After months of silence from Sony Pictures and Marvel Studios, the first official trailer for Spider-Man: No Way Home finally dropped online confirming the worst kept secret in Hollywood: former Spider-Man film franchises are now part of the MCU.
In a Doctor Strange spell gone wrong, Peter Parker's complicated world collides with those of other realities, resulting in Spider-Man villains from franchises past making their MCU debuts.
Much of the frenzied fanfare leading up to Tom Holland's threequel can be attributed to rumors that former Spider-Men Tobey Maguire and Andrew Garfield have also been cast for No Way Home.
While the first trailer didn't reveal Maguire and Garfield's versions of the web slingers, there's still significant evidence pointing towards their return and particularly that of Maguire's.
NO WAY HOME HINTS AT TOBEY MAGUIRE'S COMEBACK
It's true that the 3:04 minute trailer only showed Tom Holland's version of the wall-crawler, but the trailer did little to suggest that this film was Holland's alone.
In fact, it essentially laid the groundwork for the return of Tobey Maguire's Peter Parker from Sony's first Spider-Man trilogy.
Spider-Man directed by Sam Raimi and starring Tobey Maguire, Kirsten Dunst, and Willem Dafoe was released in 2002 and was a huge box office success, proving the comic book movie genre could succeed with mainstream audiences.
Spider-Man 2 in 2004 was another box office hit and is still considered one of the best Spider-Man films to date. Unfortunately, the same can't be said for Spider-Man 3 in 2007, with the trilogy's end not being as well-received among fans and critics.
While Andrew Garfield's Spider-Man from The Amazing Spider-Man franchise is also rumored to appear in No Way Home, the trailer intentionally highlighted villains from Maguire's franchise, particularly Willem Dafoe's Green Goblin from the 2002 film and Alfred Molina's Doc Ock from the 2004 sequel.
If they can appear alongside Holland, why wouldn't Maguire?
The fact Ock says, "Hello, Peter," suggests that he may actually be addressing Maguire's Peter Parker as opposed to Holland's.
Now, the Green Goblin and Doc Ock aren't the only original Spider-Man trilogy characters to appear in the trailer or the film.
The Daily Bugle's J. Jonah Jameson, masterfully played by J.K. Simmons, who first appeared in Maguire's trilogy appeared as a version (variant?) of his character in Spider-Man: Far From Home and is visible in the No Way Home trailer at multiple points.
In addition, Sam Raimi, who directed the original Spider-Man trilogy, has also crossed over into the Marvel Cinematic Universe.
He's set to direct Doctor Strange in the Multiverse of Madness, the MCU film to follow Spider-Man: No Way Home. Interestingly enough, Doctor Strange has a significant role in this film.
HE WAS IN THE NEIGHBORHOOD
Much to Sony and Marvel's chagrin, there have been other incidents pointing towards Tobey Maguire's reprisal.
One of the most recent involved JB Smoove, who plays Mr. Dell in the current Spider-Man franchise, seemingly confirming that Maguire shares the screen with Holland in No Way Home.
Other evidence ranges from Kirsten Dunst, who played Mary Jane Watson in Maguire's franchise, having been spotted in L.A. during reshoots, to merchandise featuring similar backgrounds to that of both Garfield and Maguire's films, to Maguire's voice actors hinting at their involvement with the upcoming film.
At this point, it would seem that there's no way that Tobey Maguire won't appear in Spider-Man: No Way Home. However, an outright confirmation from either Sony Pictures or Marvel Studios is unlikely, and it wouldn't be in the best interest of the film.
Still, it's worth noting that the long-awaited No Way Home trailer was anything but a denial from Sony or Marvel, and it looks like the upcoming film may, in fact, be Tobey Maguire's own Homecoming.
Spider-Man: No Way Home is currently slated for a December 17 theatrical release.
