Spider-Man suits stolen

The superhero will not have to be unmasked

A $25,000 (£17,400) reward has been put up for the return of four Spider-Man costumes stolen from the film set.

The skin-tight outfits, designed for the actor Tobey Maguire, have gone missing from the Los Angeles set in Culver City.

Local police are investigating the disappearance of the distinctive blue and red suits.

Tobey Maguire will play the web-slinger

But filming of the superhero movie will not be delayed because a large collection of costumes were made for the star.

A spokesman said: "We consider these costumes valuable property and we hope this reward will help to get them back."

Maguire plays both Spider-Man and his alter ego Peter Parker.

He is joined by Willem Dafoe as the mad scientist Norman Osborne and Kirsten Dunst as the superhero's girlfriend Mary-Jane Watson.

Tragedy

Evil Dead director Sam Raimi is at the helm of the Columbian Pictures-backed film.

Filming began in January and is expected to be completed in May.

It is not scheduled for release until May 2002.

The production was hit by tragedy in March when a welder was killed during construction of the set.

The 45-year-old crew member was working on a New York City street facade when a crane ploughed into the platform he and a colleague were working on.

He died instantly from head injuries while the other man escaped unharmed.