Earth vs. the Spider is a 2001 horror-thriller television film directed by Scott Ziehl

Scott Ziehl

Scott Ziehl is an American film director. He has directed numerous films from 1998 to now.- External links :...

. It is part of a series of films made for Cinemax

Cinemax

Cinemax, sometimes abbreviated as simply "Max", is a collection of premium television networks that broadcasts primarily feature films, along with softcore erotica, original action series, documentaries and special behind-the-scenes features. Cinemax is operated by Home Box Office, Inc., a...

 paying tribute to the films of American International Pictures

American International Pictures

American International Pictures was a film production company formed in April 1956 from American Releasing Corporation by James H. Nicholson, former Sales Manager of Realart Pictures, and Samuel Z. Arkoff, an entertainment lawyer...

. The films in this tribute series reused the titles of old American International Pictures films, but are not remakes of the earlier films

Earth vs. the Spider

Earth vs. the Spider is a 1958 American black-and-white science fiction horror film produced and directed by Bert I. Gordon, who also wrote the story, upon which the screenplay by George Worthing Yates and Laszlo Gorog is based...

.

Plot

A shy, obsessive comic book fan injects himself with an experimental serum of a lab that is studying how to give humans the abilities of spiders. At first he develops minor abilities such as increased strength, which allows him to fight local criminals and bullies, thus living out his dream of being a superhero, and impressing his attractive next-door neighbor. Things start to get more odd when he is able to shoot webs out of his abdomen. Then he loses control over the force with which he applies his increasingly deadly abilities, as well as his judgment to discern between criminals and jokesters. His dream becomes a nightmare when he begins to change, he's in constant pain, and he develops a nearly insatiable hunger. A detective with a traumatized wife begins investigating when bodies covered in cobwebs and spider venom start piling up. The neighbor tries to help him, but to no avail. The final shoot-out is between the now deformed, comic book fan and the detective. Realizing all the carnage was done by his hand, the comic fan decides to let the detective kill him. The final scene depicts the protagonist in a comic book shop, only as a half-man, half-spider action figure.

The character Quentin Kemmer is named after Ed Kemmer, star of the original Earth vs. the Spider

Earth vs. the Spider

Earth vs. the Spider is a 1958 American black-and-white science fiction horror film produced and directed by Bert I. Gordon, who also wrote the story, upon which the screenplay by George Worthing Yates and Laszlo Gorog is based...

.