Spider-Man Star Says Mysterio is a ‘Good Guy’ in Far From Home

Screen Rant

By Danny Salemme

Published Dec 24, 2018

Jake Gyllenhaal's Mysterio isn't just teaming up with Spider-Man to defeat the Elementals in Far From Home, he'll be portrayed as a good guy.

Jacob Batalon, who plays Peter Parker's friend Ned in the MCU's Spider-Man films, revealed that Mysterio will be a "good guy" in Spider-Man: Far From Home. Though portrayed as a villain in Spider-Man canon, Jake Gyllenhaal's portrayal of Quentin Beck won't be quite as traditional in the upcoming Spider-Man: Homecoming follow-up.

While plot details concerning Jon Watts' Spider-Man: Far From Home are sparse at best, Spidey's upcoming sequel follows high schooler Peter Parker (Tom Holland) as he and his friends are on vacation in Europe. Naturally, during their stay, Peter runs into trouble with a super-powered villain - in this case, a master of illusion named Quentin Beck (aka Mysterio). And, though it's already been revealed that Spider-Man and Mysterio will team up at some point to take on villainous characters known as the Elementals, it turns out that Mysterio leans closer toward the side of good than bad.

At Brazil’s Comic-Con CCXP (via Collider), Holland, Gyllenhaal, and Batalon discussed various details about the film without giving away too many specifics. That said, they did touch one major character detail surrounding Gyllenhaal's Mysterio - noting that he's not only going to be teaming up with Spider-Man at some point in the film, but will be portrayed as a "good guy." After talking about how Peter will end up reluctantly having to "save the world," Batalon revealed that "Mysterio’s a good guy in this; they’re both teaming up to kill the game, to defeat these Elemental monsters.”

The mystery surrounding Spider-Man: Far From Home is palpable. The same can be said for the two other Marvel Studios films being released in 2019 as well - Captain Marvel and Avengers: Endgame - but it's especially true for the web-slinger. Considering that Peter turns to dust by the end of Avengers: Infinity War, the mere existence of this Spider-Man sequels spoils at least one major reveal in the next Avengers film, without detailing how exactly Peter returns from behind the grave. So, with that said, it's curious to see Marvel Studios revealing so many major details about the movie, while also keeping specific plot details under wraps. It might suggest that there is more to Spider-Man: Far From Home than meets the eye.

As far as the types of villains who have appeared on-screen over the past ten years, the MCU has gotten a slightly bad rep. Aside form some notable standouts, like Thor: Ragnarok's Hela, Black Panther's Erik Killmonger, and Avengers: Infinity War's Thanos, Marvel Studios' approach has been mostly hit-or-miss. However, this popular criticism has clearly reached Kevin Feige and the creative team behind the MCU, and taking an approach with Mysterio that is so far removed from traditional villain portrayals is clearly their answer to the outcry. Whether it works remains to be seen, but - at the very least - audiences can't deny that Spider-Man: Far From Home isn't at least trying to step out of the box and give an unorthodox spin on the status quo the old college try.