The Spider-Man 3 rumours have been coming in thick and fast, but Jamie Foxx's Electro and Alfred Molina's Doctor Octopus are as good as confirmed as this point. As for the likes of Tobey Maguire, Andrew Garfield, Kirsten Dunst, and Emma Stone, it appears likely they will indeed appear in the Marvel Studios threequel.
Now, though, a new rumour shared by The Illuminerdi claims that Willem Dafoe and Thomas Haden Church are also in talks to reprise their respective roles as the Green Goblin and Sandman.
If accurate, this wouldn't really be a massive surprise. The Green Goblin is one of the wall-crawler's most iconic villains, while Sandman would no doubt look even more incredible on the big screen with today's technology. Of course, this begs the question of what they would even be doing in a movie as ambitious as this one.
Will Spider-Man 3 travel back to when they were both alive, de-ageing Dafoe and Church, or are they simply playing different versions of the same characters? Could they possibly even be inhabitants of the Marvel Cinematic Universe?
It's all very confusing, but everything we know about this movie so far suggests that it's going to be a lot bigger than expected. At this point, it's hard to know who is actually going to included, but it's probably best not to get too excited because many of these shock returns could prove to be little more than cameos.
Here's hoping for an official cast list soon, eh?
Click on the "Next" button below to see which
storylines Spider-Man 3 could be setting up!
10. Spider-Man Gets A Partner
When the Ultimate Universe ended, Miles Morales was brought into the regular Marvel Universe and often found himself teaming up with Peter Parker, a hero who died in his world.
While Spider-Man in his own right, Miles is Peter's partner and friend, and that relationship is set to be explored in the upcoming Spider-Man: Miles Morales video game. So, why not do the same on the big screen? Assuming Spider-Man 3 does introduce Miles, he could then appear in a solo outing or become a regular partner to Peter as they fight alongside each other moving forward.
At this point, a live-action version of this web-slinger is long overdue, and the threequel can lay the groundwork for many more stories to come revolving around this spectacular Spider-Man.
9. Web Warriors
So, assuming for a second that those claims about Marvel Studios signing Tobey Maguire and Andrew Garfield up for Spider-Man 3 are correct (and we have our doubts), there's simply no way that's not going to have ramifications for the Marvel Cinematic Universe and beyond.
We're certainly not expecting the two actors to become a regular fixture in the MCU (or SPUMC), but it would be pretty cool if they were to come up with a way to stay in touch!
Protecting the Multiverse together - and the Web of Life and Destiny - these "Spider-Men" could definitely team-up again in a future movie, and this would be a fun new role for Tom Holland's web-slinger. This is certainly a more interesting direction for the character than him being Tony Stark-lite.
8. Morlun Comes Calling
In the comic books, when Spider-Man finds himself entangled in the "Spider-Verse," the Inheritors soon start targeting him and his counterparts throughout the rest of the Marvel Multiverse.
Morlun remains one of the greatest threats Peter Parker has ever faced, and actually ended up killing the hero (tearing out his eye in the process). If The Marvel Cinematic Universe's webbed warrior starts meddling in the Multiverse, then this villain coming to hunt him down makes a whole lot of sense.
He may not be as well-known as the likes of the Green Goblin and Doctor Octopus, but there's a tonne of storytelling potential here which definitely needs to be explored in a future movie.
7. "Into The Spider-Verse"
We know that Sony Pictures considered having Tom Holland's Spider-Man appear in 2018's Spider-Man: Into the Spider-Verse, but decided it was "too soon" to have his web-slinger enter that world.
Could it be because they knew there were plans for his Peter Parker in the Marvel Multiverse? Assuming he is indeed set to explore that in Spider-Man 3, the there's really no reason why he can't at least make some sort of cameo appearance in the highly anticipated animated sequel.
That's an exciting prospect, and one which could even give us another Peter/Miles Morales team-up.
6. Another Doctor Strange/Spider-Man Team-Up
When Disney and Sony Pictures reached a new deal to keep Spider-Man in the Marvel Cinematic Universe, we learned that the initial plan was for Tom Holland's webbed wonder to appear in a solo before making a cameo appearance in an upcoming Marvel Studios project. However, who's to say it has to be his Spider-Man that teams up with another hero from this world?
With Sam Raimi stepping behind the camera to take the helm of Doctor Strange in the Multiverse of Madness, it makes perfect sense for him to bring back Tobey Maguire's version of Peter Parker.
The sequel could be used to tie up some loose ends from Spider-Man 3, giving the actor one final chance to play the character and bring an end to his tenure as Spidey to a close in a satisfying way.
5. A Very Different Sinister Six
It would be a major wasted opportunity for Marvel Studios (or Sony Pictures) not to make use of the Sinister Six in the near future, but we might not be getting a traditional version of the team.
One compelling option for the future is for Spider-Man to face an interdimensional version of this group, made up of characters from all three of the web-slinger's franchises. Villains could even be plucked from other worlds, and a line-up consisting of Mysterio, The Vulture, Venom, Electro, Green Goblin, and Doctor Octopus would be a blast to see brought to the big screen.
With Jamie Foxx returning as Electro, the groundwork for this could be laid as soon as Spider-Man 3.
4. Spider-Gwen
While there's no denying that Gwen Stacy is a great character, it's hard to imagine how she could really fit into the Marvel Cinematic Universe. Peter Parker doesn't really need another love interest, and it would be a shame seeing the character relegated to that role for a third time.
Instead, Marvel Studios and Sony Pictures could do something really crazy by bringing back Emma Stone from The Amazing Spider-Man franchise and having her suit up as "Spider-Gwen."
Ideally, a younger actress should probably play this version of Spider-Woman, but it would be fun paying a visit to another world where Spider-Gwen is an established hero, with Stone making sporadic appearances in the MCU and possibly even taking the lead in her own Sony-produced franchise.
3. Spider-Man Finally Meets Venom
Tom Holland and Tom Hardy want to make this happen, and from a business perspective, you have to believe Sony Pictures are champing at the bit for a Spider-Man/Venom crossover event.
A lot of fans would love to see it become a reality as well, and if Spider-Man 3 will lead to the wall-crawler truly having the ability to swing between different worlds, then this is a logical next step. Peter Parker gaining the powers of the symbiote would make for fun viewing, as would him squaring off with both Venom and Carnage (Venom sucked, but that could be a true sight to behold).
This is bound to happen before too long, and Spider-Man 3 can definitely start dropping hints!
2. House Of M
This obviously isn't a Spider-Man story, but it's one the web-slinger - and pretty much every major Marvel character - was a huge part of. After the Scarlet Witch is manipulated into using her reality altering powers, a new world is created which is ruled over by mutants rather than humans.
It's still a little too soon to take things down that route (we've not even met the X-Men yet), but with the Scarlet Witch set to factor into Doctor Strange in the Multiverse of Madness, it's clear this is something that Kevin Feige could be considering. At the very least, WandaVision looks like a series which is going to introduce the idea that changing the world is something Wanda can do!
If Spider-Man 3 is indeed our first taste of the Multiverse, then there are definitely ways the threequel can be used to explore what Wanda's power could mean for the future of Spider-Man.
1. Kraven's Last Hunt
If Kraven the Hunter isn't going to be part of Spider-Man 3, then that's a missed opportunity, but it's not like the villain is being left on the shelf. We know Sony Pictures is developing a solo movie, and that they're keen on bringing the "Kraven's Last Hunt" story to the big screen at some point.
With it looking likely that Jon Watts' threequel is going to open the door to Spider-Man protecting more than one world, the odds of him appearing in J.C. Chandor's movie have gone through the roof.
It's a little too soon for "Kraven's Last Hunt" there, of course, but if Spidey makes a cameo appearance and humiliates Kraven, then the stage might just be set to adapt that in the next few years...