TheMCUSpider-Man 4’s tone won’t be an issue if it borrows a page fromSpider-Man: Into the Spider-Verse’s book. Like many other Marvel characters, Spider-Man has always been a street-level hero as much as he has been a larger-than-life superhero. One day Spider-Man is struggling against villains like Kraven, Vulture, Hammerhead, and Tarantula, and the other he’s battling Thanos and Doctor Doom with the Avengers and the Fantastic Four.
AfterSpider-Man: No Way Home’s endingleft Tom Holland’s Peter Parker alone and forgotten by everyone, Spider-Man’s MCU journey seems to be heading toward a more subdued sequel, where Spidey focuses on being a Friendly Neighborhood vigilante instead of a world-saving superhero. On the other hand,Spider-Man 4’s release datemight fall betweenAvengers: DoomsdayandAvengers: Secret Warsin Phase 6, meaning that the MCU’s fourthSpider-Maninstallment may have to tie into bothAvengersmovies' multiversal plot. Hence,the main question surroudingSpider-Man 4is whether it will be a grounded sequel or a multiversal one.
Into The Spider-Verse Showed How Spider-Man 4 Can Be A Street-Level, Multiversal Movie
Spider-Man: Into The Spider-Verse Balanced Both Tones Masterfully
Spider-Man: Into the Spider-Verseis a multiversal movie by nature, with the concept of multiple parallel timelines coexisting and interfering with each other at its center.However,Spider-Man: Into the Spider-Versefeatures many moments where Miles Morales' main conflict is grounded. For instance, Miles' escape from the Prowler, Miles and Peter’s escape from Doctor Octopus, and their team’s fight against multiple villains at Aunt May’s fight are all action scenes with street-level stakes and a relatively small scope. While the context is multiversal, these scenes would have worked just as well in a more grounded movie.
Spider-Man 4could center around Spider-Man’s street-level conflict with more realistic villains like Kingpin, Scorpion, or Prowler
Spider-Man 4could replicateSpider-Man: Into the Spider-Verse’s perfect mix of multiversal context and street-level conflict. IfSpider-Man 4comes out afterAvengers: Doomsday, Peter Parker’s next MCU adventure could take place in a world affected by the Avengers' multiversal battle with Doctor Doom, or possibly in an altered timeline that resembles Marvel Comics' Battleworld. At the same time,Spider-Man 4could center around Spider-Man’s street-level conflict with more realistic villains like Kingpin, Scorpion, or Prowler. Titles such asHawkeye,Ant-Man and the Wasp, andSpider-Man: Far From Homedid something similar with their acknowledgment of Thanos' Snap before delving into their own stories.
The MCU’s Spider-Man Appearances Have Overcome Increasingly Bigger Challenges
Every MCU Spider-Man Appearance Has Pushed The Boundaries Of What Fans Thought Possible
Spider-Man 4’s tone and plot may seem like a tall order at this point, butstriking the right balance between street-level and multiversal can’t compare to Spider-Man’s previous MCU challenges. BeforeCaptain America: Civil War’s first trailer dropped, seeing Spider-Man share the screen with the Avengers in the MCU used to sound like an impossible scenario. Then, after Spider-Man fought Team Captain America inCaptain America: Civil Warand starred inSpider-Man: Homecoming, the idea of seeing Spidey in space would have seemed ludicrous. Yet, Spider-Man fought Thanos alongside the Guardians of the Galaxy inAvengers: Infinity Warjust one year later.
Sam Raimi’sSpider-Manfranchise hadn’t been officially canceled by the time the MCU began.Iron Manwas released in 2008 and Raimi’sSpider-Man 4was canceled in 2010.
Marvel Studios continued to surpass expectations withSpider-Man’s following MCU appearances. For instance, Spider-Man came back from the dead thanks to the Avengers' invention of time travel and participated in the Avengers' battle against Thanos inAvengers: Endgame. Then, Jake Gyllenhaal’s Mysterio overcame the villain’s adaptation challenges and became one of Spider-Man’s toughest enemies inSpider-Man: Far From Home. And then,Spider-Man: No Way Hometook things to the next level and brought back Charlie Cox’s Daredevil and Tobey Maguire and Andrew Garfield’s Spider-Men, as well as their respective villains, in a multiversal crossover movie.
Other MCU Movies Also Dispelled Doubts Similar To Spider-Man 4’s Plot
No Challenge Has Been Big Enough For The MCU Since Phase 1
Before their respective releases, MCU movies likeThor,Avengers: Age of Ultron,Doctor Strange, andAvengers: Endgameappeared to be reaching the limit of the franchise’s capabilities.Thor’s fantastical nature differed greatly fromIron Man,The Incredible Hulk, andCaptain America: The First Avenger, yet it laid the foundations not only forThe Avengersbut also led Chris Hemsworth’s Thor to be one of the longest-running Avengers.Avengers: Age of UltronandDoctor Strangealso pushed the boundaries with the introduction of magic and sorcery, andAvengers: Endgamealmost “jumped the shark” with the introduction of time travel.
Avengers 5 Theory Explains How Venom & Knull Could Be In Spider-Man 4
A massive Avengers: Doomsday theory brings a shocking twist to Tom Holland’s Peter Parker, explaining how Spider-Man 4 can be a multiverse story.
In every instance, Marvel Studios found the correct way to integrate extraordinary concepts and characters into its cinematic universe. Looking back, the MCU wouldn’t be the same without characters like Thor, Scarlet Witch, and Doctor Strange or without concepts like magic, time travel, and the multiverse. But at the time, their respective movies seemed to be grazing the absurd. Taking the MCU’s previous achievements into account, it’s safe to say that Marvel Studios may not find it difficult to captureSpider-Man4’s ideal plot and tone.
