Spider-Man: No Way Home has finally hit theaters worldwide, and it’s clear that people have been looking forward to Spidey’s next adventure. The film brings back Tom Holland, Zendaya, and Jacob Batalon to deal with Peter Parker’s identity crisis thanks to Mysterio’s devastating video leaked online. On top of that, the webhead has to face the Multiverse and previous franchise villains such as Alfred Molina’s Doc Ock and Willem Dafoe’s Green Goblin.
By the time the credits roll, Peter Parker has been given a completely blank slate, paving the way for a truly classic Spider-Man outing. As for his friends, MJ and Ned now live a life completely free of the wall-crawler, and they’re safe from the dangers which come with that.
While they may be out of Peter’s life, the two will still likely have a future in the MCU. After all, No Way Home contained a sly Hobgoblin tease which could be where Ned Leeds ends up.
Zendaya doesn’t get any particular teases toward what may come next for her character; however, apparently, making her character a superhero was once considered at some point.
Zendaya the MCU Superhero
In an interview with OK, Spider-Man: No Way Home stars Tom Holland and Zendaya were on hand to discuss their newly released film.
During the interview, Zendaya was asked if she ever tried to persuade Marvel & Sony producers to let MJ become a superhero in the MCU, to which she quickly responded, “no no no.”
Holland chipped in, saying that “[the filmmakers] were trying for a while, do you remember that?”
After acknowledging those past prospects, the actress made it clear how she’s “actually really happy with MJ” and that she “leave[s] the superheroing” to Holland:
“Yea, but I leave the superheroing to this one. I’m actually really happy with MJ and the character she is and that she plays. And I think what’s really special about what Jon does, I think also with Ned and MJ and Peter, is create this beautiful friendship and love between them and this beautiful love story that’s there.”
Zendaya went to make it clear that while Spider-Man may save the world, “he needs help… he cannot do it on his own:”
“But also like, Spider-Man, he saves the world, but he needs help. You know? He cannot do it on his own. I think that he’s just a young person trying to figure it out on his own, and that’s when Ned and MJ come in and try to help him figure it out. They’re all very smart kids, let's not forget. So they put their brains together, and they're all there for each other; they support each other. So, I’m totally fine with being a part of the team.”
Zendaya Could Have Hit the Jackpot
It’s not clear what character the studio had in mind for Zendaya to play. In a recent interview, Holland suspiciously smirked at the MJ actress when the topic of Jackpot came up. Was that her future at one point?
Jackpot was a super-powered individual by the name of Sara Ehret. Eventually, she decided against being a superhero, so she leaned out her name and look to Alana Jobson, who went on to take Mutant Growth Hormones to be a hero. Sadly, Jobson died due to the drugs she took to try and save lives.
A film centering on the superhero was revealed to be in development by Sony and Mar Guggenheim, but nothing new has been revealed since.
Neither of the two characters associated with the Jackpot name line up with anything seen on the screen concerning MJ—besides fans mistakingly predicting that Jackpot was originally Mary Jane Watson.
There’s a good possibility that Marvel Studios and Sony were discussing those ideas before the character was truly established in the MCU and she became MJ Watson.
Spider-Man: No Way Home is currently playing in theaters worldwide.
