'Chronicle' Star Dane DeHaan Is Harry Osborn In 'The Amazing Spider-Man 2'

Briefly: He was a marginalized kid who had trouble controlling his newfound power in Chronicle, and now Dane DeHaan is going to menace Spider-Man. Marc Webb, director of The Amazing Spider-Man and the upcoming sequel, tweeted today that DeHaan had been cast as Harry Osborn in The Amazing Spider-Man 2. The character was played by James Franco in Sam Raimi's series of films, and we'd expect him to end up being the villain of Webb's planned third Spider-Man film.

Here's Webb's announcement of the casting:

The actor beat out a good set of other candidates to take the role, including Sam Claflin, Eddie Redmayne, Douglas Booth, Boyd Holbrook, Brady Corbet, and Alden Ehrenreich. I think DeHaan is a great choice for the role — he can play the vulnerability and anger that Osborn needs. And even if his Chronicle role edges pretty close (too close?) to what we can assume he'll end up doing as Osborn, I'll be happy to see him opposite Andrew Garfield and Emma Stone. He'll wear the Green Goblin outfit well, if Webb and his writers decide to tweak the death of Gwen Stacy storyline a bit so that it is Harry rather than his father who is wearing the Goblin suit during the encounter when Stacy is used by the Goblin as bait for Spider-Man.

The film will also feature Shailene Woodley set to play a young Mary Jane Watson, and Jamie Foxx as the villain Electro. The Amazing Spider-Man 2 is slated for a May 2, 2014 release.

Here is the official press release on the casting:

Dane DeHaan will join the cast of the next installment of The Amazing Spider-Man™ along side Andrew Garfield, Emma Stone, Jamie Foxx and Shailene Woodley as Columbia Pictures prepares to begin production on the next chapter of the blockbuster franchise, it was announced today by Doug Belgrad, president of Columbia Pictures, and Hannah Minghella, president of production for the studio.The screenplay is by Alex Kurtzman & Roberto Orci and Jeff Pinkner based on a previous draft by James Vanderbilt. The film will be directed by Marc Webb and produced by Avi Arad and Matt Tolmach.The casting of DeHaan as Harry Osborn was confirmed this morning in a tweet by Webb (@MarcW) who wrote "Meet Harry Osborn. So excited to have him on board. @danedehaan.""Dane is an exciting and extraordinary young actor and he is a fantastic addition to our cast," Webb said.The new film in the Spider-Man saga is set for release in 3D on May 2, 2014. Production will begin in early 2013 in New York.Webb, Garfield and Stone previously teamed on this summer's blockbuster The Amazing Spider-Man, which has taken in more than $751 million worldwide.DeHaan caught moviegoers' attention with his performances in four 2012 releases: Steven Spielberg's Lincoln, opposite Daniel Day-Lewis and Lukas Haas; John Hillcoat's Lawless, alongside Shia LaBeouf, Tom Hardy, and Jason Clarke; Bradley Rust Gray's Jack & Diane, with Juno Temple and Riley Keough; and one of the year's biggest sleeper hits, the adventure thriller Chronicle, directed by Josh Trank. He began his film career with director John Sayles and actor Chris Cooper in Amigo.DeHaan next stars in Place Beyond the Pines alongside Bradley Cooper and Ryan Gosling. In addition he will star in Atom Egoyan's Devil's Knot, with Reese Witherspoon and Colin Firth, about the fate of the West Memphis Three; and John Krokidas' Kill Your Darlings, with Jack Huston, Daniel Radcliffe, Ben Foster, and Kyra Sedgwick, set in 1944 amidst the Beat Generation.Mr. DeHaan first came to industry attention with his portrayal of Jesse in the third season of the critically applauded drama series In Treatment, starring alongside Gabriel Byrne. This was followed by a guest arc in the fourth season of the popular horror series True Blood.In 2010, he received an Obie Award for his performance in Annie Baker's The Aliens, directed by Sam Gold. The Rattlestick Theater production was cited as "Play of the Year" by The New York Times. Mr. DeHaan made his Broadway debut in with American Buffalo, Robert Falls' 2008 staging of the classic David Mamet play.