Spider-Man: No Way Home Trailer Opens Up a Can of Worms

Movies

After plugging yesterday’s leak with some well-placed webbing, Sony has released the first Spider-Man: No Way Home trailer. The third (kind of) solo Spidey film in the Marvel Cinematic Universe, Spider-Man: No Way Home sees Peter Parker team with Doctor Strange to contend with the multiverse, including versions of his classic villains from previous movie series. As with Homecoming and Far From Home, Spider-Man: No Way Home is directed by Jon Watts and stars Tom Holland, Zendaya, Jacob Batalon, Marisa Tomei, and Jon Favreau; joining them are Benedict Cumberbatch as Doctor Strange, Benedict Wong as Wong (how many actors celebrated as being “born to play” their parts can say that?), and a bunch of actors reprising their roles from earlier, defunct franchises. Spider-Man: No Way Home will hit theaters on December 17, 2021, after playing the superflu shuffle (originally, we were meant to have seen it by now). Check out the Spider-Man: No Way Home trailer below:

If nothing else, the Spider-Man: No Way Home trailer is the perfect distillation of why I’m so pessimistic about the MCU’s future and why that makes me so angry. Despite how loosely they’ve adapted Peter Parker’s character and story, I’ve liked their Spider-Man films so far, but my enjoyment and willingness to overlook the deviations was because I thought it was leading somewhere. I figured they were using his high school years as a sort of preview of what his future would be like, so that in college and beyond, he could meet people like Gwen Stacy and Mary Jane Watson, or Harry Osbourne and his twisted father. But – and I’ve talked about this at length before, so I’ll be brief – No Way Home is making clear that they’re not building towards anything. Those characters are just going to be thrown in from other worlds, meaning Spidey will never meet them naturally or form organic relationships with them. Even if MCU iterations of them do show up, he’ll just know them as versions of those guys from alternate dimensions he fought that one time. Why should anyone take Holland’s Spider-Man seriously after that?

Okay, I feel like I rant about that once a week, either here or to friends, so let’s look at the rest of the Spider-Man: No Way Home trailer. I like that the plot has to do with the fallout of Spidey’s secret identity being revealed; like the multiverse storyline, I think it’s too early in Peter’s journey to be doing a story like that, but at least they’re dealing with it, including the ramifications. Peter is arrested; Peter is hounded by photographers (foreshadowing his future profession? Will Peter become what he’s beheld?); Pete’s family and friends are in danger. This is good, at least in terms of the story they’ve presented; no stupid Ragnarok nonsense where Loki is outed as Fake Odin in 30 seconds because he’s an idiot. I also like that this is what brings Peter to Doctor Strange. One of the strengths of the MCU is having all these different characters with their unique abilities exist in the same space – many of them in the same city; it makes sense for one to seek out another when in need of a particular set of skills. There are shades of the “One More Day” story, with Peter trying to undo something he just can’t live with; that he goes to a fellow superhero this time instead of THE DEVIL HIMSELF is probably more in-character as well.

But then that very strength becomes an issue. I love Doctor Strange in these movies, and Benedict Cumberbatch is wonderful in the role. But the Spider-Man: No Way Home trailer makes it look like he’s a much bigger part of this movie than Iron Man was in Homecoming or (kind of) Nick Fury was in Far From Home. This looks more like a buddy cop movie, with gruff, world-weary Doctor Strange having to take on a multiverse of – madness, I guess – with a plucky, wise-cracking youngster that he’ll ultimately find is the partner he always needed. This is another thing I’d hoped would taper off but is, evidently, only going to get worse; Spider-Man needs to finally stand on his own two feet instead of being propped up by a “grown-up” superhero. I thought Far From Home indicated that this was ending with Peter making his own suit, but nope, he’s back in that goddamn Iron Spider armor because character growth is overrated. It’s also disheartening – though consistent with that thread, I suppose – that the spell goes haywire because Peter is an idiot who won’t shut up when Doctor Strange tells him to do so. Come to think of it, Doctor Strange is pretty stupid even to be doing this; I know he’s arrogant, but he’s not reckless with magic, especially for something this frivolous. So, in order for a plot that shouldn’t even be happening to happen, two smart characters have to act dumb. This is not a good sign; in fact, very little of this is a good sign.

What did you think of the Spider-Man: No Way Home trailer? Are you excited for the movie? Is an appearance from Bruce Campbell as one – or all three – of his cameos out of the question? Let us know in the comments and stick around Geeks + Gamers for more movie news.