Marvel Has Reportedly Auditioned A 16-Year-Old To Play Spider-Man

As soon as Marvel and Sony made the announcement that Spider-Man would be entering the Marvel Cinematic Universe, the first big question for fans was: who will play him this time? Andrew Garfield has been kicked to the curb, and they're looking to bring in some new blood to play the web-slinger. Early rumors said that the studio was looking at Dylan O'Brien and Logan Lerman, but then word came out that they were looking at even younger actors.

Now Badass Digest has heard that Marvel has secretly auditioned a 16-year-old actor named Mateus Ward for the part. Ward has appeared on shows like Weeds, Lab Rats, Hostages, and Murder in the First - none of which I've seen, so I can't comment on whether or not I think he'd be a good fit for our friendly neighborhood Spider-Man. But it does confirm that Marvel is looking at much younger actors — guys who would actually be believable when they are supposed to be playing a high school student.

At one point, there was some speculation going around that the new Spider-Man wouldn't be white, but if this report is to be believed, it's tough to imagine that Ward would be up for Miles Morales; that would sort of defeat the point of that character, and would conjure up far more bad press than Marvel needs. We aren't sure if Ward has been offered the role or if he's signed a contract, but one thing's for sure: they better figure out who's going to play the next Spidey quickly, since Captain America: Civil War starts shooting in just a few days, and that film is supposed to feature the character's reintroduction.

Are you familiar with Ward's work? Think he'd make a good Spider-Man? Let us know below.