Who Is The Villain In Kraven The Hunter? The Rhino Explained

Sony Pictures' panel at CinemaCon finally unveiled footage from the studio's next outing into its own villain-centric Spider-Verse. "Kraven the Hunter," the upcoming film that reimagines Spider-Man's enemy as a violent avenger of animals done wrong, will include longtime Marvel Comics antagonist the Rhino. The R-rated film's sneak peek — which featured Aaron Taylor-Johnson as Kraven biting, stabbing, and dismembering poachers and other baddies — also introduced the Rhino as the main threat. Based on both the voice heard in the trailer and previous interviews, it's extremely apparent and all but officially confirmed that Alessandro Nivola (who has kept very busy lately starring in "Boston Strangler," "Spin Me Round," and "Amsterdam") will be playing the character.

The footage explicitly showed an arm turning a gray color as the character presumably transforms into a rhinoceros-like creature. "Don't you want to know why they call me the Rhino?" he asked menacingly in a line of dialogue that viewers have identified as the voice of Nivola, who is indeed listed as part of the official cast. Nivola himself has talked about mutating into an unidentified monster in the film, though he mentioned to The Hollywood Reporter that he "only transform[s], physically, in the final moments of the movie." That contrasts with Rhino's comic book iteration, which attributes the villain's appearance to a suit he wears rather than a biological metamorphosis. But who is the Rhino, really, besides some weirdo in an animal costume?

The Rhino is one of Spider-Man's earliest villains, debuting in issue #41 of "The Amazing Spider-Man" in 1966, created by Stan Lee and John Romita. He began his criminal career as Aleksei Sytsevich, a low-level Russian mobster whose physical aptitude and dim-wittedness made him the perfect candidate for human experimentation. He agreed to have a tough biological armor permanently grafted to his skin in order to operate as a super-powered covert agent, only to promptly lash out against the Soviet scientists and go rogue. The Rhino's deadly charge attack destroys everything in its path, but Spider-Man managed to defeat him by using his own agility against his foe's unstoppable strength. The pairing would make for many a memorable fight sequence often featuring a tiny Spider-Man swinging around the massive Rhino's signature horn, which is probably what made the villain such a repeat offender.

The Rhino stuck around for decades after, although he often came across as a glorified thug with a lack of intelligence. Still, his potential for wanton destruction caused issues for Spidey, and the hero was forced multiple times to put his day on hold to subdue a raging Aleksei. Rhino also tussled with the Hulk on occasion, as well as Daredevil at least once, though his history with Kraven the Hunter is curiously shallow besides that one time he became a hunting target due to his resemblance to an actual rhinoceros. Rhino has also learned enough self-control to join the Sinister Syndicate, a team of for-hire mercenary B- and C-list Spider-Man villains (Rhino was, ironically, probably the most recognizable member of the crew).

The fact that Rhino's physical and intellectual traits harshly contrast with Spider-Man's has made the character a popular choice as a video game boss. He appeared all the way back in the first "Spider-Man" game for Playstation, released in 2000, and has shown up in multiple titles since, including the tie-ins of "Spider-Man 2," "Spider-Man 3," and "The Amazing Spider-Man." Most recently, he appeared in Insomniac's acclaimed 2018 "Spider-Man" game and its Miles Morales-headed sequel, both as an armor-plated hired gun recruited by the games' main villains.

The character also made an infamous appearance during the film "The Amazing Spider-Man 2" (as played by Paul Giamatti), doomed to become nothing more than a merchandising strategy that teased an impossible sequel. In that brief debut, Aleksei wore a mech suit with attached firearm weapons instead of his traditional, more biological costume. "Kraven the Hunter" seems to be taking the opposite route, however, and is making the Rhino's powers more organic than before. In fact, the film seemingly nixes his suit altogether, making the Rhino more of a Hulk-like monster born out of some genetic mutation (though it's possible he'll wear a costume before resorting to more drastic measures towards the end of the film). Kraven might have more of an issue puncturing the Rhino's skin than he does with other bad guys, but if he wants a hunt, a hunt he shall get.

"Kraven the Hunter" hits theaters on October 6, 2023.