The Tribeca Film Festival has announced Spider-Man 3, directed by Sam Raimi, will have its U.S. Premiere at the 2007 Tribeca Film Festival, presented by American Express.  Spider-Man 3, a Columbia Pictures film which opens in theaters worldwide on May 4, will celebrate the first-ever star-studded gala premiere in Queens, Peter Parker’s hometown. Stars of the film, including Tobey Maguire and Kirsten Dunst, will land in New York, their final destination after an eight-city international tour and join a crowd of 3,000 people at the UA Kaufman Astoria 14 in downtown Astoria on Monday, April 30th. With a marching band leading the stars to the ‘black carpet’ and local fans lining the streets, this spectacular premiere will be one of several events throughout the festival, celebrating “Spider-Man Week in NYC,” presented by Columbia Pictures and NYC & Company.  For more information on Spider-Man Week NYC activities, please visit  www.spider-manweeknyc.com.

In addition to the U.S. premiere in Queens, the Tribeca Film Festival will also present, with Columbia Pictures, simultaneous screenings in the other four boroughs. These free advance screenings will be open to the public and details about how these tickets can be secured will be released as the event approaches.

In addition to the premiere and citywide screenings, the Festival will host Spider-Man Saga Screenings.  These will be the best way to prepare for the latest chapter in the life, loves, and adventures of Peter Parker. Night owls will enjoy the midnight screenings of both Spider-Man and Spider-Man 2 on Tuesday, May 1^st and Wednesday, May 2^nd, respectively, while die-hard fans can start their weekends early with a back-to-back doubleheader on Thursday, May 3^rd before heading out to the very first screenings of the new film on Friday, May 4^th.  These screenings will all feature an exclusive sneak peek of Spider-Man 3 and other fun surprises.

• Does Whatever a Spider Can will feature those that bring Spider-Man to the big screen – filmmakers Avi Arad, Laura Ziskin, Kevin Feige and Grant Curtis.  (Tuesday, May 1^st at 4pm)
• Heroes for Hire will focus on the colossal success of superhero movies with both children and adult audiences. This panel will feature such superhero creators as Zak Penn (X-Men: The Last Stand, Elektra), Mike Richardson (President, Dark Horse Comics/Ent.), and Joe Quesada (Illustrator, Writer, EIC of Marvel.) (Thursday, May 3^rd at 4pm)