You might think that the most anticipated MCU movie on the horizon is Avengers: Doomsday, featuring Robert Downey Jr.’s return after five years, but it seems that most of the scuttlebutt these days centers around the next Spider-Man, which will mark the fourth entry in the Tom Holland-led offshoot.
There was a time when we weren’t even sure if there would be more Spider-Man flicks in the MCU, so the fact that these films get greenlit years before production even begins is a blessing to many fans. Moreover, the next Spider-Man has been rumored to feature anything from iconic villains to the return of Tobey Maguire and Andrew Garfield and even Emma Stone as Gwen Stacy. As much as Avengers: Doomsday feels fan-servicey and compulsive, the next Spider-Man is fit to bursting with exciting possibilities, character and narrative-wise.
Now, a new document leak on social media is giving the game away in full. We always take these reports with a grain of salt, but you should probably stop reading right now in case it turns out to be real.
Still here? Then check out the leaked premise here:
“Following the events of Doomsday, Peter Parker is determine to lead a normal life and focus on college, stepping back from his responsibilities as Spider-Man. However, peace is short-lived when a deadly new threat emerges, endangering his friends and forcing Peter to reconsider his promise. With stakes higher than ever, Peter reluctantly returns to his Spider-Man identity and finds himself teaming up with an unlikely ally to protect those he loves. Andrew Garfield (Spider-Man), Michael Keaton (Vulture), and Robert Downey Jr. (Doctor Doom) mentioned to join the cast.”
There’s practically no telling whether this is legitimate, but the overall plot is as generic as they come these days from Marvel Studios, eh? What do you suppose happens after Doomsday that compels Parker to retire his superhero persona like Tobey Maguire briefly did in Spider-Man 2? Speaking of whom, why doesn’t this mention Maguire as a potential cast member? Sure, Andrew Garfield deserves another go as Spider-Man since he never got his own third film, but it wouldn’t do to snub Maguire now, not after he’s already made a comeback in No Way Home. As for that unlikely ally, we’re betting that it’s Doctor Doom. Tom Holland’s friendly neighborhood webhead and RDJ as a villain, forced to work together against a common foe, might sound incredibly hackneyed and banal at this point, but remembering their dynamic from the old days gives us a measure of furtive hype.
Then again, the premise as a whole is cliché, with fans praying that it’s just another one of a thousand ridiculous rumors floating around on the internet.
By the way, did you catch that title? Spider-Man: Brand New Day doesn’t exactly follow the formula established by the previous three movies. It could be a placeholder, but it might also indicate that the movie is going to loosely adapt the events of the Brave New Day comic series, depicted in the issues 546 to 564 in The Amazing Spider-Man.
At this point, I’m starting to think Marvel Studios is intentionally leaking all of these plot rumors to gauge audience reactions. If that’s the case, it’s the strangest process of elimination I’ve ever seen attempted by a studio.