Possible Future MCU Spider-Man Villains
The emergence of the Spider-verse in the MCU has blown open a door Tom Holland’s Spider-Man can never hope to close. The proverbial genie is out of the bottle, and with it, endless possibilities of sequels and spinoffs for us to enjoy for years to come. But out of all those to come, who will be first? Who will be the next foe to challenge the wall-crawler on the big screen?
Starting with two options that already have solid roots in the MCU, Phineas Mason, a.k.a The Tinkerer, and Mac Gargan, a.k.a Scorpion, could be due for a follow-up on their appearances in Spider-Man: Homecoming in 2017. The last we saw these characters, they were barely beginning their journeys as long-standing thorns in Spidey’s tights. Phineas was lending his talents with machinery to another classic evildoer, Vulture but managed to escape Adrian Toomes fate when Spider-Man took him down.
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Gargan, however, was not so lucky. Spider-Man’s meddling in a weapons deal between him and Toomes led to Gargan’s arrest at the hands of the FBI. Gargan met up with Toomes and swore vengeance on the web-slinger from behind bars. Perhaps now that Tom Holland is starting down a new path as a more fully-formed Spider-Man, we will see The Tinkerer and Scorpion come into their own as the villains who have terrorized him across countless comic pages.
With two of the more obvious routes out of the way, let’s look at some more obscure prospects. This next choice could have some complications due to Sony’s plans for the character in 2023, but Kraven the Hunter could be a unique fit for Spider-Man’s next adversary. Following the events of Spider-Man: Far From Home, Peter Parker’s existence has been erased, leaving Spider-Man as Peter’s only true identity in the world. It’s only a matter of time before Peter needs to reintegrate his day-to-day persona back into the real world, and this may have already begun, given the GED textbooks seen on his desk in the movie’s closing scenes. Who better for Spider-Man to go toe to toe with as he tries to keep his two lives separate than the self-proclaimed world’s greatest hunter?
With the physically enhanced and expert tracker Kraven dogging his every movement, how long can Peter keep his secret from getting out after all that he just gave up to keep it hidden? Another interesting aspect of going with Kraven as the villain is that it would set up a predator and prey dynamic that hasn’t really been seen in Spider-Man movies. Looking back at the storied franchise’s history with both Sony and Marvel Studios, most of the conflict that our three Spider-Men found themselves in came from interfering with the antagonist’s plans. However, with Kraven, Peter would find himself being hunted for sport, constantly looking over his shoulder, unsure of where the next attack could come from. Good thing he honed that Spider-sense vs. Mysterio.
Another alternative is to throw the “supervillains” right out the window and drop Spider-Man into the middle of a multi-sided gang war. One look at the web head’s comic past will show you he’s no stranger to tangling with the shady underbelly of New York and its numerous criminal organizations, yet, the avenue has never been explored in a film. We’ve seen Peter fight aliens, go to space, and take on human/animal hybrids, but when crime lords like Kingpin, Tombstone, Hammerhead, Silvermane, and Mr. Negative start waging war in the streets over territory post blip, can he protect the people of New York and put an end to the violence? With Peter now out of high school and coming into adulthood, this type of down-to-earth street crime story could be what the young hero needs to round out his development and become the protector of the big apple.
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Source(s): Marvel Encyclopedia, New Edition