To anyone who has seen the Madame Web trailer, it is clear that Sony’s upcoming Marvel movie is about more than just Spider-Man’s clairvoyant ally, Cassandra Webb, as played by Dakota Johnson in the film. The movie will also see the live-action feature-length film debut of other webslingers, like Sydney Sweeney as Julia Carpenter (who would eventually inherit the Madame Web moniker from Cassandra in the comics), Isabela Merced as Anya Corazón, and Celeste O’Connor as Mattie Franklin. However, just about the most intriguing face in the teaser is that of Tahar Rahim as Ezekiel Sims.
The preview does not reveal too much about this person — seen running around in an outfit similar to one of Peter Parker’s coolest Spider-Man suits, with a black exterior with red webbing and lenses — save that he can possibly see into the future, was in the Amazon when Cassandra’s mother was studying spiders right before she died, and has it out for Cassandra’s young new friends. However, according to an X post by his creator, J. Michael Straczynski, the character’s cinematic counterpart is not quite the same as how he has been depicted in Marvel Comics. So, before the Madame Web movie hits theaters (which, according to our upcoming 2024 movies schedule, is on Valentine’s Day), we thought we would take a look at the source material and show you everything there is to know about the “real” Ezekiel Sims from the comics below.
Ezekiel Sims Became A Spider-Totem By A Mystical Ritual
Created by the aforementioned writer J. Michael Straczynski with illustrator John Romita Jr., Ezekiel Sims made his Marvel Comics debut in The Amazing Spider-Man Vol. 2, Issue #30, when he first became formally acquainted with Spider-Man himself, despite already knowing his secret identity beforehand (which we will get to). However, it was not until some issues later when we learned how his association with Spider-People such as Peter Parker really began.
Years earlier, as a reward for saving a Spider Temple from being bulldozed by the government, Sims requested that a ritual be conducted that would grant him the powers of a Spider-Totem, which refers to a supernatural being existing beyond the Marvel Multiverse which are all linked to mystical phenomena known as the Web of Destiny. Sims goes through with the ritual, despite being warned that taking these powers for oneself without being naturally chosen to receive them can result in grave consequences. Knowing this leads Sims to posit Peter Parker with a life-changing question of whether or not his radioactive spider-bite was truly an accident.
Ezekiel Has Almost All The Same Powers As Spider-Man
After undergoing the ritual which imbued Ezekiel Sims with the powers of a Spider-Totem, this made him almost equally as powerful as Peter Parker. In addition to your typical superhuman strength, speed, stamina, and durability, he can climb on walls with his ability to cling to just about any surface and also has his own Spider-Sense, which cannot be detected by Parker (and vice versa).
The only thing Peter has that Sims does not have are his own webshooters. Of course, these were constructed by Peter himself and are not naturally occurring… unless we are talking about Tobey Maguire’s version of the character from Sam Raimi’s Spider-Man movies, which came as quite a surprise to Tom Holland and Andrew Garfield’s variants in one of the funniest scenes from Spider-Man: No Way Home, if you will recall.
A Member Of The Ancient, Secret Spider Society
Ezekiel Sims’ arachnoid-like abilities granted him many life-changing opportunities. For instance, he became a part of a very old, highly exclusive, and extremely confidential group known as the Spider Society, which was first founded in 1099 A.D. in medieval Spain, where it was referred to as “Sociedad Araña.”
The purpose of the organization is to honor the Spider-Totems — such as the Great Weaver, the Gatekeeper, the Patternmaker and many more — and ensure that their mystical balance of destinies and spiritual aura is protected. Other notable members of the Spider Society include Jessica Drew, who is better known as Spider-Woman, as well as some of the other famous webslingers like the aforementioned Anya “Araña” Corazón, her mother Sofía, and even Peter Parker.
Works To Protect Other Spider-People From Morlun
The one thing that J. Michael Straczynski noted about the Madame Web trailer’s depiction of Ezekiel Sims — in addition to him not knowing his character was being included in the film until the teaser dropped — was that the story seems to be combining Sims’ characteristics with that of another character he and John Romita Jr. created named Morlun. Essentially Ezekiel’s nemesis, Morlun is an extra-dimensional being who travels to different realities in search of Spider-Totem avatars so he can consume and absorb their power, which leads Sims to take action.
Ezekiel offers to put Peter Parker and another “spider-woman” named Cindy Moon (otherwise known as Silk) in a specially constructed room (reinforced with Adamantium, equipped with self-recycling air and water systems, and stocked with a four-month food supply), that would keep them protected from Morlun’s detection. That certainly is not what appears to be the intentions of our new cinematic variation of Ezekiel Sims. Then again, it is later revealed that he was using Peter Parker to help prolong his life and avoid persecution from the Spider-Totem he stole his powers from (before going back on his decision and saving Peter by allowing himself to be sacrificed).
Ezekiel Is Also A Successful Businessman
The real reason that Ezekiel Sims wanted to have the powers of a Spider-Totem in the first place was make himself wealthy. He ended up succeeding smoothly in this goal and eventually founded a company that he aptly dubbed WebCorps.
In actuality, said company is really a front for the Spider Society. WebCorps business endeavors help fund whatever the secret organization needs to do their bidding.
Perhaps we will see some Easter Egg hinting at Ezekiel Sims and his involvement with WebCorps and, especially, the Spider Society in Madame Web. Or, maybe director S.J. Clarkson and co. will flip the script and reimagine the secret organization as Cassandra Webb’s creation. All will be revealed about how the film intends to depict these characters and what will become of Sims when the upcoming superhero movie hits theaters in February.
