Nearly a decade after its July 2017 release, Tom Holland's Spider-Man: Homecoming is still entering MCU-related conversations. Following Holland's on-screen debut as Peter Parker/Spider-Man in Captain America: Civil War, the first of director Jon Watts' Home trilogy kicked off a generational run of both critical and box-office success. While many recall the highs of No Way Home and the arguably slight fumble of Far From Home, Homecoming remains the basis for it all, introducing Holland's Peter Parker as a kid just trying to go to school and figure out a superhero life—and that was the point.
Spider-Man: Homecoming writers Jonathan Goldstein and John Francis Daley recently discussed their approach to developing Tom Holland's Peter Parker upon his full theatrical debut. Regarding the high school environment and tone of Homecoming, Goldstein said that was exactly the goal, in that they didn't want to show that "just because you get superpowers doesn't mean you become an adult:"
"We take great pride in having sort of laid the groundwork for everything that came after. We really wanted it to be a high school movie with superpowers, and that's what Homecoming was. And, I think people really responded to the relatability of that. We always said while we're writing it, that just because you get superpowers doesn't mean you become an adult. And, that was sort of Peter Parker's journey."
Goldstein also revealed that he and Daley spoke with Marvel Comics legend and Spider-Man creator Stan Lee, who passed away in 2018, when writing Homecoming. While penning the script for Homecoming between 2015 and 2016, Lee told the writing duo that he originally made Spider-Man like one of "the kids who read the comic books:"
"We were actually fortunate enough to meet Stan Lee while we were writing the movie. And, that's what he told us. He basically created this character because he wanted to create something that was like the kids who read the comic books. Nobody had done that."
This isn't to say Peter Parker didn't grow up at all in Homecoming and the MCU films that followed. By the end of that first movie, Peter learns it isn't his powers or suit that make him a hero; it's who he is at his core. No longer the jubilant, eager kid he was, Far From Home shows a more somber Peter, both dealing with the loss of his mentor, Robert Downey Jr.'s Tony Stark, and the trials and tribulations of young love. And, of course, No Way Home shows Tom Holland's web-slinger at his lowest, and inevitably strongest, following Aunt May's (Marisa Tomei) death.
Now entering a new era of superhero storytelling with the smash hit Spider-Man: Brand New Day, Peter is not only an adult in age but also in emotional and mental maturity, a shift that is bound to be explored in his future appearances.
How Tom Holland Can Mature Spider-Man in Avengers Movies & Beyond
Spider-Man: Homecoming served as a solid foundation for establishing Tom Holland's portrayal of Peter Parker: a high school kid now thrust into a turbulent superhero lifestyle. And as writers Jonathan Goldstein and John Francis Daley emphasized in their interview with CinemaBlend, Homecoming was always meant to be high school with superpowers, not the other way around. While this may have rang true nine years ago, the character and Spider-Man franchise are in wildly different places now.
The post-credits scene of Brand New Day promised that "Spider-Man will return." When and how remains a mystery, but with the one-two punch of Avengers: Doomsday and Avengers: Secret Wars hitting theaters two Decembers in a row, it's a safe bet that Tom Holland will show face in at least one of them.
One has to wonder what else Peter Parker could possibly suffer through after already enduring the loss of several loved ones, being snapped out of existence, and countless other hardships. If Marvel Comics is anything to go by, however, Peter may be in for a new kind of turmoil come Secret Wars, one involving the ever-anticipated black suit and its origins as Venom. While the symbiote has been teased in the MCU, its arrival could introduce a different challenge for Peter, particularly if its influence begins to take a toll on the hero's mind and actions.
After everything he's already been through, the black suit could prove to be one of Peter's most personal battles yet. Either way, it's clear that Tom Holland's web-slinger still has plenty more of the wringer to be put through in the MCU.
