Spider-Man: No Way Home is swinging into theaters soon as part of the Marvel Phase 4 movies, and with that is the arrival of several villains who might not look so familiar to regular Marvel Cinematic Universe fans. But, to fans of the Spider-Man movies prior to Tom Holland taking over the role, some of these characters feel like old friends. These include villains like Doc Ock, the Green Goblin, and Electro.
Electro first appeared when Andrew Garfield played the friendly neighborhood superhero in one of his films, in The Amazing Spider-Man 2. The villain is portrayed by Jamie Foxx, and while it’s confirmed that he will be appearing in the upcoming third installment of the MCU’s Spider-Man franchise, some fans might be wondering exactly who he is. For those who are interested, here are the six things you must remember about Jamie Foxx’s Electro prior to Spider-Man: No Way Home.
Electro In The Amazing Spider-Man 2 Had A Different Origin Story Than In The Comics
While movies often take liberties for certain hero or villain origin stories, Electro’s origin isn’t that much different from the one that is often used in the comics. Obviously, we know it comes from electricity - hence the name Electro - but in The Amazing Spider-Man 2, Electro’s powers come from his workplace rather than somewhere else.
In the comics, Electro receives his powers from a burst of lightning that strikes a power line that Max Dillon (the man who becomes Electro) was repairing. However, in The Amazing Spider-Man 2, Electro receives his powers after getting shocked by a power line he was repairing within Oscorp Industries.
When this happens, the shock is so much that it knocks him into a tank of genetically-engineered electric eels, who sting him several times until the tank shatters.
Electro’s Powers Are Exactly What You Think - He’s Able To Control Electricity
With a name like Electro, it would make sense that his power is the ability to control electricity. He is able to generate and discharge electricity, as well as absorbing it from any equipment that uses it.
In The Amazing Spider-Man 2, we see the capabilities of his gift/curse from one of his first scenes, where he is attempting to harvest the power of all of Times Square in New York City - which is obviously filled to the brim with electricity. His powers are deadly if one is not prepared with a, probably, well-insulated suit that can withstand that amount of electricity. Or, you should be prepped with a super-powered water gun, as completely soaking Electro with water is a way of stopping him.
Electro Has A Completely Different Appearance In The Amazing Spider-Man 2 Than In Spider-Man: No Way Home
In The Amazing Spider-Man 2, Electro actually has a completely different look from his comic counterpart - and one that’s even different from No Way Home. Jaime Foxx’s character in The Amazing Spider-Man 2 is completely coated in a blue light, permanently changing his skin color, making it impossible to hide his identity.
In the comics, Electro isn’t blue at all, but rather has a green and yellow get-up with yellow bolts of electricity that shoot from his body. With Jamie Foxx confirmed for Spider-Man: No Way Home - and appearing in the trailer - we see that Electro is no longer blue, but has his proper, yellow, color from the comics now.
Another change of his appearance in the trailer is that he looks like he has a regular tactical suit of some kind that works with his powers, as well as what looks like a reactor across his chest that seems eerily similar to the one Tony Stark had. What this means for his character in Spider-Man: No Way Home, we don’t know yet, but it’s important to remember.
Electro Used To Idolize Spider-Man
Something that is super important from The Amazing Spider-Man 2 is that Electro isn’t a totally evil man who hates Spider-Man. In fact, he used to love him.
While working as an engineer at Oscorp Industries, Max Dillion was a well-mannered employee who never really stood out from the crowd and was often considered invisible. One day, while Max was on his way to work, Spider-Man saved him from a flying car, saying that “he needs him” and that he was important.
Since Max is never considered important and feels unseen by the rest of the world, he starts to idolize Spider-Man, so much that he calls him his friend and pretends that he’s talking to him. However, when Max turns into Electro, and Spider-Man attempts to stop him from harvesting Times Square’s energy, Max feels like Spider-Man was just playing him and never really cared about him.
After that, he wants to end Spider-Man, and feels that now, because he has the power, he wants to show the world what he is capable of and that he’s not invisible. At the end of the day, his hatred for the young hero is steeped in his insecurities about wanting to feel important, because he’s an outsider everywhere else.
He really thought Spider-Man cared about him personally, but when he found out that wasn’t necessarily the case, he snapped.
Electro Was Studied At The Ravencroft Institute - Before Being Broken Out By Harry Osborn
After Spider-Man successfully stopped Electro the first time in The Amazing Spider-Man 2, Electro was captured by the people who run The Ravencroft Institute - otherwise known as The Ravencroft Institute for the Criminally Insane.
There, Electro was studied for his powers, their usage, and how they might be of help to Oscorp Industries, and pretty much tortured on a daily basis through the tests. He is only broken out when a desperate Harry Osborn proposes that Electro help him infiltrate Oscorp so Harry can get spider venom to survive his family's genetic illness, with Harry saying he'd have a suit made for Electro so that he can control his powers.
Saying that Harry “wants to be friends,” Electro accepts the offer and helps the dying man out. Once his mission is successful, Electro is given access to the power grid for all of New York’s electricity - something that Oscorp (and Max himself) was working on - giving him all the power in the city.
Electro Actually Died In The Amazing Spider-Man 2 - Because Of His Own Powers
Like many Spider-Man villains of the past, Jamie Foxx’s Electro actually died in The Amazing Spider-Man 2. When Max tries to gain the power of the whole city through its power grid, Spider-Man fights him, now having his web shooters magnetized so they can hold an electrical charge.
Peter tries to use a water pipe that he breaks to stop him, but Electro has the ability to control his powers and uses them to stop the water. They fight back and forth for some time until Gwen Stacy (who works for Oscorp and knows how to reset the power) and Spider-Man figure out that if they overcharge him with electricity, it can kill him, like a battery.
After another round of fighting, Spider-Man uses his webs as a charge, with the electricity Electro was shooting at him through the grid, and then shoots it right back at Electro when Gwen resets the power. This, in turn, proves to be too much for Electro, and it explodes his body, effectively killing him.
However, since he did die in The Amazing Spider-Man 2, that doesn’t explain how he’s alive in the trailer for Spider-Man: No Way Home. Maybe this could explain why he looks completely different in the trailer - as he's, perhaps, from another branch of Marvel's Multiverse where he wasn’t blue and didn’t die. I’m not sure. Hopefully that will be answered soon enough.
Spider-Man: No Way Home comes to theaters on December 17th, so now's the best time to rewatch the older Spider-Man movies and get informed on all these iconic villains. After that, why not just watch all the Marvel movies in order? I’m so excited for Spider-Man, and the inclusion of Electro, once more.
