Tom Holland says Spider-Man 3 is the ‘most ambitious superhero film of all time’

• Spider-Man actor Tom Holland teased in an interview that Spider-Man 3 is the “most ambitious” superhero film ever made, without revealing anything in particular about the movie.
• ”You sit down, read the script, and see what they’re trying to do, and they’re succeeding. It’s really impressive,” Holland said of the film he’s currently shooting. “I’ve never seen a standalone superhero movie quite like it.”
• A treasure trove of Marvel rumors has seemingly detailed several key aspects of the Spider-Man 3 plot. They indicate that the film indeed has the potential to be the best Spider-Man film ever made, and certainly a must-see Marvel movie of MCU Phase 4.

When news dropped in summer 2019 that Sony and Disney were having a falling out over the rights to Spider-Man, I was among the few MCU fans who didn’t care whether Peter Parker had a future in Phase 4 and beyond. I’ve often criticized Homecoming and Far From Home, and said I wasn’t likely to revisit any of them with as much passion as I would other Marvel films featuring our friendly neighborhood superhero. Of course, Civil War, Infinity War, and Endgame are better because we have Peter Parker in them. Without the kid, we wouldn’t have the significant catalyst that alters Tony Stark’s arc. In summer 2019, I did say that there would be a considerable downside to not having Spider-Man in the MCU, and that’s the huge cliffhanger in Far From Home that teased the most impressive Spider-Man development ever. I wasn’t sure that Sony could deliver that story without Kevin Feige and the rest of Marvel Studios.

Fast forward to early 2021, and the world’s favorite MCU leaker Tom Holland is already teasing Spider-Man 3. From what he can disclose, we’ve learned that Spider-Man 3 is the “most ambitious superhero film of all time.” And given what the leaks say, he absolutely could be right. Mind you, some major spoilers follow below.

The Far From Home cliffhanger comes in the film’s final moments — the beloved credits scenes appear at the end of each MCU movie. We learn that Spider-Man’s identity was revealed to the world, an event unseen before in any Sony-made Spider-Man film. That alone was a pretty good premise for a story that would be unlike anything Sony has done in the past. All of a sudden, Spider-Man 3 sounded a lot better than any of its predecessors.

Luckily, Sony and Disney inked a deal soon after their dispute over rights and profits, a deal that will reportedly be extended for several years to come. But it was only later in 2020 that we all learned how massive Spider-Man 3 would be. You can easily skip over the first two parts when rewatching the Infinity Saga films, but Spider-Man 3 will probably be a must-see movie.

We’ve already learned that Spider-Man 3 will open the multiverse for both the MCU and Sony. We’d see three Spider-Man versions in the movie, including Holland, Tobey Maguire, and Andrew Garfield. Holland would be the protagonist, but he’ll get to experience the multiverse alongside the audience. Villains from other Sony Spider-Man films have been confirmed for the film. And we learned that Benedict Cumberbatch will play Doctor Strange in the movie.

A separate series of reports said that the multiverse first appears in WandaVision, where Doctor Strange will also make an appearance. Things continue with Spider-Man 3 and end with Doctor Strange in the Multiverse of Madness. This would be a three-part mini-story woven into the grander scheme of MCU things.

The main goal here is to establish the multiverse and the massive role it will have in the MCU as we move forward. Of course, these are just rumors, but they’re the kind of spoilers needed to understand Holland’s remarks a bit better. Otherwise, his praises would sound just like what you’d expect from the leading actor of any upcoming superhero flick.

The actor spoke with Variety’s Clayton Davis about the various projects he’s been working on, from Cherry to Uncharted and Spider-Man 3, of course.

Holland said that he “obviously” could not say anything about the film, joking that he would nearly ruin the ending when Davis jokingly asked the actor whether he can tell us what happens at the end. But then Holland said that Spider-Man 3 will be the most ambitious standalone superhero film ever made:

I can say that it’s the most ambitious standalone superhero movie ever made. You sit down, read the script, and see what they’re trying to do, and they’re succeeding. It’s really impressive. I’ve never seen a standalone superhero movie quite like it. And I’m just, you know, again, that lucky little shit who happens to be Spider-Man in it. We got a lot more shooting to do. We started before Christmas and shot for like seven weeks. We stopped for the Christmas break, and then we’re starting again. I’m just as excited as everyone else to see it, let alone be a part of it.

When Davis asked Holland “out of curiosity” when he last spent time with Andrew Garfield, Kirsten Dunst, and Tobey Maguire, Holland had this to say:

I never met Kirsten Dunst. I met Andrew once [at the] BAFTAs. He was lovely, he’s a really nice bloke, and we had a good chat. It was quite soon after Spider-Man Homecoming had come out… He was really positive and nice. I bumped into Tobey a few times at different parties in LA. He was also really nice. They seem to be lovely, really nice people, and I hope they enjoy our movies… I hope they enjoy my Spider-Mans.

Dunst, Maguire, and Garfield are all supposed to appear in Spider-Man 3 if the rumors are right. Holland joked that he has no idea whether they’ll really appear in the film, as nobody told him about it. He also joked that having those actors in Spider-Man 3 would be exactly the sort of thing Marvel would do — and that he’d love to watch that film.

Spider-Man 3 premieres on December 17th, 2021, assuming the pandemic allows it, so we’re in for about a year of rumors and speculation before we get any definitive answers. Variety’s full interview with Holland, available in podcast form, is available at this link.