It is no stretch that the Marvel Studios and Sony Pictures upcoming third entry in the Tom Holland-led Spider-Man film series is the most plagued with leaks. Even with Holland being surprisingly mum with leaking spoilers, the leaked trailer earlier this year and crumbs of details such as photos appearing on social media have been popping up more and more as the film’s release draws closer. What have the new poster, IMDB cast list, viral photos, and Tom Holland possibly leaked about the most anticipated film in 2021? Read on for the complete rundown.
Spider-Man: No Way Home Official Poster and speculations
The Spider-Man: No Way Home official poster certainly has a number of details. Although we have already seen the Iron Spider suit worn by Tom Holland’s Spider-Man will have key scenes in the movie, the official poster apparently confirms the villains. Otto Octavius/Doctor Octopus (Alfred Molina) is, of course, prominently featured, though not in full. Instead, his infamous mechanical self-aware arms dominate the imagery. The good doctor himself is off-camera. However, this is not a surprise, given that he appeared in the first Spider-Man: No Way Home trailer.
— Spider-Man: No Way Home (@SpiderManMovie) November 8, 2021 One key figure in the poster is what appears to be Willem Dafoe’s Norman Osborn aka The Green Goblin. Dafoe last appeared as the villainous miscreant in costume way back in the first Spider-Man (2002), with cameos in later entries as Norman Osborn, mentally and emotionally plaguing his son Harry Osborn (played by James Franco). In the Spider-Man: No Way Home trailer, only one of the Goblin Bombs was shown, indicating his inclusion in the movie. Dafoe in costume and riding his Goblin Glider on the official poster is a more solid confirmation that he will be returning to menace the Wall-Crawler. The other details on the official poster are more cryptic with confirming the other villains.
A lightning bolt striking in the distance is likely a nod to Max Dillon/Electro. This is also not a surprise, as Jamie Foxx has been confirmed to be returning, though in a modified version and not the blue-skinned electrical being from 2014’s The Amazing Spider-Man 2. Sand being whipped violently in a tendril-like form seems to allude to the return of Flint Marko, aka the Sandman. The super-villain was portrayed by Thomas Haden Church in Spider-Man 3 (2007). Some fans have speculated that the clouds and sky are hinting at Adrian Toomes/The Vulture. Played by Michael Keaton in Spider-Man: Homecoming 2017, the character is also confirmed for Sony Pictures’ Morbius, appearing in the recent trailers. The rubble Spider-Man is standing on is a possible allusion to The Rhino. The character Aleksei Sytsevich (played by Paul Giamatti) did appear in The Amazing Spider-Man 2 during the introduction scenes and at the end of the film, opposite Andrew Garfield’s Spider-Man. He did appear in a robotic suit, possibly setting up the third entry in the Amazing Spider-Man series that, unfortunately, did not get realized.
Although Giamatti’s the Rhino is a bit of a stretch, it is a distinct possibility. However, assuming these speculations are true, that only sets up 5 super-villains. Given that Spider-Man: No Way Home rumors are that it will be a shorthand introduction of the Sinister Six, that leaves at least one more slot unfilled. Could it be Tom Hardy’s Venom? The end credits of Venom: Let There Be Carnage may be the lead in to this development. Other possibilities could be Mysterio who faked his own death and the Lizard (Curtis Connors, played by Rhys Ifans in 2012’s The Amazing Spider-Man). Ifans is already listed in the IMDB page of the film’s cast (along with Thomas Haden Church), so the latter is most likely.
Leaked pics with Spider-Men and… Matt Murdock?
While the official Spider-Man: No Way Home has garnered a lot of interest, an even more hotly debated potential leak comes from John Campea. A movie industry pundit with a regular YouTube uploaded show called appropriately enough The John Campea Show, he recently shared images that had fans on social media buzzing. Campea posted on his Twitter account two very interesting low resolution pictures. One picture depicted the three big screen Spider-Men: Tobey Maguire, Andrew Garfield, and Tom Holland. In the image, the three Spideys are wearing their superhero costumes from their respective franchises, with Holland wearing the most recent standard costume from Spider-Man: Far From Home, instead of the first one that debuted in Captain America: Civil War. All three have their masks removed, showing the older faces of Maguire and Garfield compared to their last appearances as Peter Parker. The picture depicts the three standing on what appears to be a construction platform, with what appears to be a sunset, given the stark orange hue of the lighting. In the far background is the New York City skyline. The second picture that Campea posted on Twitter was of the Parker apartment. Sitting around the table are Jon Favreau (Happy Hogan), Marisa Tomei (May Parker), and Holland’s Peter Parker. But the real scene stealer is Charlie Cox, apparently reprising his role as lawyer Matt Murdock aka Daredevil from the critically acclaimed series on Netflix. Cox sported a different, shorter haircut than his previous outing as the blind legal counsel, wearing his signature sunglasses and his walking stick. Marvel Studios CEO and chief creative officer Kevin Feige has gone on record to say that there are plans to bring over actors that he liked from the Netflix Marvel series (Daredevil, Jessica Jones, Luke Cage, Iron Fist, and The Punisher). However, the characters and plot threads would be modified to fit into the MCU.
— Deadline Hollywood (@DEADLINE) February 24, 2021 Moreover, Feige and Marvel Studios have not officially announced which actors would make the jump. With that said, Charlie Cox and his take on Matt Murdock/Daredevil was indeed one of those Feige really liked, aside from Vincent d’Onofrio’s Kingpin and Krysten Ritter’s Jessica Jones. Rumors have also been going around that Matt Murdock will have a key role in the upcoming Disney+ exclusive show She-Hulk. Cox’s Matt Murdock appearing in Spider-Man: No Way Home would make sense as Peter’s attorney with the potential legal battles he has to face in the wake of being framed for the murder of Quentin Beck/Mysterio (Jake Gyllenhaal) at the end of Spider-Man: Far From Home.
Legit leaks?
Campea has since deleted the posts with the Spider-Men and Charlie Cox’s Matt Murdock pictures after they went viral. He has also stated that he did not believe they are actually real, arguing that he would not have placed his watermark on them if he had thought they were legitimate leaks.
“People don’t believe me when I say that [Maguire and Garfield] are not coming back. But people are going to have to believe me at some point.” — John Campea (@johncampea) November 10, 2021 This is not surprising, given how Marvel Studios/Disney and Sony Pictures were very strict with the first trailer leak, going so far as blacklisting social media accounts of individuals and websites that shared the leaked version. While it is true the pictures have a low resolution and may be edited, it is also possible that they are previs. Previs are short for previsualizations. They are a form of visualizing the scenes being shot. A previs is an extension of the traditional storyboard process. Where storyboards are hand drawn and in black and white, previs are in color and often use digitally manipulated images. They are not intended to be high definition and are only used to provide references for both the director and the VFX teams for post-production. Could the photos have been previs leaks? Even if they will not be how the actual scenes will look, the mere fact that they might confirm the inclusion of the two prior Spider-Men (Maguire and Garfield) but also Matt Murdock being incorporated into the MCU proper is a big deal, especially for fans who are anticipating the movie. But with Campea deleting the photos and stating they are probably not real, it quashes the speculation… for now.
Tom Holland finally spoils it (or does he?)
But wait! There’s more! Speaking to Total Film via MCU Direct, Tom Holland talked about the experience and emotional content of the plot to Spider-Man: No Way Home: He later gave an enigmatic statement about the cast: This is the first true confirmation that Jamie Foxx is in the film and returning as Electro. But more importantly, Holland may have hinted at the other Spider-Men.
— Total Film (@totalfilm) November 9, 2021 To be fair, Holland is quick to point out that he is referring to the villains. Various interviews with Tobey Maguire and Andrew Garfield have also led to their denial of their participation in the new Spider-Man film. But given Holland’s history of blurting things out about the films he is in, this could be one of those times. That is certainly a juicy possibility.
New TV Spot
Regardless, expect more potential leaks as December draws ever closer. And a second trailer will likely be dropping this November long before then. Keep an eye out for that! But for now, a new TV spot just dropped: Directed by Jon Watts, Spider-Man: No Way Home stars Tom Holland (Peter Parker/Spider-Man), Zendaya (MJ), Jacob Batalon (Ned Leeds), Marisa Tomei (May Parker), Jon Favreau (Happy Hogan), Alfred Molina (Otto Octavius/Doc Ock), Jamie Foxx (Max Dillon/Electro), Rhys Ifans (Dr. Curtis Connors/The Lizard), Thomas Haden Church (Flint Marko/Sandman), Benedict Cumberbatch (Doctor Stephen Strange), and Benedict Wong (Wong) with Toni Revolori (Flash Thompson), Angourie Rice (Betty Brant), Martin Starr (Roger Harrington), J.B. Smoove (Julius Dell), Hannibal Buress (Andre Wilson). Produced by Marvel Studios, Columbia Pictures, and Pascal Pictures, to be distributed by Sony Pictures Releasing, Spider-Man: No Way Home web-swings to theaters worldwide on December 17, 2021 with delayed releases for Japan and the Philippines on January 7 and 8, 2022 respectively.
