Tom Holland’s Spider-Man is just two months out from making his sixth big screen appearance in the Marvel Cinematic Universe with December’s Spider-Man: No Way Home, which marks his third solo outing, and – as the actor has described to Entertainment Weekly, the “conclusion” to the “Homecoming trilogy” from Marvel Studios and Sony.
“We were all treating [No Way Home] as the end of a franchise, let’s say,” states Holland. “I think if we were lucky enough to dive into these characters again, you’d be seeing a very different version. It would no longer be the Homecoming trilogy. We would give it some time and try to build something different and tonally change the films. Whether that happens or not, I don’t know. But we were definitely treating [No Way Home] like it was coming to an end, and it felt like it.”
We’ve been making these films for five years now,” said Holland referring to one of his final days shooting alongside co-stars Zendaya and Jacob Batalon. “We’ve had such an amazing relationship, the three of us. We’ve been with each other every step of the way. We’ve done every single film, every single press tour. So this one scene, [we didn’t know] if this would be the last time [we were all working together.] [It] was heartbreaking but also really exciting because we’re all moving into the next chapter of our careers. So sharing that moment with them was maybe the best day I’ve ever had on set. I don’t think I’ve cried like that ever.”
Having made his debut in Captain America: Civil War after Disney brokered a deal with Sony to reboot the web-slinger as part of the MCU, Holland’s Peter Parker went on to appear in Spider-Man: Homecoming, Avengers: Infinity War, Avengers: Endgame and Spider-Man: Far From Home before the original contract expired, leaving Spidey’s future dangling by a thread.
That deal was extended for a further two Marvel movies – No Way Home and an as-yet-unrevealed non-solo film – back in 2019, and with Sony’s own cinematic Marvel universe now underway and a clash with Tom Hardy’s Venom inevitable, it remains to be seen whether Holland’s future lies within the Marvel Cinematic Universe or Sony’s Spider-Man Universe.
However, based on Holland’s comments, could we be close to seeing the latest of Spidey in the MCU – perhaps with one last Secret Wars-style event outing that sees him heading off to pastures new alongside Hardy’s Venom and Jared Leto’s Morbius? There’s been plenty of rumblings about a Secret Wars movie (potentially with the Russos returning to direct), but nothing officially on the docket through to May 2023. Sony isn’t going to want to have Spider-Man off the shelf for too long however, so if Secret Wars is indeed the plan then we’re presumably going to hear about it soon.
For the first time in the cinematic history of Spider-Man, our friendly neighborhood hero is unmasked and no longer able to separate his normal life from the high-stakes of being a Super Hero. When he asks for help from Doctor Strange the stakes become even more dangerous, forcing him to discover what it truly means to be Spider-Man.
Spider-Man: No Way Home sees Jon Watts (Spider-Man: Homecoming, Spider-Man: Far From Home) directing Tom Holland (Spider-Man), Benedict Cumberbatch (Doctor Strange), Zendaya (MJ), Marisa Tomei (Aunt May), Jacob Batalon (Ned Leeds), Tony Revolori (Flash Thompson), Jamie Foxx (Electro) and Alfred Molina (Doctor Octopus).
Spider-Man: No Way Home arrives in cinemas on December 17th.
