Freshly revealed concept art showcased a deleted scene from Spider-Man: No Way Home set in Andrew Garfield’s Spider-Man universe.
Even over two years since its theatrical debut, Spider-Man: No Way Home seems as popular as it ever was. And with good reason too, since, through the power of Marvel’s Multiverse, several classic Spidey-affiliated characters returned for the film.
No Way Home Art Shows Strange’s Trip to Times Square
Concept artist Josh Nizzi, who worked on 2021’s Spider-Man: No Way Home, shared artwork on Instagram depicting a scene from the film that was ultimately left on the cutting room floor.
The sequence in question shows Benedict Cumberbatch’s Doctor Strange in the middle of Times Square.
Not only that, but judging by what’s going on in the background of the piece, it’s intended as an alternate take on the Times Square battle with Electro from The Amazing Spider-Man 2:
This would indicate that Stephen traveled, albeit temporarily, to the universe of Andrew Garfield’s Peter 3.
In this segment of the 2014 movie, Max Dillon, newly imbued with power over electricity but with little ability to control it, attacks a group of civilians in New York. Spider-Man then swoops in and puts a halt to things.
Per Nizzi, the intent of the deleted Spider-Man: No Way Home scene was for Strange to be the subject of mistaken identity and assumed to be a street performer:
“Here is another idea I did for the potential multiverse chase gag in No Way Home. Dr strange is mistaken for a street performer in TASM2 Times Square setting.”
As for at which point in No Way Home this bit would have been inserted, it’s possible that it was meant for the chase between Doctor Strange and Peter Parker that quickly spilled over into the mirror dimension.
What’s Next for Spider-Man on Film?
Spider-Man has had a storied history in multiple mediums, thanks to his status as Marvel’s most bankable character. But he’s undeniably known best to general audiences as a big-screen superhero.
Peter Parker will, at some point, be seen in the in-development Spider-Man 4, which will again be a joint product of Marvel Studios and Sony Pictures and star Tom Holland.
Various rumors for when the movie will begin filming have been bandied about, but as of writing, it’s not confirmed when this will occur.
But fear not! Spider-Man and several of his Variants will return in Spider-Man: Beyond the Spider-Verse, reportedly deep into production. The film is presently without an attached release date, however.
Beyond that, although not directly interconnected to Spider-Man himself, Sony is still decidedly set on plugging away with its so-called Sony’s Spider-Man Universe. The next release is February’s Madame Web, starring Dakota Johnson and Sydney Sweeney.
Marvel Studios’ Spider-Man: No Way Home does not have a designated streaming home, but there’s hope it will soon join the rest of the MCU on Disney+. The film can also be purchased wherever movies are sold.
