After months of speculation and release-date push-backs, the third and final installment of Tom Holland and Zendaya’s Spider-Man trilogy, Spider-Man: No Way Home, is coming to cinemas on the 17th of December. Sony and Marvel officially released the first trailer on the 24th of August and, with no confirmed plot, fans have been combing the trailer frame by frame for any clues it might contain. It was, in fact, so popular, it broke the most-watched trailer record, formerly held by Avengers: Endgame, with 355,5 million views within the first 24h of release.
As the sequel to Spider-Man: Far From Home, it takes off from the previous installment’s cliffhanger where Spider-Man has to deal with the consequences of having his identity revealed by Mysterio. It’s also likely the last we’ll see of Spider-Man in the MCU as it marks the end of Sony’s contract with Marvel Studios to lend them the character for three solo films.
Confirmed Returning Villians
Fans of the NetBet Spider-Man Attack of the Green Goblin game will rejoice at the news of Willem Dafoe reprising his 2002 role as the Green Goblin, complete with a menacing laugh and pumpkin bomb. With the ominous line “Hello, Peter”, Alfred Molina also reprises his role as Doctor Octopus towards the end of the trailer. Fans speculate this to be confirmation of Tobey Maguire’s reappearance in the film.
Jamie Foxx’s Electro will also be making a return, as will Matt Murdoch, Sandman, and Lizard. While the trailer clearly shows us Doctor Stange taking a pivotal role, rumor has it he might actually be the main villain in the upcoming installment. Could the sorcerers’ “failed” spell indeed be red herring?
The Timeline Complicated
No Way Home will not be the first film to tamper with the timeline. MCU first brought the multiverse to screen with Avengers: Endgame, and the idea was further expanded upon by Disney+ shows WandaVision and Loki.
From the trailer, we see that Spider-Man, unable to separate his normal life from his superhero persona, turns to Dr Strange to reverse the previous film’s events. While this did happen in the comics, everything doesn’t seem to have gone according to plan, however, as they unleash the multiverse instead.
A Sticky Situation
Spidey’s framing for Mysterio’s death and his outing as Peter Parker does seem to set the ball rolling, but what direction the film will take remains unknown. However, the trailer shows us Peter returning to Midtown High School for his final year, where he, together with nerdy BFF Ned and love interest MJ, deals with the repercussions of his unmasking.
Conclusion
Spider-Man: No Way Home is sure to be a box-office hit if the trailer views and fandom hype are anything to go by. Although it marks the end of Tom Holland’s three-film standalone contract with Marvel, that’s not to say Holland won’t make a return in future films. He has already indicated he’d do so “in a heartbeat” if asked.
