We are still at least six months away from production on Marvel’s Untitled Spider-Man Reboot, but that hasn’t stopped massive amounts of rumors, leaks, and fan speculation to come along each and every day. The film, which won’t see release for almost two years, is at the forefront of fans’ minds almost as much as next summer’s Captain America: Civil War, which also happens to feature everyone’s friendly neighborhood webslinger.
What do we know at this point about our new Spidey, his role in Civil War, his pending solo adventure, and his overall place within the Marvel Cinematic Universe? Not a whole lot just yet, but more than you might think. Let’s begin with what has been confirmed so far…
We know that the film will be a joint production between Marvel and Sony, with the former overseeing the majority of the creative decisions. We know that it will be directed by up-and-comer Jon Watts (Clown, Cop Car) and written by Jonathan Goldstein & John Francis Daley (Vacation, Cloudy With A Chance of Meatballs 2). We know that it will star Tom Holland as ‘Peter Parker/Spider-Man’, Marisa Tomei as ‘Aunt May Parker’, and Robert Downey Jr. as ‘Tony Stark/Iron Man’. Those are all definites at this stage, barring some unforeseen major change.
We also know that Peter Parker will still be in high school, probably around the age of 15 or 16, and a great majority of the film’s characters will be his similarly-aged friends and fellow students. We know that Stark will probably be assessing, training, and potentially recruiting Spider-Man into his new Avengers team based ahead of Avengers: Infinity War Part 1 (2018) and Avengers: Infinity War Part 2 (2019). After that, things get a little sketchier…
It is assumed that we will be getting a new Uncle Ben (likely similar in age to Tomei) for at least a montage or a few pictures around Peter’s home. It is also assumed that we will at least be getting a taste of infamous Daily Bugle editor-in-chief J. Jonah Jameson and his journalistic cohorts. Those roles, along with Peter’s friends and fellow students, are the ones that I most expect to be hearing about in terms of casting in the coming months.
What of villains? Feige and Watts have both confirmed that Marvel will not be reusing any of the rogues previously utilized in either Sony Spidey series right out of the gate. We might get Norman Osborn and/or his son Harry, but probably not a Green Goblin for a few films. I’m sure Marvel is also itching to “officially” bring Doctor Octopus, Sandman, Venom, Electro, and The Lizard to the MCU at some point as well, but for now they will have to wait.
On the villain front, I’d expect one or two classic villains for Peter to tangle with and maybe a few more cameoing or being referenced solely as their alter-egos. The likes of Mysterio, The Vulture, Chameleon, Scorpion, and Kraven all come to mind as potential antagonists. I’d wouldn’t be too surprised if someone like Osborn or Smythe was positioned as a Lex Luthor-type devious businessman providing street thugs with suits, perhaps at even the behest of Hydra? Cap’s infamous adversarial organization is clearly still in play, given their usage in Ant-Man and the appearance of Baron Zemo in Civil War, so I wouldn’t be too surprised at their inclusion here as well.
What about Spidey’s suit? Between the teasing shots found on Twitter and the latest batch of rumors, it sounds like Peter won’t have a “proper” Spider-Man outfit when he appears in Civil War (likely in not much more than an extended cameo). Instead, it looks as though he will be using a scrappy homemade one, which honestly jibes a lot of well with the notion that it is crafted by a teenager at home. Perhaps Stark or SHIELD will provide him with a new variation on the classic costume that we all know and love? It seems likely.
Really though, the most we know is that an out-of-his-depth teenage Peter Parker will be early on in his career as Spider-Man when we first meet him and tossed into a world that he isn’t ready for yet. If that doesn’t sound like our beloved underdog wallcrawler, I don’t know what does.
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James F. Reilly