Don’t panic. When Marvel Studios’ latest Spider-Man movie, No Way Home, hits theatres on December 17, it sounds like it might be our last trip home. In an interview with Entertainment Weekly, star Tom Holland sure made it sound like things for his incarnation of Spidey might be wrapping up… in some form or another.
Calling the third film a “conclusion,” Holland said “We were all treating [No Way Home] as the end of a franchise, let’s say. 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.”
Holland may call the movie an “end,” but he’s clearly hedging his bets regarding his future in the Marvel Cinematic Universe. First of all, there’s every chance he could guest-star in other Marvel movies, especially Avengers 5 or whatever the next super-team film will be. Second, with Marvel Studios’ focus on the multiverse, there is technically an infinite number of Tom Holland Spider-Men ready (there are other Spider-Men available, of course) to help save whichever particular day needs saving. But the real key here is how much Tom Holland loves playing Spider-Man. In a recent interview with InStyle, Zendaya said of her Spider-Man co-star:
“In an actor way, I appreciate that he really loves being Spider-Man. It’s a lot of pressure — you take on the role of a superhero wherever you go. To the little kid who walks by, you are Spider-Man. I think he handled that so well. And seeing him at work, even though he’s not a Virgo [laughs], he is a perfectionist.
“Our director allowed me to come in every day [of the shoot], and it was cool to see how he cares so much about his work and making it right. I watched him do a fight scene all day, which is exhausting. He’d do a move, come back to the monitors, watch it, and say, ‘I can do that better.’ I’d be like, ‘Dude, you got it.’ But he wants us to be perfect, and I really appreciate that.”
Now, you can love playing a character but want to be through with it, but Holland is so young — OK, he’s 25, but he’s still believably playing a high school student — he has a lot of Spidey movies left in him if he wants them. Plus, Holland specified, “If we were lucky enough to dive into these characters again, you’d be seeing a very different version.” Comics fans know Peter Parker has has a very, very long career as Spider-Man after he graduated high school. In fact, the vast majority of his adventures have taken place afterward, which included his stint in the Secret Wars, his marriage to Mary Jane, the Clone Saga, Spider-Island, and more. The Home “trilogy” might well be referring to Peter in his high school days, and future movies could show him at college, working for The Daily Bugle, or what-have-you. Or there could be movies that are placed more squarely in Sony’s adjunct Spider Cinematic Universe — or whatever weird hybrid might be the result of the events of No Way Home.
Just… just don’t panic. In all likelihood, more Tom Holland Spider-movies are in our future. And if he does quit, there’s always Miles. Or Ben Reilly. Or…
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