Kraven may be the world’s greatest hunter, but the comic book villain couldn’t manage the climb to the top of box office charts.

Sony’s “Kraven the Hunter,” a superhero spinoff starring Aaron Taylor-Johnson as Spider-Man’s notorious foe, launched behind already low expectations, at No. 3 with $11 million from 3,211 theaters. It landed the worst debut for Sony’s Universe of Marvel Characters behind February’s misfire “Madame Web” ($15.3 million), as well as some of the franchise’s lowest-ever marks from critics and audiences with a tragic 15% on Rotten Tomatoes and “C” grade on CinemaScore. That kind of reception signals that, barring a holiday miracle, “Kraven” won’t rebound over the rest of December.

At the international box office, “Kraven the Hunter” fared even worse, in fourth place among Hollywood offerings, with $15 million from 21,500 screens in 60 markets.

“Kraven the Hunter” is Sony’s third Spider-Man-adjacent adaptation of the year,...