Spider-Man: No Way Home Is a Marvelous Must-See for Tom Holland & Spidey Fans (2024)

Spider-Man: No Way Home opens exactly where the previous movie, Spider-Man: Far From Home, ended. Specifically, the mid-credits sequence where Peter Parker (Tom Holland) was publicly unmasked. Now exposed to public scorn and forced to make his loved ones forget who he is, this threequel unpacks the webslinger's cinematic legacy and introduces a volatile multiverse. Spider-Man: No Way Home is a master stroke that echoes the invention of Avengers: Endgame and allows Holland to step up, aided by his brothers in Sony-sized spandex, Tobey Maguire and Andrew Garfield. Unfortunately, with three times the responsibility comes three times the villainy. Cue the arrival of five fearsome foes who hunt down the three Spider-Men across the movie.

With a roll call of acting royalty including Willem Dafoe (Norman Osborn aka The Green Goblin), Alfred Molina (Doctor Otto Octavius aka Doc Ock) and Jamie Foxx (Max Dillon aka Electro) on screen, the Marvel Cinematic Universe (MCU) had every intention of making a landmark movie like no other with Holland's third solo outing. That this marks the moment Matt Murdock (Charlie Cox) makes his first post-Netflix appearance on MCU soil is also important, because it’s a crossover fans never thought would or could happen. After the cancelation of Daredevil on Netflix, which featured some of the best casting in superhero history, this moment is almost worth the admission price on its own. However, Spider-Man: No Way Home never made it to a billion-dollar box office off the back of one cameo, so the question is what else does it have to offer?

Tobey Maguire, Andrew Garfield & Tom Holland Are an Unstoppable Force

Marvel's Three Spider-Men Made Fan's Wildest Dreams A Reality

Honestly, audiences were only ever there to watch Spider-Man: No Way Home for that team-up. Then and now, fans hunkered down in cinemas to see Holland, Garfield, and Maguire slip back into character and make the movie really rock. Some were understandably worried that the third part of Holland's MCU series would be an overhyped disappointment that only relied on nostalgia. Thankfully, the movie exceeded all expectations, as all three Peter Parkers instantly gelled and seemed to revel in this rarest of opportunities.

It may take some time to pay off, but there is no doubt that having the back-up of two seasoned actors and previous Spider-Men onboard helped Holland up his game. With two Oscar nominations for Hacksaw Ridge and Tick, Tick, Boom under his belt since he last slipped into spandex, Garfield eagerly embraced his inner Spider-Man again, giving this threequel some extra juice. Maguire also pulled off his return with ease, relishing in the camaraderie of other actors across multiple scenes. Giving these actors an opportunity to interact created a unique dynamic where they forged a brotherly bond and built a cinematic bridge between different generations of Spider-Man movies. Spider-Man: No Way Home's multiversal crossover wasn't just a savvy storytelling technique that bumped up its box office numbers, but a recognition of a shared legacy between the stars and movie-goers as well.

In retrospect, Maguire remains the most impressive Spider-Man since his legacy as the first cinematic wall-crawler adds perspective. Two decades on, with the most iconic villains in his back catalog, Maguire clearly saw this as a chance to remind audiences how good he could be. Looking back, Garfield might have lacked the same level of onscreen villainy, but no one had more of a point to prove, even with two Oscar nominations in his rearview mirror.

Having been rudely re-cast without a conversation after The Amazing Spider-Man 2's lukewarm performance that was in no way Garfield's fault, being invited back must have felt like a serious case of karma and an opportunity for closure. On the evidence of his turn in Spider-Man: No Way Home, Garfield clearly had some unfinished business with Peter. In fact, this film might be the reason both Garfield and Maguire are rumored to be back for spin-off films in a separate Sony universe. But as amazing as it was to see Maguire and Garfield reprise their roles, Holland is still the Spider-Man who pushed this film to its billion-dollar box office take and will undoubtedly get audiences back in cinemas, both for this movie and his highly-anticipated MCU return in Phase 6.

Green Goblin & Doc Ock Made Their Mark on the MCU’s Multiverse

Only Two of the Movie’s Six Villains Left a Lasting Impact on Peter Parker’s Life

Not only did the MCU stack the deck with three generational Spider-Men, but for Holland’s next outing as Peter, they upped the ante in other ways. In particular, bringing back iconic villains for a battle royale that the MCU web-slinger could never hope to survive on his own. Not only that, their arrival hit him and audiences like a sledgehammer, testing the hero's mettle and that of his soulmates in spandex. Cue the returns of The Green Goblin and Doc Ock from Sam Raimi's original Spider-Man trilogy. Both conflicted men pulled into Peter’s world on a cosmic whim looking for payback with their respective Spider-Man, this might be the most inspired move writers Chris McKenna and Erik Sommers pulled off, since both Osborn and Octavious challenged this MCU Peter in different but integral ways.

For Dafoe, an opportunity to come back and play a different side of Osborn and the Green Goblin was a no-brainer. Switching seamlessly between personas and eliciting both empathy and apathy all the while, Dafoe went for broke in bringing this legendary supervillain back from the dead. Having been pulled in from a different dimension, his disarming puppy dog persona sidesteps expectations. At least that was before the Goblin resurfaced and systematically tore Peter's life apart piece by piece, leaving the young hero holding his beloved Aunt May’s bloodied body. This savage attack edged Spider-Man: No Way Home into darkness and compromised the MCU Peter, fuelling a bloody vendetta and almost pushing him to breaking point.

On the flipside was Doc Ock, who started out as a mentor and friend to his Peter in Spider-Man 2. Having suffered a similar fate to Osborn (namely dying shortly after snapping out of his super villainy), he was also a man out of time filled with rage looking for an outlet. Molina may play second fiddle to Dafoe, but there is no denying his acting abilities as he conveys Doc Ock's irrational anger or his levels of humility when he experiences this movie's most powerful cathartic moment. Seeing Doc Ock reconnect with his Peter after all these years adds both an unexpected degree of pathos and heartfelt nostalgic to this franchise for diehard fans.

Unfortunately, Spider-Man: No Way Home failed to offer the other villains the same courtesy or screentime. Rhy Ifans (The Lizard from The Amazing Spider-Man) was given little to do and ended up feeling like an afterthought rather than a genuine threat. Thomas Haden Church suffered a similar fate as Flint Marko (aka the Sandman) from Spider-Man 3. Jamie Foxx returns as Max Dillon (Electro from The Amazing Spider-Man 2) and clearly had some fun, but he still ended up feeling like a third wheel. The fact that a drunk Eddie Brock's and Venom's (Tom Hardy) goofy cameo in the mid-credits scene is better remembered than anything The Lizard, Sandman and Electro did says it all. Thankfully, with the emotional one-two sucker punch of a truly heroic sacrifice made by the MCU's Peter in its final minutes, Spider-Man: No Way Home more than makes up for these shortcomings.

Spider-Man: No Way Home Is a Defining Moment for Tom Holland & the MCU

Tom Holland Hits Another Home Run in His Third Solo Spider-Man Movie

These days, Spider-Man: No Way Home is often unfairly and reductively dismissed for having too many camoes and prioritizing the MCU multiverse. This might have been the movie that prominently featured Doctor Strange (Benedict Cumberbatch) and re-introduced Daredevil, but it's also one of the strongest entries in Phase 4. Released in 2021 between Eternals and Doctor Strange in the Multiverse of Madness, Spider-Man: No Way Home remains an impressive movie and piece of superhero storytelling. The combination of top tier villainy, interdimensional Spider-Men, and Peter's gut-wrenching losses deliver one of the most satisfying finales since Avengers: Endgame. The case could even be made for it being one of the best Spider-Man movies to date.

Holland may be taking a break from the big screen by portraying Romeo in the latest stage adaptation of William Shakespeare's Romeo and Juliet, but his career and future with Marvel are assured. Having been the best thing in all three movies, which already had some serious talent involved, Holland redefined Spider-Man for a new generation and made the beloved hero his own. He did this not only by reintroducing younger audiences to his cinematic contemporaries in Maguire and Garfield, but by making sure that his MCU record remains unblemished.

For those still hesitating about that trip to the multiplex for Spider-Man: No Way Home, let these words of wisdom allay any further fears. The MCU's Spider-Man remains one of the most crucial elements for the MCU going forward. Whispers of his involvement in Avengers: Secret Wars are rife and right now, the MCU could do with a win. Who knows, maybe Spider-Man will find his way back home after all.

Spider-Man: No Way Home is now available to own physically and digitally. The movie will return to cinemas for a limited time.

Spider-Man: No Way Home

9

10

With Spider-Man's identity now revealed, Peter asks Doctor Strange for help. When a spell goes wrong, dangerous foes from other worlds start to appear, forcing Peter to discover what it truly means to be Spider-Man.

Pros

• Tom Holland, Tobey Maguire and Andrew Garfield make the movie.
• Willem Dafoe and Alfred Molina deliver the goods.
• Writers Chris McKenna and Erik Sommers have crafted a landmark movie

Cons

• Electro, Sandman and The Lizard are short changed.