Rumor or Fact: Who’s appearing in Spider-Man: No Way Home?

Tobey Maguire! Andrew Garfield! Venom! Doc Ock! There are lots of rumors about who’s returning for Spider-Man: No Way Home. But which are true? We break it down.

Ever since Alfred Molina described his appearance in the upcoming Spider-Man: No Way Home as “the worst kept secret in Hollywood,” fans have been ravenous for more information about this movie. Due to release on December 17, the third installment of the MCU Spidey franchise is shaping up to be a once-in-a-lifetime cinema event. Spider-Man is unique among the Marvel heroes in that the rights to make movies about him are co-owned by Marvel and Sony, the latter of which made all of the Tobey Maguire and Andrew Garfield era Spidey-films. When the two companies reached an accord that allowed the MCU to introduce its own version of Spider-Man — a teenaged iteration of the friendly neighborhood webslinger played by Tom Holland — fans around the world rejoiced.

Things have gotten more complicated since then, with Sony and Marvel going through more rounds of negotiations. Joint custody of a superhero, it turns out, isn’t easy. Thankfully, the waters appear to have calmed…and even more excitingly, all signs indicate that Sony and Marvel are now working together even more closely to make a whole universe of Spidey-centric movies a reality. Take this quote from MCU boss Kevin Feige:

"[Spider-Man] also happens to be the only hero with the superpower to cross cinematic universes, so as Sony continues to develop their own Spidey-verse you never know what surprises the future might hold."

With Spider-Man: No Way Home, it’s been pretty much confirmed that the two companies are combining their creative power to do a live-action take on a “Spiderverse” movie, with characters from the previous two eras of Sony films colliding with Tom Holland’s MCU Spider-Man in a huge, Multiverse-style bash. We know this is happening because of a few confirmed actors who will be in the film; we’ve also heard that it will utilize the same visual effects teams from both the Maguire and Garfield era movies. And the Loki finale that aired this past week laid the groundwork for a new Multiversal War, perfectly setting the stage for things to get weird in Spider-Man: No Way Home. All of this suggests a movie that’s going to be like nothing we’ve ever seen before.

Of course, for every confirmed piece of information about Spidey’s Multiverse epic, there are also a ton of unsubstantiated rumors. This is the internet, after all. It can be hard to figure out what we actually know about No Way Home from what we only think we know.

So we’re going to dissect all the rumors we can find to separate the fact from the fiction. It’s Spider-Man: Rumor or Fact?

Tobey Maguire is in Spider-Man: No Way Home — Rumor…with a wink

Perhaps the actor people are speculating about the most is Tobey Maguire. Maguire played Peter Parker / Spider-Man in three movies for Sony: Spider-Man (2002), Spider-Man 2 (2004), and the much maligned Spider-Man 3 (2007). Regardless of how well those films have aged, they still stand as some of the first movies to really usher in this new era of superhero films. So when the idea of a Multiverse-style adventure for Spider-Man hit the rumor mill, people started talking about Maguire reprising his role as an older Peter Parker.

However, to date this is a rumor…with a catch: the infamous “wink.” Apparently, a fan ran into Tobey Maguire at a park recently, and the two got to talking about Spider-Man. This fan claimed Maguire “[is] gonna be in the new movie. I know that for a fact…he’s gonna do another movie and then that’s it.” When asked for more details, the fan claimed that when he asked Maguire about his involvement in Spider-Man: No Way Home, Maguire “winked at me and smiled.”

It’s far from concrete evidence, but it’s more than enough to keep the mill turning.

The thing I find most intriguing about this rumor is Maguire’s very conspicuous silence on the matter. He obviously knows about all these fan theories, and has thus far made absolutely no public statements about it. Unlike our next Spidey…

Andrew Garfield is in Spider-Man: No Way Home — Rumor, Denied

If there’s one other actor people have been talking about nearly non-stop since this whole No Way Home rumor-mill began spinning, it’s Andrew Garfield, the actor who played Spider-Man / Peter Parker in the two Amazing Spider-Man movies. Released in 2012 and 2014, The Amazing Spider-Man and its sequel were meant to act as a soft reboot of Sony’s Spidey franchise after things went off the rails with Maguire’s Spider-Man 3.

Long story short: the reboot didn’t take, though we did get a few good things out of it. Among them was Garfield, who did a pretty stellar job of portraying the wisecracking wallcrawler.

However, the actor himself has denied having any involvement with No Way Home. In May, he was a guest on the Happy Sad Confused podcast where he crushed the hopes of fans with spidey-like strength:

"I can’t speak for anything else, but for myself. They might be doing something, but I ain’t got a call. I would’ve gotten a call by now. That’s what I’m saying."

Since that interview, Garfield has walked things back just the tiniest bit by basically saying that he would be open to it, should he get the call.

“Never say never,” the actor told Access Hollywood.

One final thing that needs to be taken into consideration: it’s always possible that Garfield could appear in Spider-Man: No Way Home without actually shooting any new material. Depending on the plot of the movie and how some of the iconic older Spidey villains get drawn into the mix (we’ll get to that momentarily), the movie could always use footage from The Amazing Spider-Man 2 as a jumping-off point for those characters. The same could be said for Garfield’s ASM co-star, Emma Stone…

Emma Stone (Gwen Stacy) is in Spider-Man: No Way Home — Rumor, Denied

Arguably the best part of The Amazing Spider-Man movies was the fantastic chemistry between Andrew Garfield and Emma Stone, who played Peter Parker’s love interest Gwen Stacy. It was helped in no small part by the fact that the two actors were actually dating in real life during the production of the second movie, but even putting that aside, Stone’s performance as Gwen still stands as one of the most unique and powerful things about those two movies. Let’s not talk about the clocktower scene, lest all of our hearts break again.

But will Stone return for Spider-Man: No Way Home? To date this is a rumor, and one that Stone herself has debunked in a recent interview with MTV News.

“I have heard those rumors,” Stone said. “I don’t know if I’m supposed to say anything, but I’m not [involved]. I’m not. I don’t know what you’re supposed to respond as an alumnus.”

So there you have it: Rumors, alas. Though the same caveat of “they could include Gwen without actually reshooting anything” applies here as it does to Garfield.

There’s another leading lady from Spidey films past who may appear in No Way Home, however…

Kirsten Dunst (Mary Jane Watson) is in Spider-Man: No Way Home — Rumor

Let’s be straight here from the top: everything you’ve heard about Kirsten Dunst reprising her iconic role as Mary Jane Watson is a rumor. Dunst played MJ in all three of the original Sam Raimi-helmed Spidey flicks, and was a perfect counterpart to Tobey Maguire’s quiet, shy, and nerdy Spider-Man. She’s a character fans would be beyond excited to see again.

To date, Dunst has made no public comments about returning to the franchise for Spider-Man: No Way Home. However, there was a recent leak on the film database website IMDB that suggests it could happen. Back in May, a sharp-eyed fan noticed that a credit had been added to No Way Home‘s IMDB page for crew member Askia Won-Ling Jacob…as the personal costumer to Kirsten Dunst. The listing was swiftly taken down, but what the fandom has seen it cannot unsee.

This is the most concrete evidence of Dunst’s involvement we’ve got at the moment, and while IMDb can’t always be trusted, it’s enough to keep us hoping.

But enough about all these rumored actors! Next, let’s talk about the two biggest ones who have actually been confirmed for the film.

Jamie Foxx (Electro) is in Spider-Man: No Way Home — Confirmed

The actor that sparked this entire hype train, Jamie Foxx played villain Electro in The Amazing Spider-Man 2, opposite Andrew Garfield’s Spidey. While that movie had its brilliant bits and its groan-worthy ones, Foxx’s take on Electro was the first and only time the electrically powered villain has been properly adapted to the big screen. We know for a fact that Foxx is coming back for Spider-Man: No Way Home because the actor confirmed it in a now-deleted Instagram post.

“Super excited to [be] part of the new marvel Spider-Man new installment,” Foxx wrote, all the way back in October of 2020. “And i won’t be blue in this one!! but a thousand percent badass!!!”

And this Electro is no variant, but the very same character Foxx played in The Amazing Spider-Man 2.

Alfred Molina (Doctor Octopus) is in Spider-Man: No Way Home — Confirmed

Alfred Molina played the iconic villain Doctor Otto Octavius in Spider-Man 2…better known as Doctor Octopus. Doc Ock is one of Spidey’s most recognizable foes, a scientist who has a set of robotic arms which are useful for helping in his experiments and bashing in faces. He’s also one of Peter Parker’s more philosophical foils, with the two clashing not only physically but ideologically  and intellectually. Both are scientists, and have very different ideas about what it means to cross ethical lines.

Like Foxx, Molina confirmed his involvement himself, this time to Variety. “When we were shooting it, we were all under orders not to talk about it, because it was supposed to be some great big secret,” the actor said. “But, you know, it’s all over the internet. I actually described myself as the worst kept secret in Hollywood!”

As with Electro, Molina will be playing the same character he played in Spider-Man 2. Which will be interesting, considering that Doc Ock seemingly died at the end of that movie. But hey, it’s Marvel and it’s the Multiverse. Anything is on the table.

Benedict Cumberbatch (Doctor Strange) is in Spider-Man: No Way Home — Confirmed

Since Marvel is going full Multiverse with Phase 4, this one was pretty much always going to be a given. The Hollywood Reporter confirmed Cumberbatch’s involvement in Spider-Man: No Way Home last year, reporting that the Sorcerer Supreme will be acting as a mentor figure for Tom Holland’s Peter Parker in the upcoming film.

If there’s going to be Multiverse action, it only makes sense that Strange would be around to try and help get things back on course. And considering that the next MCU film after No Way Home is Doctor Strange in the Multiverse of Madness, it seems like a pretty safe bet that this adventure with Spidey will set the stage for Strange’s next headlining flick.

Which, coincidentally enough, is being directed by veteran Spider-Man director Sam Raimi. The collaboration is through the roof on these movies, and I love it.

We’ve even gotten a reveal of the new Funko Pop of Doctor Strange from the upcoming movie, so we know that not only is he in it, but at some point he will wield…a snow shovel? You never know what to expect next with Marvel.

J.K. Simmons (J. Jonah Jameson) is in Spider-Man: No Way Home — Confirmed

We’ve known for a while now that J.K. Simmons, who played J. Jonah Jameson in the Maguire-era Spider-Man films, had made the leap to the MCU. Fans who stayed through the credits of 2019’s Spider-Man: Far From Home were treated to Simmons’ first appearance, where he outed Spider-Man’s true identity to the world by airing a video sent in to his online gossip site by none other than Mysterio (Jake Gyllenhal).

This was the first real hint of the Multiversal mayhem that lay ahead for Tom Holland’s Spider-Man, and considering how much of a fan-favorite Simmons’ performance as the dirt-digging tabloid editor had been during the older Spidey films, we can only say that it was a brilliant choice. In the Maguire-era films, J. Jonah Jameson was the head of a newspaper called The Daily Bugle which had a reputation for publishing stories of questionable merit. In the MCU, he runs a gossip website called thedailybugle.net, which is a pretty fantastic way to adapt Jameson’s character to the times.

We’ve since gotten further confirmations that Simmons is involved in No Way Home, including a recently revealed action figure. It’s hard to get more concrete than merch.

Simmons also expanded on this role during a SiriusXM interview last year. “Well yeah, [I’ll be back as Jameson]. That’s the short answer. There is a future for J. Jonah Jameson after a several-year hiatus. He showed up very briefly for those who were wise enough to stay through the credits of Far From Home … There is one more J.J.J. appearance in the can, and from what I’m hearing there’s a plan for yet another. So hopefully J.J.J. will continue now and forever.”

So there you have it. J. Jonah Jameson is back. Let the headaches for Spider-Man commence.

Charlie Cox (Daredevil) is in Spider-Man: No Way Home — Rumor

In the comics, Spider-Man often crosses paths with Daredevil, a.k.a. Matt Murdock, a blind lawyer from Hell’s Kitchen. Daredevil had a pretty great run on Netflix, where he was played by Stardust actor Charlie Cox and faced off against memorable villains like Vincent D’Onofrio’s Kingpin. But will we see him in Spider-Man: No Way Home?

There have been several leaks that claim to confirm this, but to date there’s been no real concrete evidence that Cox is involved in NWH. So this is a rumor, though we all probably wish otherwise.

The most interesting of these rumors involved a leak of the supposed plot for NWH on 4chan, which claimed Murdock would appear in a cameo near the end of the movie, not suited up as Daredevil, but as Peter Parker’s attorney. As things stood at the end of Far From Home, with Peter being framed for the murder of Mysterio, it would make sense that he’d need a good lawyer to clear his reputation. At the same time, it’s hard to imagine how the movie could wrap back around to that considering the much more fantastical Multiverse stuff that’s already been confirmed to be in the film.

There’s also the chance that Jennifer Walters (a.k.a. She-Hulk) could step in to represent Peter instead of Matt Murdock, since the MCU has already confirmed she’ll have a day job as a lawyer representing superhumans in the She-Hulk series due out next year on Disney+. So there’s a lot up in the air with this one.

Zendaya and Jacob Batalon (MJ and Ned Leeds) are in Spider-Man: No Way Home — Confirmed

Before we dig into the huge array of rumors surrounding villains, I wanted to note that both MJ (Zendaya) and Ned Leeds (Jacob Batalon) are back for Spider-Man: No Way Home. So regardless of other Spideys, villains from across the Multiverse, or cryptic missions from Doctor Strange, we will see the crew of friends who accompanied Tom Holland’s Spider-Man through his first two solo films return.

There’s also a rumor that Ned could suit up briefly as the Hobgoblin, another Spidey villain, in a Multiversal cameo showing a totally different variant of Peter Parker’s best friend. Fingers crossed on this one, because that sounds amazing.

Now, on to the really wild stuff:

Willem Dafoe (Green Goblin) is in Spider-Man: No Way Home— Rumor

Perhaps the most interesting villain rumor out there is about Norman Osbourne, a.k.a. The Green Goblin. The Green Goblin is right up there with Doc Ock as one of Spider-Man’s most iconic villains. He’s already had three different iterations on the big screen: Willem Dafoe, who played the character as the main villain of Spider-Man (2002); James Franco, who played Norman’s son Harry in those movies and eventually took over the mantle in Spider-Man 3 (2007); and Dane DeHaan, who played a younger Harry Osborn who went on to become the Goblin in The Amazing Spider-Man 2 (2014).

This is a short way of saying the Spidey films have been saturated with Green Goblins over the years. But he has yet to appear in the MCU. According to Jeff Sneider over at Collider, Dafoe’s Goblin from Spider-Man is set to return as the main villain of No Way Home. Though Sneider acknowledges that everything he says should be taken with a grain of salt for now, he claims to know from his sources that it is the villains who will have “no way home” in the movie, getting stranded in Tom Holland’s MCU timeline.

Even more exciting is the rumor that Dafoe’s Goblin could start the Sinister Six, a group of villains with a serious grudge against Spider-Man. A large amount of The Amazing Spider-Man 2 revolved around setting the stage for that villainous super group’s eventual appearance, and while that never came to pass, the fact that we already know that Molina’s Doc Ock and Jamie Foxx’s Electro will be in this movie has our interest piqued. Both were founding members of the group in the comics, and while the Green Goblin was not, it’s hard to debate that Willem Dafoe’s turn as the psychotic Norman Osbourne made for one of the most terrifying Spidey villains ever seen on screen.

I guess what I’m trying to say is, please Marvel, let this one be true.

Spider-Man has a lot of enemies, and there are rumors about practically all of them. We’re going to tackle this lightning-round style.

Jake Gyllenhal (Mysterio) is in Spider-Man: No Way Home — Rumor

Quentin Beck, a.k.a. Mysterio, was the villain of the last MCU Spidey film, Far From Home. Beck seemingly died at the end of that movie, but as they say, no one really dies in comic books (or their adaptations). No Way Home is already setting the precedent of bringing back previously deceased characters, like Doc Ock. Mysterio returning hardly even feels like a stretch by comparison.

However, there has been no solid evidence of this to date. Gyllenhal’s involvement is a rumor.

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Thomas Hayden Church (Sandman) is in Spider-Man: No Way Home — Rumor

First seen in Spider-Man 3, Flint Marko was a tragic villain who was trying to pull off heists to pay for treatment for his terminally ill daughter…before falling into a particle accelerator which turned him into Sandman. Though he ultimately made peace with Spider-Man by the end of that movie, there has been a lot of talk that he might appear in the new film. The Illuminerdi reported that Marvel Studios was courting Church for a return back in 2020. Jeff Sneider at Collider backed up this rumor as well.

Rhys Ifans (The Lizard) is in Spider-Man: No Way Home — Rumor

The Lizard, a.k.a. Doctor Curt Connors, was the main villain of The Amazing Spider-Man. Connors was also a mentor of Peter Parker’s during the Sam Raimi-helmed films, so this is a character the older Spidey flicks have used quite a bit. Connors was transformed into the Lizard when he tried to regenerate his lost arm by injecting himself with lizard DNA. To date, this is a total rumor, albeit another one put forth by Collider’s Jeff Sneider.

Paul Giamatti (Rhino) is in Spider-Man: No Way Home — Rumor, Denied

Another villain spread by Collider is Rhino, played by Paul Giamatti in The Amazing Spider-Man 2. Rhino had a small role in the film despite Sony using him excessively in the promotional materials, and yes, I am still salty about that. Giamatti’s performance, however, was great fun. Rhino isn’t Spidey’s smartest villain, but he’s got a special place in the hearts of many fans.

However, Giamatti has denied that he is reprising the role for No Way Home. And unlike Andrew Garfield, there has been no walk back, just a silence following a statement Giamatti made during an interview to promote his Netflix film Gunpowder Milkshake. When asked about returning to the Rhino suit, the actor had this to say:

"I hadn’t followed any of [these rumors]. Somebody else just asked me about this, so I hadn’t been following. I’m okay with that. I’m certainly okay to just leave it all where it is. It’s fine with me."

Sounds pretty conclusive to me.

Michael Mando (Scorpion) is in Spider-Man: No Way Home — Rumor with Legos

Now we’re into more villains who have already been introduced in the MCU, chief among them Mac Gargan, a.k.a. Scorpion. Gargan was played by Michael Mando in Spider-Man: Homecoming, where he was a criminal seeking to buy alien tech from Michael Keaton’s Vulture. Spider-Man foiled that plan, which led to Gargan’s face getting scarred and the guy getting locked up in prison. We last saw him in the post-credits scene for that movie, where it’s revealed that he and the Vulture are serving time together, and that Gargan’s got a serious grudge against Spider-Man.

While Gargan’s return hasn’t been hinted at much, there are some signs it could be coming in No Way Home. Chief among them is a tie-in Lego set for the movie, which has Doctor Strange, Spider-Man, MJ, and Wong facing off against a giant scorpion-looking robot.

Tack on to that Mando saying that “There’s always a chance” he’ll return to plague Spidey in future MCU movies, and things start to look even more promising. Then there’s the time when Jon Watts, who directed all the MCU Spider-Man films, was asked why Vulture and Scorpion hadn’t featured in Far From Home despite being set up by the credits scene of Homecoming. Here’s what he said, per ComicBook.com:

"We never really found the right moment to do something like that. It’s always just about it being right for the story and not just some sort of shoehorned-in cameo. But I do love the idea that they’re both still out there, and I like the idea that as we move forward with these films, we’re building out this rich world that we can continually draw from."

So…rumors, but ones with a bit more meat on their bones.

Michael Keaton (Vulture) is in Spider-Man: No Way Home — Rumor

Since we just mentioned the Vulture, we might as well talk about him. To date, there has been no confirmation that Michael Keaton will be returning in Spider-Man: No Way Home, though there are several rumors floating around the net. It would make sense to see Keaton’s character again, and his turn as the Vulture was pretty amazing in Spider-Man: Homecoming…but without any real evidence, we’re not holding our breath for this one.

Now the Morbius film, on the other hand, will definitely feature Keaton returning as Adrian Toomes; that was confirmed by the movie’s first trailer. We’ll talk about that next, as we dig lastly into Sony’s Spidey-verse characters.

Jared Leto (Morbius) is in Spider-Man: No Way Home — Not even rumored, but we must discuss!

Michael Morbius, a.k.a. Morbius the Living Vampire, is the next Spider-Man villain that Sony is giving his own flick. It’s all part of Sony’s plan to build out their own Spider-verse, which will revolve around the wallcrawler’s many villains. And while there aren’t even any rumors that Morbius (played by Jared Leto) will appear in No Way Home, the first trailer for the vampire’s solo film has our minds racing.

There are two things we need to draw attention to in that trailer: one is the appearance of Adrian Toomes, a.k.a. the Vulture, played by Michael Keaton. It’s not clear if Keaton’s character is the same Toomes as in Spider-Man: Homecoming or if this is a variant living in Sony’s part of the Multiverse, but the fact that he’s there at all is pretty exciting.

The other interesting tidbit is the mural Leto walks past at the 2:09 mark. It shows Spider-Man, with the word “murderer” graffitied across it. Could this be a nod to the fact that Tom Holland’s Spider-Man was framed for the murder of Mysterio?

Well played, Sony. Well played.

Aaron Taylor-Johnson (Kraven the Hunter) is in Spider-Man: No Way Home — Rumor

Unlike Morbius, Kraven the Hunter is rumored to appear in Spider-Man: No Way Home, and it would be mind-blowing if it happened. Sony recently cast Aaron Taylor-Johnson as Kraven in his own solo film, which will delve into the big game hunter and classic Spidey villain’s origin story.

Now, Taylor-Johnson has already been in the Marvel-verse as Pietro Maximoff a.k.a. Quicksilver, the brother of Elizabeth Olsen’s Scarlet Witch. So if this happened it would be pretty crazy. And it also just might make sense, given how weird Marvel seems to be prepared to get with Phase 4.

But without any actual confirmation or studio leakage, for now Taylor-Johnson’s involvement in No Way Home is just words on the wind.

Tom Hardy (Venom) is in Spider-Man: No Way Home — Rumor…with a serious catch

And that brings us to our last rumored villain, Eddie Brock…better known as Venom. Played by Tom Hardy in his own films, Venom has already had one successful movie put out by Sony and is getting a sequel this September, Venom: Let There Be Carnage. Venom is the character Sony has used to roll out their new bad guy-centered Spidey-verse.

Hardy appearing in No Way Home is a rumor without any real confirmations or leaks to back it up. However, there’s a pretty exciting catch to all this. Recently, Sony boss Sanford Panitch sat down with Variety to discuss where his company is heading with their own universe of movies (which they’re calling the Sony Pictures Universe of Marvel Characters, or SPUMC). During that interview, Panitch was asked whether Spider-Man would ever cross over with Venom and the other characters Sony is trying to establish.

“We don’t really think of our 900 characters as the Spidey-verse. We have a Marvel universe,” Panitch said. “The volume of characters we have — you know, wait until you see this next ‘Venom.’ You don’t miss Spider-Man.”

Then he threw gasoline on the fires of fandom when he said, “It’ll be exciting if they do meet, right?”

Panitch expanded on the future of Spider-Man in the Sony-verse:

"There actually is a plan. I think now maybe it’s getting a little more clear for people where we’re headed and I think when No Way Home comes out, even more will be revealed. The great thing is we have this very excellent relationship with Kevin. There’s an incredible sandbox there to play with. We want those MCU movies to be absolutely huge, because that’s great for us and our Marvel characters, and I think that’s the same thing on their side. But we have a great relationship. There’s lots of opportunities, I think, that are going to happen."

And there you have it. A run down of all the major rumors floating around about which characters will be in Spider-Man: No Way Home. Given the speed of the internet, and the fact that Marvel could drop a trailer for the movie any day now, it’s entirely likely that in the coming weeks we’ll have a whole new wheelbarrow full of rumors and confirmations to sift through.

But for now, go forth, and be better informed!

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