After months of rumors and hype for the return of past Spider-Men in the MCU, audiences finally saw hope become reality in Spider-Man: No Way Home. And while all three of cinema's live-action web-slingers sharing the screen was enough to blow fans away, both Tobey Maguire and Andrew Garfield's reprisals more than exceeded fan expectations.
With the exception of Spider-Man 3, Tobey Maguire's Spider-Man run has long been lauded by fans; however, that wasn't the case with Andrew Garfield's, whose franchise came to a sudden close following The Amazing Spider-Man 2.
However, ahead of Spider-Man: No Way Home's December debut, Garfield's take on the character received newfound appreciation - but that was only the beginning. Following his moving performance in No Way Home, fans took to social media calling for a revival of Garfield'sThe Amazing Spider-Man franchise.
The campaign - and its subsequent rumors - rose to new heights when Andrew Garfield's Spider-Man stunt double seemingly confirmed the development of The Amazing Spider-Man 3 - but now, the action performer has returned to social media to refute the rumors and clarify any confusion.
Andrew Garfield's Stunt Double Denies Spider-Man 3
William Spencer, the stunt double for Andrew Garfield's Spider-Man, shared a screenshot on Instagram of his reply to a fan about The Amazing Spider-Man 3, asserting that "This is a MISUNDERSTANDING":
"This is a MISUNDERSTANDING . I thought this fan was talking the current movie and was abbreviating and I didn’t read carefully enough, I apologize for that. I answered a lot of congratulations messages about the movie that just came out and I was trying to write all the fans back to make sure they knew I appreciated their excitement over No Way Home not over any new project."
Spencer's explanation supports earlier denials he had given on social media about a potential Andrew Garfield-led threequel and is one of the reasons why fans were confused over the mixed messaging.
To eliminate any further speculation, in his caption, Spencer also petitioned fans to "NOT ASSUME THINGS THAT ARE NOT TRUE":
"Once again I KNOW NOTHING ABOUT ANY NEW SPIDER-MAN MOVIE WITH ANDREW GARFIELD. I AM GLAD THE FANS ARE SO EXCITED BUT PLEASE DO NOT ASSUME THINGS THAT ARE NOT TRUE THEN PUT THEM ON ME."
The Truth is a Tangled Web
Due to Spencer's previous denials and now this response, it appears that his contradictory post was, as he said, "a MISUNDERSTANDING," and an understandable one. After all, Spider-Man: No Way Home is, technically, the MCU's Spider-Man 3.
It's also unlikely that he would know about this new film considering No Way Home was only released on December 17, 2021.
Still, despite his best efforts, it's likely that Spencer's post will continue to be used as internet evidence for this potential franchise revival, especially since Andrew Garfield repeatedly and vehemently denied being in No Way Home leading up to its release.
Although, it wasn't just Garfield. Tom Holland also denied Garfield and Maguire's returns, as did others involved with the film. In the end, those who were telling the truth were the lesser-known contributors to No Way Home, including a voice actor for Tobey Maguire.
Therefore, when it comes to rumors about another Garfield Spidey film, fans are likely to take the word of someone who won't be seen on-screen as truth, as opposed to someone who will.
Now, whether or not Sony has The Amazing Spider-Man 3 in the works remains to be seen. But due to Spider-Man: No Way Home's box office dominance and the Oscar buzz surrounding Andrew Garfield's role in Tick, Tick, Boom!, these rumors aren't going away anytime soon.
Spider-Man: No Way Home is now playing in theaters worldwide.
