Zooey Deschanel as Betty Brant in Spider-Man relaunch?

We pretty much already know that Mary Jane Watson either won't be in Marc Webb's Spider-Man flick or will be a greatly reduced presence in favor of Emma Stone as Gwen Stacy. That's all perfectly fine with me as one of the previous series' biggest flaws was too many characters vying for screentime. With that said, it does leave the door open for other Peter Parker love interests to move into the forefront. In this case, Petey's first girl, Betty Brant.

Showbiz Spy sights an "inside source" that says Webb intends to make Betty Brant a major player in the life of the wallcrawler, and already has an actress in mind for the role...

“Betty was a minor character in the previous Spidey movies but Marc has big plans for her,” reveals a movie insider. “He wants a strong performer to carry the role and Zooey fits the bill perfectly. The role is hers if she wants it.

That would be Zooey Deschanel, who Webb directed in last year's 500 Days of Summer, the film that launched him to stardom and basically got him this gig to begin with.

Betty Brant actually appeared in all three Sam Raimi directed Spider-Man flicks, but was mostly in the background as a secretary at the Daily Bugle. She was portrayed by Elizabeth Banks. 

Brant is considered to be Peter Parker's first love interest, having debuted in Amazing Spider-Man #4 back in 1963. She would go on to hate Spider-Man for a time after her brother was accidentally killed during a fight between Spidey and Doctor Octopus. Eventually she kicked Peter to the curb, but the two remained friends. She eventually faded into the background as Peter added more and more notches into his bedpost.

Andrew Garfield: luckiest man on the planet if he gets to have Emma Stone and Zooey Deschanel vying for his attention in the same flick. That's all I'm saying. Let's hope this news pans out.