Marvel fans had a brief panic a couple of months ago when talks broke down between Disney and Sony and it was looking like Spider-Man would be leaving the MCU on a giant cliffhanger. Fortunately, the two companies decided to play nice, at least until Spidey’s MCU trilogy is complete and he can be written out of the franchise with a couple of years’ notice. We don’t know much about the MCU’s Spider-Man 3, because until a few weeks ago, it didn’t exist. So, here are 5 Things That Have Been Confirmed For The MCU’s Spider-Man 3 (And 5 Fan Theories).
Confirmed: It’ll be “a Peter Parker story that has never been done before on film”
Kevin Feige, the cosmic overlord behind the entire MCU, is putting his producer’s hat back on for Spider-Man 3 after Sony desperately tried to remove it from his head. Feige has said that since Spider-Man: Far From Home’s mid-credits scene was such a bombshell, the next movie will be “a Peter Parker story that has never been done before on film.” There have been a couple of comic book storylines in which Peter Parker’s identity is revealed to the world, but it’s never been done on the big screen before, so it’ll be interesting to see how the MCU handles it.
Fan theory: Matt Murdock (or Jen Walters) will represent Spidey in court
Now that Spider-Man has had his identity revealed to the world along with doctored footage framing him for a city-wide terrorist attack, he’ll need a pretty good lawyer. And there just so happens to be a brilliant lawyer living in New York who would have a reason to sympathize with a superhero in crisis: Matt Murdock, a.k.a. Daredevil. If they bring him back, they should absolutely use Netflix actor Charlie Cox. In case the rights to the character are tangled up with Netflix, fans have also theorized that fellow lawyer-turned-superhero Jen Walters, a.k.a. She-Hulk — who just had a solo series announced for Disney+ — will represent Spidey in court.
Confirmed: Jon Watts is back in the director’s chair
Both Homecoming and Far From Home were directed by Jon Watts, so it wouldn’t be a true MCU Spider-Man movie if he didn’t helm the third one. Apparently, when it was looking like Sony would be continuing Far From Home’s story, Watts was in final talks with them, too. Although he’d never directed a big-budget movie before Homecoming, Watts has infused Marvel Studios’ Spider-Man solo franchise with a John Hughes-influenced high school comedy sensibility, and these movies wouldn’t feel the same without it. It’s no wonder that he’s been sought out for this movie, regardless of which studio was making it.
Fan theory: Kraven the Hunter will be the villain
Both Tom Holland and director Jon Watts have expressed interest in using Kraven the Hunter as the main villain in the MCU’s third Spider-Man outing, and many fans have backed them up. Not only is Kraven perhaps the most iconic Spidey villain who hasn’t yet graced the big screen, but he’s also perfect for this story.
Kraven’s deal is that he’s a big-game hunter who views the elusive Spider-Man as the ultimate prey. He wants to hang Spidey’s head over his mantel. Now that the Daily Bugle has given him Spider-Man’s real name, it’s the perfect excuse for the hunt to begin.
Confirmed: It’ll be released on July 16, 2021
The MCU’s third Spider-Man solo movie will be released on July 16, 2021. Since Marvel Studios had already announced three MCU releases for 2021 at this summer’s Comic-Con — Shang-Chi and the Legend of the Ten Rings, Doctor Strange in the Multiverse of Madness, and Thor: Love and Thunder — it will become the first year in which four MCU movies will be released. The previous record-setter was three releases in 2017 (Spidey and Thor were involved then, too). On July 16, Spider-Man 3 will face competition from Space Jam 2, as well as Indiana Jones 5 from the previous week and Mission: Impossible 7 on the following week.
Fan theory: Spider-Man teams up with the Punisher
Now that Spider-Man has been outed, everyone in New York’s criminal underbelly will know the name of the wisecracking super-teen they’ve been getting busted by for the past few years. At the beginning of the MCU’s Spider-Man 3, Peter Parker will be in essentially the same position John Wick was in at the beginning of Parabellum: half of New York wants to kill him, and he’s in plain sight in the middle of New York. Perhaps a sanitized PG-13 version of Jon Bernthal’s brutal on-screen incarnation of Frank Castle could come to his aid (or even to try to kill him himself).
Confirmed: Chris McKenna and Erik Sommers are writing the script
Marvel has already tapped its go-to Spider-Man writers Chris McKenna and Erik Sommers to pen the third movie. On Homecoming, they shared credit with Game Night directors Jonathan Goldstein and John Francis Daley, and director Jon Watts and his co-writer Christopher Ford, but on Far From Home, they were the sole screenwriters. Before working for Marvel Studios on the Spider-Man films and Ant-Man and the Wasp, McKenna and Sommers wrote for sitcoms like American Dad!, Community (which is also where Marvel found the Russo brothers, who recruited McKenna to punch up the script for Captain America: The Winter Soldier with jokes), and The Mindy Project.
Fan theory: Mysterio is alive
At the end of Spider-Man: Homecoming, the Vulture was alive and well in prison. He was free to join the Sinister Six in a later movie. At the end of Spider-Man: Far From Home, however, Mysterio was killed off. Some fans have taken this with a pinch of salt, because Quentin Beck’s power is creating realistic illusions. How do we know his death was real and not just an elaborate ruse?
There is every chance that he is dead and he’s not going to return in a shocking plot twist. But there’s also every chance that he is going to return. You never know with Mysterio.
Confirmed: Tom Holland and Zendaya are returning
This one is kind of a no-brainer, but Tom Holland and Zendaya are officially set to reprise their roles as Peter Parker and M.J., respectively, in the next Spider-Man movie. The two co-stars share incredible on-screen chemistry and play their respective characters perfectly. Far From Home ended with their romance finally blossoming, but it also ended with Peter’s life getting thrown into a tailspin by a supposedly dead villain and an unethical media presence. It’ll be interesting to see how the new pressures in Peter’s life, brought on by his identity being revealed to the world, will affect his burgeoning relationship with M.J..
Fan theory: The Sinister Six will be formed
The theory about Mysterio being alive is rolled into this one. If Mysterio is revealed to be alive in Spider-Man 3, it might be part of a wider plan to bring the Sinister Six together. The previous movies have already set the stage for this, with Adrian Toomes (a.k.a. the Vulture) and Mac Gargan (soon to be a.k.a. the Scorpion) ended up in the same prison at the end of Homecoming, and Peter Parker’s identity becoming public knowledge, telling anyone who might hate him who he is. The past two Spider-Man movies saw the webslinger face villains who really hated Tony Stark, cleaning up his surrogate father’s mess. In Spider-Man 3, he’ll face villains who really hate Peter Parker. Thus, the Sinister Six will be born.