Earlier this year, the suggestion that the Marvel Cinematic Universe might be losing its Peter Parker threw the fan community (or at least the less skeptical pockets thereof) into an uproar. Rumor had it that Disney (home of the MCU) and Sony (the studio responsible for Spider-Man: Homecoming and Far from Home) had hit a point of dispute in their shared handling of the character and had settled on parting ways, with the latter seizing full custody of Spidey. But the latest news on the matter, per Deadline, is that an accord has been reached, and that Spider-Man will live on in the Marvel realm, appearing in at least one additional MCU movie. Meanwhile, Marvel kingpin Kevin Feige’s team (most prominently, producer Amy Pascal) will continue to cooperate on a third standalone Spidey film, which will hit theaters on July 16, 2021.
While the first hints of aforementioned bad news was enough to throw some fans into despair, others remained assured that public contention was really just Disney’s method of stirring up unrest among viewers, all in the interest of proving to Sony how valuable Feige’s presence in Spidey’s ongoing superhero career was. Amid all the hubbub, even those who recognized the whole ordeal as Hollywood industry showmanship had begun to imagine an MCU sans Peter Parker… and quite a sour picture that was indeed.
Since Tom Holland’s introduction as a teenaged Spider-Man back in 2016’s Captain America: Civil War, the character has become one of the highlights of the MCU. A wide-eyed breath of fresh air among the none-too-seldom sardonic heroes populating the Marvel realm, Holland’s Peter has become an irreparable piece of the overall Marvel recipe, even if his standalone features have operated distinctly from the rest of the gambit (granted, you wouldn’t really know it, given the involvement of Tony Stark and Happy Hogan, and even a Captain America cameo).
Thus, fans are surely excited to picture Peter continuing to work alongside Thor, the Hulk, Falcon, Bucky, Black Panther, Dr. Stranger, the Guardians of the Galaxy, and the legion of heroes yet to make their way into the ever-growing franchise. (And perhaps one or two may pay Queens a visit in the webslinger’s next standalone outing.) Granted, the deal as it stands is only for one more Spider-Man standalone and one more MCU appearance, but we can imagine things continuing to work out a little differently.
And now, an Instagram post from Tom Holland himself, reacting to this news:
Featured Image: Sony
