The script isn't finished, the details aren't finalized, and nary a single frame of film has been shot, but if you think that's going to stop us from randomly speculating about the state of Spider-Man 4's rogue's gallery, you must have us mistaken for those long-extinct creatures known as "actual film journalists." Nope, this is the internet, folks, so let's take a tiny, out-of-context quote and use it to spin a web of made-up rumor that we will then hold against the finished film when we finally see it in 2010. Sound good? Then away we go…

SM4 producer Todd Black (producer = paid to talk shit without any regard for truth) was recently cornered by the New York Post (NY Post = paid to print utter bullshit) and let this little fanboy tease slide regarding Sam Raimi's return to the Spidey Universe:

"We're just coming up with who the villain's going to be now. We'll be shooting in New York again. Trust me, people will appreciate who we pick, because it'll be a big part of New York."

So…the potential villain(s) will somehow be tied into the fabric of New York? While this is a deathblow to you hardcore Skrull War fans, it gives us an excuse to flip through Peter Parker's enemies list to see who could possibly fit the bill as a New York kind of baddie.

Arcade
Although he's had quite a few run-ins with the X-Men, Arcade started out as a Spider villain. A colorfully psychotic nutbag, Arcade enjoys luring people to "Murderworld," his own personal amusement park designed to kill people in colorfully psychotic ways. Who says Murderworld can't be the dark side of Coney Island's famed amusement park? Considering Arcade's tangles with Spider-Man and the X-Men, a New York base camp isn't out of the question. And done right, he could be Spider-Man's answer to The Joker.

Big Man
Big Man (the pale dude in the fedora on the far left) may just be a run-of-the-mill gangster in a mask, but his origin story has some very close ties to Peter Parker and NYC. Mr. Man was once Frederick Foswell, a former colleague of Parker's at New York's most illustrious newspaper, the Daily Bugle. A timid pushover, Foswell donned a padded suit, designed a mask, and bought lifts for this shoes (no joke) and turned to crime. Lose the mask and change the name to "Gotti" and you've got a New York tale, true believers.

Hydro-Man
Well, Hydro-Man originally hails from the Bronx. It's flimsy, but what better way to follow-up Sandman than with his some time partner in mud? Although the odds of Hydro being the villain are very slim, because A) a dude who can turn into water is boring (remember the Wonder Twins) and B) "This Summer, You Will Get Soggy" would be the worst tagline in movie history.

Jackal
Again, this is a C-level villain (basically, he's the Green Goblin except…well, he's pretty much the Green Goblin). The only reason Jackal's name comes into play is because before he became a green menace, he was a professor at Peter Parker's college. So that's his NY cred. But if Raimi and company are going that route, the groundwork has already been laid for…

The Lizard
…this guy. The Lizard's alter ego, Dr. Curt Connors, has already been seen in the Spider-Man movies—he's Peter's one-armed professor, played by Dylan Baker. Raimi doesn't even have to cast this one. Just whip up a pre-credit sequence in which Connors' efforts to regrow his missing arm with reptile DNA goes horribly wrong and you're off and running.

The Kingpin
New York's ultimate crime boss would be a cinch to fulfill Black's prophesy, but there's only one problem: His character rights might still be owned by 20th Century Fox (Remember? He was the villain in the godawful Daredevil movie, played by Michael Clarke Duncan), so he might not be available to stomp on Spidey's world. Maybe Marvel Studios can work their mojo and free him up, but it seems like more work than they might be willing to exert for a guy who's already had a movie appearance.

Man-Wolf
Another guy who's already been cast. Remember the studly astronaut son of J. Jonah Jameson, the guy who almost married Mary Jane in Spider-Man 2? Well, at some point in the comics he ventures into space and comes in contact with a strange moon rock that turns him into a werewolf. Can you imagine a lyncanthrope with a mean-on for Parker because Parker stole his woman? Could make for a decent villain, but other than being New York-born, Man Wolf isn't a character close to NY's heart.

Owl
Let's examine the quote again: "it'll be a big part of New York." The Owl was once a high-flying financier until his career collapsed and he decided to pursue a life of crime. Hmmmm…sounds pretty New York, circa 2009, doesn't it? Of course, most failed financiers are turning to lives of alcoholism and Wal-Mart greeting, but give it some time. Soon enough one of them will done a cape and try and knock over Tiffany's.

The Prowler
The Prowler could fit the bill because his origin mirrors Parker's. A smart kid that no one paid attention to, Hobie Brown took his cool gadget designs and stole the Daily Bugle's payroll to prove a point. But he's not a bad guy, just broke and hopeless (again, hello 2009)—he battles Spider-Man at first, but later becomes something of an ally. Maybe it's time for Spidey to make more friends than enemies. And not to put too fine a point on it: "broke and hopeless" = "Most New Yorkers".

The Sin-Eater
One of Spider-Man's darkest villains, The Sin-Eater harkens back to late '70s/early '80s New York, when crime was rampant and psychotic vigilantes with guns tried to take back the streets. Sin Eater is a cop who, fed up with the legal system, goes out at night in a ski mask and blows crooks away with a shotgun. Nothing fancy—no villain monologues, no elaborate traps, no pumpkin bombs. Sin Eater just straight up shoots people in the grill. Might be too brutal for the fun-loving Raimi.

The Spider Slayers
Hands up, anyone who would LOVE to see J.K. Simmons' J. Jonah Jameson given a robot body programmed to kill Spider-Man. And what can be more New York than the editor-in-chief of one of the city's top papers becoming an unstoppable killing machine? You think Col Allen wouldn't be first in line for a robo makeover?