Spider-Man: No Way Home Concept Art Reveals Alternate Aunt May Death

Though already a heartbreaking moment, new Spider-Man: No Way Home concept art reveals an alternate version of Aunt May's death. The third installment in the Marvel Cinematic Universe franchise saw Tom Holland's Peter Parker breaking the doors of the multiverse open with the help of Benedict Cumberbatch's Doctor Strange in the hopes of restoring his secret identity after being exposed by Jake Gyllenhaal's Mysterio in the previous film. Spider-Man: No Way Home saw Holland pitted against a variety of villains, namely Willem Dafoe's Green Goblin, who delivered one of the biggest blows to the young webslinger near the halfway point of the film.

Just over a year after the multiverse epic first hit theaters, artist Phil Langone has taken to Instagram to share new Spider-Man: No Way Home concept art.

The storyboard reel reveals an alternate version of Aunt May's death, with Marisa Tomei's character meeting her end at the hands of Jake Gyllenhaal's Mysterio under an elevated train track near Peter's school. The concept art also sees a new side to Holland's webslinger as he unleashes his rage onto the MCU villain, which Langone dubbed to be "Berserk Spidey".

Why Mysterio Was The Wrong Choice To Kill Aunt May

Though Aunt May's death has been met with some division since the film's release, the new concept art's reveal that Mysterio was nearly behind her demise in Spider-Man: No Way Home is sure to be seen as a weaker decision. Outside of the obvious need to explain how Mysterio returned following his own seeming death in Spider-Man: Far From Home, his killing Peter's mother figure would've lacked the same emotional impact as Dafoe's Green Goblin given Holland's hero spent the better part of the film's middle acts attempting to cure his mental illness and restore him to his once-sane self. While a Mysterio and Spidey rematch could've been a powerful one following his betrayal in the prior film, his having already nearly killed MJ and Ned would've made his killing Aunt May less impactful.

The other major downside to Mysterio killing Aunt May in Spider-Man: No Way Home was how it'd take away from the emotional arc Tobey Maguire's incarnation of the webslinger gets from having to square off against his first nemesis once more. While the latter two installments in Sam Raimi's Spider-Man trilogy pitted Maguire against multiple villains with close ties to Peter's personal life, few have surpassed the emotional core of Norman Osborne in the original 2002 movie, who served as a mentor figure to the young hero and put him and his best friend Harry on an eventual path of conflict. His having to fight Norman again not only proved a nostalgic treat for fans of Maguire's trilogy, but also delivered an additional bit of character development as he prevented Holland's Peter from repeating his past mistakes.

Everything We Know About Tom Holland's Spider-Man Future

Spider-Man No Way Home Ending Tom Holland Peter Parker

With Spider-Man: No Way Home memorably ending with the world forgetting who Peter is, Holland's future in the MCU has been the subject of much debate, namely as the franchise continues its dive into the Multiverse Saga. As calls continue for Sony to revive Maguire's Spider-Man 4 and Andrew Garfield's The Amazing Spider-Man 3, Sony chairman Tom Rothman did recently confirm plans were still in the works for Holland's return, though didn't offer any kind of timeline for when it would get off the ground. Additionally, while franchise director Jon Watts departed the Fantastic Four reboot in order to take a break from blockbuster filmmaking, a subsequent report did indicate he was still expected to return along with Holland and Zendaya for another film, or another Spider-Man trilogy, as teased by producer Amy Pascal.

More: Tom Holland's Spider-Man 4 Doesn't Need The MCUSource: Phil Langone/Instagram