For a while, Tom Holland’s fate as the live-action Spider-Man was in question. When last we saw the wall-crawler of the MCU, in the final moments of Spider-Man: No Way Home, the hero our selfless hero had conducted the ultimate sacrifice, allowing Doctor Strange (Benedict Cumberbatch) to cast a spell that meant everyone forgot who Peter Parker was. We anticipated news on the possibility of Spider-Man 4, and debated about whether the sequel would be a grounded and street-level story, or another beefed up chapter of the Marvel Multiverse storyline that potentially overloaded with team-ups, crossovers, and things that prevented it from just being a great Spider-Man movie.
Now we have more insight from legendary Spider-Man producer Amy Pascal, and her words are putting this nervous Spider-Man fan’s heart at ease. Let’s break it all down.
What did Amy Pascal say about Spider-Man 4?
Amy Pascal has been a driving force behind the cinematic Spider-Man stories since the earliest days. Pascal ran Sony Pictures back when Sam Raimi and Tobey Maguire got the franchise off the ground, and she retained the rights to Spidey when she broke off from the studio and formed her own production company.
Speaking with Deadline on behalf of the tennis drama Challengers, which she made with Spider-Man co-star Zendaya, Pascal opened up about the direction of Spider-Man 4, and admitted:
We have to deal with the fact that he decided he was going to give up being Peter Parker, and he was gonna focus on being Spider-Man, because being Peter Parker was too hard. So that’s what the movie is about.
From the very beginning, Pascal has understood that the Spider-Man movies have to be about character. I actually had the opportunity to interview Pascal for a book I wrote about the history of the Spider-Man film franchise, and she told me that the audiences coming to the theaters won’t care as much about Spider-Man and the danger that he puts himself into if they don’t initially care about Peter Parker. This is why when Spidey fans debate about their favorite actor who has stepped into the costume, the fans often break it down into which actor was good as Peter, which actor was good at Spider-Man, and if they have a preference, which actor managed to be great at both.
So when she confirms that Spider-Man 4 will continue to wrestle with this very difficult decision that Peter Parker made to close out No Way Home, I feel like Tom Holland and director Destin Daniel Cretton are on a preferred track.
Because the alternative could have been messy.
What I hope this means for Spider-Man 4
Tom Holland’s Spider-Man remains part of the MCU, and undoubtedly will be a major factor in the two announced upcoming Marvel movies, Avengers: Doomsday and Avengers: Secret Wars. There’s a possibility that Spidey might even lead a team of Avengers, with Iron Man and Captain America off the board.
So can we just make the next Spider-Man movie about Spider-Man?
That doesn’t seem like I’m asking a lot. But the previous Spider-Man movies in the MCU have leaned a little too heavily on the MCU, from Iron Man’s influence over Spider-Man: Homecoming, to Nick Fury’s meddling with Peter’s European vacation in Spider-Man: Far From Home. The third Spidey MCU movie overloaded on the concept of the Multiverse, but it allowed Tobey Maguire and Andrew Garfield the chance to appear on screen with Holland, so I’m willing to figure that.
But the worst possible scenario would have been if Spider-Man 4 was used by Marvel Studios as a set up film for the next two Avengers movies, instead of building out Spider-Man’s world. Something similar happened to Ant-Man and the Wasp: Quantumania, which spent the bulk of its time establishing Kang. And we know how that turned out.
I think that Spider-Man fans echo my concerns. We want a proper Spider-Man movie, and not an interdimensional preview of the next MCU movies. Make a film that’s relevant to this character, and his issues. You left him with a crippling issue, and a broken identity. To not spend the proper amount of time repairing that would be a disservice. So I’m thoroughly encouraged by Amy Pascal’s words that Spider-Man 4 will address the emotional state of Spidey in a post-Peter world.
From what we know, Spider-Man 4 will begin filming in 2025, and eye a July 26, 2026 release. For the time being, that leaves three confirmed Marvel movies on the studio’s slate, including Captain America: Brave New World, Thunderbolts*, and the anticipated The Fantastic Four: First Steps. Hopefully in time we will find out the villain of Spider-Man 4, and maybe confirmation if he’s going to team up with Daredevil (Charlie Cox), which feels like it could happen, and still maintain a street-level, personal story. Peter talking to Matt about their identity issues is very comic-centric. I can’t wait to hear more.
