If Die Hard has taught us anything, it is the value of setting an action film during the holidays. What could have been merely a great action film was elevated to a bona fide classic and a staple of the Christmas season thanks to its holiday trappings. In some ways, it is surprising that you don't see more films taking advantage of the most wonderful time of the year. Now, what we really need to see is future Spider-Man movies set during Christmas. Why Spidey, of all the big screen superheroes, you ask? Well, conjure up the Christmas spirit, let visions of sugarplums dance in your head, and check out this concept art below.
How did no one think of this before? We need to see all future Spidey movies set during Christmas. It's just silly how perfectly the season fits with everyone's favorite web crawler. I imagine Spidey is doing a December patrol in Central Park in this image, watching carriages carrying carolers. The holidays just add another layer to the narrative and create interesting storytelling and visual opportunities. Ryan Meinerding, the artist behind this concept art on Instagram, is a character designer and the Marvel Studios Head of Visual Development. He could have chosen any character to accompany season's greetings, but he chose Spider-Man and it's easy to see why.
Spider-Man and Christmas just complement one another in ways no other hero does. As a resident of New York City, Spider-Man is in one of the more Christmas-y parts of the country during the holiday season. The lights here are what really open up the possibilities. Imagine Spider-Man swinging on holiday lights through the city during Christmas as snow blankets the city. No matter how Grinch-y your heart may be, who doesn't want to see that? Who better than the friendly neighborhood Spider-Man to swing around Rockefeller Center on Christmas lights and use his webs to lower the star onto the top of the tree? Peter Parker is a fun-loving character and I could totally see him wearing a Santa hat and an ugly light-up Christmas sweater over his suit, giving out seasons greetings as he battles all manner of Scrooges. That's just off the top of my head, I imagine there are a ton of other magical Spider-Man and Christmas combinations.
Part of what made Spider-Man: Homecoming so great was how it truly captured this young character, with real teenage problems, learning how and what it means to be a superhero. As a character he is more grounded than the gods of the Marvel Universe and his personal life is far more integral to his story and who he is. When you've lost a family member, the holidays are always the hardest. So a Christmas Spidey movie would also allow more emotional insight into Peter Parker. While his first solo outing in the MCU revolved around a homecoming dance, why couldn't this one revolve around the Christmas season? With Gwen Stacy likely entering the story perhaps Peter could take her to a Winter Formal or something. If Spider-Man: Homecoming 2 isn't set during Christmas, I'm starting to feel it will be a huge missed opportunity.
