Now that the casting of Sony’s new Spider-Man is out of the way (in case you haven’t heard it’s Andrew Garfield), the rumor mill can turn its attention to playing guess the girlfriend. Because when it comes to superhero movies, that seems to be all women are good for in Hollywood. Playing girlfriends. Here’s hoping Scarlett Johansson can turn her Black Widow character from Iron Man 2 into something worthwhile. Until then, let’s see if we can figure out who’s going to get to kiss Spidey while he hangs upside down in the rain.

THR claims to have a line on who Sony’s letting director Marc Webb consider for the movie’s female lead. That lead, by the way, is definitely not Mary Jane Watson. So at least that’s one aspect of this reboot that won’t be repetitive and boring. Unless of course it’s Gwen Stacey, which is possible. But it’s definitely not Mary Jane, tiger.

So who’s up for the part? Not Mary Elizabeth Winstead. They say she’s out of the running, though I’m not sure who thought she was in. Scott Pilgrim’s flop couldn’t have helped. Here’s who is in contention:

Imogen Poots: This 21-year-old Brit was in V for Vendetta and 28 Weeks Later in smaller roles. Now she’s shooting Fright Night. I’m rooting for her, but only because her name is sure to get a laugh during Spider-Man: The Do-Over’s opening credits.


Ophelia Lovibond: Nice try with the funny name, but Lovibond is no Poots. This 24-year-old Brit has been in more than 20 movies and television shows, almost none of which you’re likely to have seen.


Lily Collins: THR misspells her name in their story, which tells you just how well known she is. Lily’s a 21-year-old Brit who you might have seen in The Blind Side as “Collins”.


Teresa Palmer: She’s a 24-year-old Australian who’s been rumored for almost every superhero movie in existence, but never actually made it into any of them. Most recently she had a part in The Sorcerer’s Apprentice.


Emma Roberts: She’s Emma Roberts and she’s 19. The only actress on this list who’s really much of a “name”. She’s Julia Roberts’ niece and she’s had starring roles in movies like Valentine’s Day, The Winning Season (where she’s great), and Hotel for Dogs. She’s also the only American on this list.

My pick is Emma, and not because she’s recognizable. Truthfully, most of the other actresses have mostly done movies where they were hired because they’re pretty. Emma Roberts has actually done real, leading actress work and been good at it. She’s great in The Winning Season and in addition to the kid stuff she’s done she’s done acting-heavy indie movies like Lymelife. She can act. She’ll be great. She’s also American and it’s bad enough that Andrew Garfield is half a Brit, it’d be a little weird if the entire cast of one of the most well known, all-American superheroes is British. Or at least it would be weird if anyone cared about this horrible idea for a movie. Which they don’t. Sorry, I had to throw that in. Carry on.