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In 2016, Spider-Man made his official Marvel Cinematic Universe (MCU) debut in Captain America: Civil War. However, his first solo outing — under Marvel’s joint direction with Sony — came a year later, with Spider-Man: Homecoming. Marvel made it abundantly clear that “home” was an important concept to the Spider-Man character with this film. Peter Parker’s “homecoming” not only had to do with the narrative plot in the film but also the creative rights to the hero in movies being partially returned to Marvel, allowing them to integrate him into their notoriously complex and successful cinematic universe.
This concept of “home” was furthered in the sequel film, 2019’s Spider-Man: Far From Home. And as was recently announced in a video released by Marvel, the third movie in the series, coming in December 2021, is called Spider-Man: No Way Home. First of all, why is that? In the previous film, Far From Home, a post-credits scene revealed Mysterio outing Spider-Man’s public identity to the world while also framing him for Mysterio’s death. To the world, Mysterio was a hero to the very end, thus painting Spider-Man as a murderer and giving the world the real name of this killer. As such, Peter will be on the run, presumably as he works to clear his name. Until he accomplishes that, he will have “no way home.”
The Basis For A Fugitive Peter Parker
This storyline of Spider-Man’s identity being publicly revealed is a famous one from the Spider-Man comics. While he’s technically had his secret identity revealed to various parties throughout the years, the instance most similar to that of Far From Home‘s reveal occurs during the “Civil War” crossover event. Spider-Man’s secret identity becomes government-required public knowledge during the crossover, leading to a shooter eventually injuring Aunt May. In order to save her life, Peter bargains with the devil Mephisto to preserve her life in exchange for losing his marriage to Mary Jane (( Gonzalez, Oscar. “How the Spider-Man Comics Dealt with the Secret-Identity Issue.” CNET. CNET, July 4, 2019. https://www.cnet.com/news/how-the-spider-man-comics-dealt-with-the-secret-identity-issue/. )).
However, while this is an issue that has been addressed in the comics, none of those situations are quite like the one Spider-Man is facing at the end of Far From Home. Not only is Peter young and still in high school, but he’s being framed for murder. This drastically increases the stakes for not only himself but the people he associates with in his daily life, increasing the adversity he’ll face from just villains targeting him to law enforcement and possibly other forces for good. It’s precisely this latest Spider-Man’s thematized youth and inexperience that would make such a grave and mature premise so compelling for his third solo outing. In his time in the MCU, Peter has already struggled with maturing into his own hero on multiple occasions. In Far From Home, he specifically struggled to become more responsible and self-sufficient as a hero.
This came in the wake not only of his de facto mentor Iron Man’s death in Avengers: Endgame, but a betrayal by his new mentor Mysterio in the middle of Far From Home. While Spider-Man in the comics and movies is a notoriously cocksure and cheerful character — known for quippy lines even in the face of death during fights with his villains — No Way Home‘s conflict is much more serious in tone because the outcome isn’t as clear for how Spider-Man will triumph. In fact, the consequences of his current predicament not only threaten to send him away from his beloved New York City but to alienate him from the people he used to protect, circumstances which directly oppose the “friendly neighborhood Spider-Man” tagline famously associated with the superhero.
Perhaps Peter will resolve not only the identity reveal situation but the murder accusation as well relatively quickly once No Way Home releases. But if not, then Mysterio has put him in a really tight spot, and he will not only have to come to terms with the gravity of his situation but take extraordinary, possibly unthinkable measures to resolve it. This sort of crucible has the potential to cause Spider-Man to mature and come to terms with his personal values and abilities in a way audiences haven’t seen Spider-Man develop on the big screen before. This possibility offers a truly unique take on the Spider-Man character and movie, which could go anywhere.
Web Theories
Anticipation for No Way Home applies to speculation beyond just the potential for character development, which shows how much expectation is building in fan circles for this film. Interviews and news about the film promise remarkable scale and scope, with Tom Holland, who plays Spider-Man himself, saying in an interview with Variety’s Clayton Davis “it’s the most ambitious standalone superhero movie ever made” (( Davis, Clayton. “’Cherry’ Star Tom Holland Talks Getting an Itch for Directing and ‘Spider-Man 3’ Is ‘Most Ambitious Superhero Film of All Time.’” Variety. Variety, February 4, 2021. https://variety.com/2021/film/awards/tom-holland-cherry-awards-circuit-podcast-1234899695/. )).
MCU Connections
That’s just the beginning of the speculative excitement. There has been a slew of casting rumors and news over the past year, the tamest of which is that Doctor Strange will appear in No Way Home, presumably as yet another mentoring figure for Spider-Man (( Kit, Borys. “Benedict Cumberbatch Joins ‘Spider-Man 3’ as Doctor Strange (Exclusive).” The Hollywood Reporter, October 9, 2020. https://www.hollywoodreporter.com/heat-vision/benedict-cumberbatch-joins-spider-man-3-as-doctor-strange-exclusive. )). With Doctor Strange In The Multiverse Of Madness set to release on March 25, 2022 — about four months after Far From Home, fans have speculated that the multiversal exploration implied in the Doctor Strange sequel might perhaps begin earlier than expected if Strange does appear in No Way Home. This theory has gained more fuel from remarks that Kevin Feige, president of Marvel Studios, made at Disney’s most recent Investor Day presentation concerning a narrative link between the upcoming Spider-Man and Doctor Strange movies.
Understandably, fans’ excitement leaped to new heights with this theory posited because it implied that No Way Home could be the first live-action “Spiderverse” adaptation. The Spiderverse is a widely explored concept in Spider-Man comics that emphasizes the different versions of Spider-Man belonging to different worlds in the multiverse. While many superhero comics have at one point explored versions of these heroes from alternate realities, the Spiderverse is more notable than most for the unique iterations of Spider-Man it introduces, from Spider-Ham, a Porky Pig-esque pig, to Spider-Gwen, a version of one of Peter Parker’s love interests who gains spider-like abilities instead of him.
The Spiderverse has already been cinematically explored once in the 2018 animated film Spider-Man: Into the Spider-Verse, which showcased a wide variety of Spider-Man’s quirky alternates. However, a live-action adaptation of this concept might not need to bank on such unique characters for its story. Two other live-action film versions of Spider-Man and Spider-Man’s world; a more personalized and thoughtful move to fans would be to incorporate characters from all those previous Spider-Man movies, including, perhaps, the former Spider-Men themselves.
Casting Callbacks
First off, Jamie Foxx has confirmed that he is reprising his role of Electro from 2014’s The Amazing Spider-Man 2 in No Way Home. Reported initially by various sources then confirmed by Foxx himself in a now-deleted Instagram post, we officially have a villain from a previous Spider-Man film franchise reprising their role for the current one. According to The Hollywood Reporter, we have another Spider-Man villain also reprising his role: Alfred Molina as Doctor Octopus from 2004’s Spider-Man 2 (( Couch, Aaron, and Borys Kit. “’Spider-Man 3′: Alfred Molina Returning as Doctor Octopus.” The Hollywood Reporter, December 9, 2020. https://www.hollywoodreporter.com/heat-vision/spider-man-3-alfred-molina-returning-as-doctor-octopus. )). The fact that each villain is from a different Spider-Man franchise seems to indicate a purposeful and limited venture into the multiverse for No Way Home if this theory turns out to be true.
What’s more is that apparently, the former Spider-Men themselves — Tobey Maguire and Andrew Garfield — will make appearances in No Way Home as well. The validity of this claim is much more contentious. A Fandomwire article claims that a source within Sony confirmed that Maguire and Garfield make appearances in the film. Furthermore, stunt coordinator for No Way Home George Cottle posted on Instagram to celebrate the movie’s film wrap. In the post, he tagged Chris Daniels, who acted as Tobey Maguire’s stunt double in the original Spider-Man film trilogy (( @georgejcottle, March 26, 2021 )). And in since-deleted Instagram posts, Andrew Garfield’s stunt double in The Amazing Spider-Man movies William Spencer indicated he was on the set of No Way Home with Tom Holland’s stunt double, Greg Townley.
While these sort of leaks seem to indicate that Garfield and Maguire were involved in No Way Home, Tom Holland himself expressly denied such assertions, saying in an interview with Jimmy Fallon that “It would be amazing if they were because they haven’t told me that yet… and I’ve read the script from the beginning to the end” (( “Tom Holland Shows Off His Viral Pants-less Look for Virtual Interviews,” The Tonight Show Starring Jimmy Fallon, published on February 23, 2021, 9:24, https://youtu.be/hP8dOUm2qgc )). And according to ET Canada, a Sony representative claimed that the casting rumors for the former Spider-Man actors are unconfirmed, take that as you will (( West, Rachel. “’Spider-Man’ Studio Says Tobey Maguire, Andrew Garfield, Tom Holland Casting Rumours Are Unconfirmed.” ET Canada. ET Canada, October 15, 2020. https://etcanada.com/news/702796/spider-man-studio-says-tobey-maguire-andrew-garfield-tom-holland-casting-rumours-are-unconfirmed/. )).
While various other rumors have circulated about characters returning from former Spider-Man franchises, and many more will probably crop up before the movie releases, there’s a final major one to ponder. According to Comicbook.com and a few other sources, Charlie Cox was seen on the set of No Way Home (( https://comicbook.com/marvel/news/daredevil-charlie-cox-scenes-spider-man-3-tom-holland/ )). Known for playing Daredevil in the eponymous Netflix series based on the Marvel hero, fans have theorized that he could be making his MCU debut in the film. Given that Daredevil’s alter ego Matt Murdock is a defense lawyer, it’s possible he could be advocating for Peter and trying to clear his name in No Way Home. Daredevil and Spider-Man also have plenty of comic book history, given that they both serve as protectors of New York City. Only time will tell if speculation contains any truth.
What Could Make This Trilogy-Capper Special
Multiversal theories aside, several other teases for what No Way Home could have in store have also made the rounds. Some evidence points to Ned Leeds, Peter’s best friend in the franchise who Jacob Batalon plays, eventually transforming into Spider-Man villain Hobgoblin. Batalon himself has expressed interest in bringing an adaptation of the villain to the big screen in an interview with Screenrant (( Fiduccia, Christopher. “Jacob Batalon Wants Ned To Become The MCU’s Hobgoblin Like The Comics.” ScreenRant. Screen Rant, September 29, 2019. https://screenrant.com/jacob-batalon-spider-man-mcu-hobgoblin/. )).
And in an Instagram story post by @spideyno1fan_, otherwise known as Peter’s classmate “Flash Thompson,” who occasionally provides us with movie-related content, a picture of Ned features the doodled addition of an orange fin or conical cap resting on his head ((Eammon Jacobson February 9, 2021. “’Spider-Man 3′ Marketing Teases Arrival Of Ned’s Hobgoblin.” Heroic Hollywood, February 9, 2021. https://heroichollywood.com/spider-man-3-marketing-ned-hobgoblin-tease/. )). This doodle resembles part of Hobgoblin’s comics costume, leading fans to speculate if this was a studio hint that Ned would come into this villainous role in the future. However, Ned and Peter are currently best friends. While this hasn’t stopped characters from devolving into villains in past movies (vis a vis, The Amazing Spider-Man 2), nonetheless, it will be interesting to see how Marvel might accomplish such a narrative feat.
No Way Home will also provide the first look at Peter and MJ, played by Zendaya, as a couple. Both prior Spider-Man franchises established Peter’s love interest early on. 2002’s Spider-Man has the infamous upside-down kissing scene between Peter and Mary Jane, played by Kirsten Dunst, and 2012’s The Amazing Spider-Man establishes Peter’s and Gwen Stacy’s, who’s played by Emma Stone, relationship. Perhaps in an effort to emphasize the characters’ youth or put less stress on the romantic side of Spider-Man, the MCU only established Peter’s and MJ’s relationship at the end of Far From Home, pretty much right before everything went wrong for Peter in the post-credits scene. So not only will this third film finally give audiences a chance to see how this newfound Spider-couple works out, it’ll be under the added stress of Mysterio’s public deception.
No Way Home‘s Place In Spider-Man Cinema
Teases and speculation concerning the plot of the movie notwithstanding, No Way Home has the potential to be a special Spider-Man movie if it’s done right. To be clear, none of the Spider-Man film adaptations have been universally or absolutely panned by audiences. However, there were reasons why the first two series ended prematurely. For example, The Amazing Spider-Man 2‘s criticisms include its overstuffing of narrative threads and villains into its narrative, thus not giving proper attention to those plot devices and to the structure of the film overall. And Spider-Man 3, capping off the first Spider-Man trilogy, also had a problem with its utility of villains and its inaccurate portrayal of Venom. Both prior Spider-Man series had expected to continue but had discontinued after reception to their respective last films became negative enough.
While they were each beloved by fans in many aspects and did well at the box office, their reasons for ending weren’t due to narrative completion. Here, No Way Home can break the curse. Both the first and second movies of the current franchise have already been well-received. No Way Home‘s success would not only make this current adaptation the first successful Spider-Man trilogy in film history; it would further legitimize Marvel’s creative direction with the franchise as well. Furthermore, while this upcoming Spider-Man movie would mark the last of the three solo films Tom Holland is contracted for currently, success with No Way Home might also make a new contract more likely, with not only more crossovers but solo films as well.
The assessment and placement of this Spider-Man trilogy in pop culture, film, and comic book history, therefore, rides on the success of No Way Home. Whether or not half the rumors about it are true, what’s guaranteed is that it will tell a crazy, serious, and thrilling Spider-Man story. Oh, and according to set photos, at least part of the movie will take place during the winter holidays (( Anderton, Joe. “New Look at Spider-Man 3 Filming Confirms Christmas Setting.” Digital Spy, January 18, 2021. https://www.digitalspy.com/movies/a35243044/spider-man-3-filming-set-photos-tom-holland-zendaya/. )). Who doesn’t love a Christmas movie?
