he will do this role justice. This sequel is already better than Amazing Spider Man based off of the cast alone!

I will be at my local theater at midnight the night this comes out. Very excited.

Jedd the Jedi

7:55PM on 02/27/2013

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That's casting I can get behind. He was a terrific villain in the Muppets!

Antarius

7:20PM on 02/27/2013

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Cooper is a great actor, but every role I've seen him in he plays a subdued, down to earth kind of guy. Interested to see if he has a crazy, psychotic side to his acting ability.

studboi69

6:41PM on 02/27/2013

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Brilliant, just brilliant. This alone makes me excited for TASM2 even though I wasn't too in love with the first one. Chris Cooper just has that under-stated menace, that should be a nice departure from the scenery-chewing bug-eyed performance from Willem Dafoe.

Netforce

5:59PM on 02/27/2013

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Great casting. Now let's see if he can top Willem Dafoe's performance.

Eagle74

5:33PM on 02/27/2013

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Love it! I really believe he'll top Dafoe as the better Norman as the series progresses, mostly because he'll be in two films and not just one.

Rev. Slappy

4:37PM on 02/27/2013

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Great casting

I didn't like the Spider-man reboot at all, but I thought they did a really nice job casting it. I really liked Andrew Garfiled. Cooper is a really great actor, should kill in the role.

jackieblue62

4:26PM on 02/27/2013

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Hot damn!

Chris Cooper is one of the best actors working today. Can't wait to see what he does with Stormin' Norman. Hope the Webb series is more than a trilogy since there's so much comic history to mine from.

zombie3298

4:07PM on 02/27/2013

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NoWay

First off, Chris Cooper as Osborn, LOVE IT! He's gonna be such a great, diabolical villain.

Secondly, No way is Giamitti Rhino, I'm sorry but when you have such a great character as J.Jonah Jameson still uncasted and Paul Giamitti is listed as Rhino, Something's a miss.

Nowheredan136

3:51PM on 02/27/2013

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Chris Cooper as Osborn, yes. But as Green Goblin, not yet. Too many villains spoil the pot.

it would be a nice set up for the sequel though. I'm still hoping Lex Luthor will be in the new Superman movie, not as a villain or even a main character, but as someone who is just there, as the business man he is.

Roy Batty

3:41PM on 02/27/2013

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He'll likely become the GG at the conclusion of this film. I see Electro being the 'main' villain, Rhino in the form of a Oscorp scientist (similar to the Lizard), and Harry being Peter's only friend. Where Mary Jane fits in all this has me baffled.

SIEGE312

3:39PM on 02/27/2013

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Awesome!

Personally I think Dafoe and Malina were the two best parts of the previous trilogy, but I think Cooper will be fantastic, he's great at playing creepy and menacing (See Breach)...

Kill Billionair

3:31PM on 02/27/2013

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I just really hope that Peter Parker is less annoyingly awkward, Spider-Man less douchy and that the crane operators stay home this time.

DeejayForte

3:24PM on 02/27/2013

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IMO, Spiderman by far as the best array of villains out of any universe. Agree? GO!

> 7 Replies

Roy Batty

3:40PM on 02/27/2013

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I have to say he's second to Batman.

tearlis

3:47PM on 02/27/2013

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Batman has more memorable villains thanks to the old TV show, but they are not as tough compared to Spiderman rogue gallery, venom, doc rock, lizard (not movie version) and green goblin would eat them alive (literally in venom's case), I haven't begun to mention carnage and a few other freaks. Imagine- Venom eats Bane, get terrible indigestion and clogged colon.

kivzirrum

4:19PM on 02/27/2013

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I would also have to go for the Batman rogue's gallery. Spiderman does have some of the best villains, but Batman has THE best villains.

TheRealKalEl

5:49PM on 02/27/2013

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Def Batman, Joker, Bane, killer croc, poison ivy, riddler, two face, clay face, hush, scarecrow, the list goes on and on

Antarius

7:26PM on 02/27/2013

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Spidey definitely has the most colorful and wide variety of villians. Pick any animal and its probably thrown a punch at spidey at some point in time. Lizard, Rhino, The Vulture to name a few. But none really stand out like Batman's do. Maybe Green Goblin and Venom, but Marvel screwed Venom up years ago by trying to make him a semi good guy.

luke319

12:13AM on 02/28/2013

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I will definitely agree with you there. I'd say Spider-Man, then X-Men and then Batman. Batman's villains might be slightly better known by the general public, but a lot of them are shallow gimmicky characters (although the past decade they've done a lot to correct that). That's not to say that Spider-Man doesn't have his share of those, but as a whole I feel like they're more fully realized characters than any other character's rogues gallery.

Leadhand83

9:57AM on 02/28/2013

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I agree with you guys. Batmans villains feel more grounded and I've always loved their back story. Spidey's bad guys sit third for me, just behind the X-Men's villains.

WatchTower

+14

3:23PM on 02/27/2013

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From what I've read I'm in the minority, but I really enjoyed The Amazing Spiderman. It was a far sight better than the third Raimi installment. Regardless of if the studio is what messed Spiderman 3 up or not, The Amazing Spiderman was a better movie in my eyes.

I hope they only have one villain in the third in the series. JUST Green Goblin please.

selter666

3:17PM on 02/27/2013

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Chris Cooper, great casting. The cast for this movie is pretty good so far. I feel that Rhino will be a small villain role, kind of how Scarecrow was in The Dark Knight and The Dark Knight Rises.

cerealkiller182

3:17PM on 02/27/2013

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Great casting.

Cezar Pena

3:08PM on 02/27/2013

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Well

This sequel got cooler.
Chris Cooper is the man.

Leadhand83

3:07PM on 02/27/2013

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Mary Jane Watson, Rhino, Electro and Norman Osborn. A three hour movie wouldn't be able to fill all that character development.

LickMyLovePump.

-4

3:04PM on 02/27/2013

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Well Spider-Man 3 had 3 villains and it like totally turned out great, so this won't be a problem at all!!!

> 4 Replies

cerealkiller182

3:18PM on 02/27/2013

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If Norman is a villain. He could just be Norman for a movie.

spiderfan11

3:20PM on 02/27/2013

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Nobody said that he has to be Green Goblin in this one. Just introducing Norman to set up for the third one is the more likely scenario.

ghostman123

7:58PM on 02/27/2013

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Batman Begins had Scarcrow, Falcone and Ra's
The Dark Knight had Two-Face, The Joker and the entire Mob
The Dark Knight Rises had Bane, Talia and Catwoman

I don't hear people complaining about those movies having too many villains. Yes there was generally only one main villain, one middle villain and one very minor villain, but never just one villain.

Oh and I still have my doubts about Giamatti as Rhino, as in I think it's merely a rumor that people are stating as fact. With Felicity Jones recently cast as a mystery role, I'm going to guess that Giamatti is Jameson and Jones is Betty Brant and the only reason no one has stated otherwise is because they want to keep the Bugle a secret until later.

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The_Soloist

9:21PM on 02/27/2013

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There's a BIG difference of the quality of the talent in front of and behind the the camera in each one of these franchises. The new Batman films were able to have three villians and have a great story at the same time because of the talent they had in the movie.

Amazing Spider Man.....not so much when compared.

The Jester

3:00PM on 02/27/2013

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Great Actor, Great Casting, Poor Scripting

Did Hollywood writers learn nothing from Spider-Man 3? Do we really need three bad guys and only one good guy in one movie? Come on Hollywood, pace yourself.

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cerealkiller182

3:17PM on 02/27/2013

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Its possible Norman is showing up without being Green Goblin.

DareDevil

+13

2:51PM on 02/27/2013

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I'm down for this casting, and agree with your write up that they will probably introduce him in this film but save the Goblin for future Spider-Man flicks!

Really love all the news coming from set, it's awesome to get this many updates throughout production!