HOLLYWOOD - The set of Columbia Pictures' Spider-Man has lately been plagued with a run of bad luck, to say the least. Actually, it's becoming nearly arachnophobic.
First, a construction worker died last month while a crew worked to recreate the top two floors of a 1930s-style building on the set. A crane hauling a large metal case suddenly fell over on its side and the metal case hit the man in the head, killing him instantly.
Then, on Tuesday, star Tobey Maguire's stunt double, Zack Hudson, reportedly fractured his leg while performing one of the hair-raising Spidey maneuvers. Instead of skimming along a brick structure, Hudson smashed into the wall. Information on his condition could not be confirmed by the studio, according to the Hollywood Reporter.
Also Tuesday, four red-and-black Spider-Man costumes went missing from the Sony Pictures Studios lot, according to the studio. The Spidey one-piece molded suits have as many as 120 individual silk screens for shading and highlighting.
The Culver City Police Department is investigating the incident.
The studio has set up a hotline number-(310) 244-1044-for any tips about the whereabouts of the costumes and is offering a $25,000 reward.
"We consider these costumes valuable property and we hope this reward will help to get them back," a studio spokesman told Reuters.
What is the potential value of the costumes? According to Sotheby's Auctions, the Batman and Robin costumes worn by Adam West and Burt Ward on the 1960s TV series sold for a total $68,500.
The highly anticipated film, the first big-screen adaptation of Marvel Comics' famed superhero, may have been cursed from the beginning. It's taken several years to get this film into production, with a legal battle over rights and changing of hands in the talent department - at one point, James Cameron was slated to direct - hindering the film's start.
It finally got rolling in January, with Sam Raimi (The Evil Dead series) at the helm. Maguire (The Cider House Rules) stars as Peter Parker, the nebbish youngster who, after receiving a bite from a radioactive spider, is able to stick to walls and fight the bad guys. Willem Dafoe, off of his Oscar-nominated performance in Shadow of the Vampire, dons more makeup and ghoulish-ness playing the arch-nemesis Green Goblin. Kirsten Dunst (Get Over It) plays Mary Jane Watson, Parker's next-door-neighbor and love interest.
Recent troubles have not delayed production, the studio has said. The film is slated for release May 2002.