The Marvel Cinematic Universe is an ever expanding place. With 13 movies currently released and a seemingly never ending slate continuing onward, serialized storytelling across multiple franchises may have truly broke the mold in the way that Hollywood releases its big budget adventures. But with the stories across the MCU now becoming far more expansive and wide reaching, it may be hard to believe the characters all occupy the same space.
Comicbook.com got to quickly chat with Spider-Man: Homecoming's director Jon Watts following an appearance at last weekend's San Diego Comic-Con. When asked about how the story of Peter Parker and his web-slinging fits into the extremely high-stakes films in the MCU, Watts said the following:
I think of it as the ground floor. If the Avengers Tower is the penthouse and we know what it's like to be a millionaire, billionaire playboy. To be Tony. Or we know what it's like to be a God on another planet. That's the penthouse level of the MCU. Spider-Man is the ground floor. What does a high school in the MCU look like? What does riding the subway in the MCU feel like? Spider-Man seems like the perfect opportunity because he's the most relatable, regular person in the canon. I thought he was a great chance to show what that angle of the MCU feels like.
Well, that's certainly a good way at looking at it. Although statements like Jon Watts' may raise a few new questions for fans of the web slinger.
To start, it's actually super exciting to hear how Spider-Man will be able to show a new perspective on the Marvel Cinematic Universe. The universe has certainly changed a lot, with quite a few near apocalyptic events happening sine Tony Stark first stepped into the suit in Iron Man. And while we know how the heroes, villains, and government officials feel about The Avengers' super powered antics, we haven't gotten much of a perspective on the common man. Alfre Woodard gave us a taste of this perspective in Captain America: Civil War, but overall it's relatively unexplored territory.
But Jon Watt's statement also might seem a bit problematic to some. If his statement ranking the MCU entries into a hierarchy is related to more than just socio-economics and privilege, then it's possible that Peter Parker's challenges may not seem as high-stakes as those of Tony Stark. To an audience that has seen New York invaded by savage creatures and an entire city float into the air, bullies and prom may seem a disjointed if they are a focus in Spider-Man: Homecoming.
Of course, Peter Parker has always been one of the most charming exciting Marvel characters. And with Tom Holland already kicking major ass in the role, we may find ourselves quickly obsessed with the New York City journey of everyone's favorite web-slinger.
