Tom Holland's Spider-Man is trying to find love in a hopeless place, but the winds could be changing in his favor. Over a month after its release, Spider-Man: Brand New Day is still dominating the headlines as it takes its place among the highest-grossing movies of all time. Fans can't get enough of Holland and Co., going so far as to comb through supplementary material for Easter eggs.
A member of the Brand New Day crew, X user WilliamD1123, shared an image of Peter Parker's villain board that appeared briefly in the movie. It features numerous references to little-known Marvel Comics villains, such as Hypno-Hustler and Screwball. With so much to take in, it's easy to miss a newspaper clipping on the right side of the board that mentions a string of art thefts in New York City.
Of course, just about any villain that calls the Big Apple home in the MCU could use the big score that comes from selling a high-end painting. However, nabbing art is Felicia Hardy's MO when she suits up as Black Cat. Hardy followed her father's lead in the comics and turned to crime, which put her at odds with Spider-Man. The Wall-Crawler didn't stay mad at her forever, though, as the two fell for each other and dated for a period of time.
The Amazing Spider-Man 2 introduced the first live-action version of Hardy, played by Felicity Jones. That movie had so many irons in the fire that there wasn't time to tease a spark between her and Andrew Garfield's Peter Parker. And Sony scrapping all future plans for the franchise ensured it couldn't rectify that mistake.
Marvel Studios doesn't have to let things marinate or kill anybody off to get the ball rolling because Holland's version of the hero is on his own. Brand New Day allows him to rekindle some of the relationships he lost at the end of Spider-Man: No Way Home when Doctor Strange made everyone forget who he was. But the record-breaking movie also makes it clear that those relationships will never be the same.
Now that he has a more positive outlook on his personal life, Peter can let more people in, including a thief with more to her than meets the eye. Black Cat and Spider-Man finally linking up would be a breath of fresh air for a franchise that is making a habit of taking them. It would also be the first time a single Spider-Man has had three serious love interests on the big screen.
Tom Holland's Spider-Man Love Interests in the MCU
MJ
Peter Parker met Michelle Jones when they were both attending Midtown School of Science and Technology. A bit of a loner, MJ took time to warm up to her classmates. But the events of Spider-Man: Homecoming forged bonds that only a magical spell could break. And even then, the jury is still out on how broken they are.
In Spider-Man: Far From Home, MJ and Peter started going out, and she learned the truth about his double life. She wasn't angry or disappointed, though, choosing to support Peter as a partner. Her attitude remained the same even after Spider-Man's identity was exposed to the world and the government came after her and her friends.
Unfortunately, MJ didn't get to choose how that chapter of her life ended. In Brand New Day, she grows frustrated with Peter when she learns what he's been keeping from her. MJ also tells him that she's no longer the person he fell in love with, crushing Peter's heart into a million pieces. However, she has her own feelings to worry about and her own life to live that may or may not include Peter.
Liz Allan
Just as Peter was coming into his own as a hero in Homecoming, he went up against Adrian Toomes, a working man with an axe to grind against the elite. Toomes took to the streets with his Vulture costume and handed out dangerous weapons to criminals, which didn't sit right with Spider-Man. The two went head-to-head on the battlefield and, because of the titular hero's bad luck, off of it as well.
Peter had a crush on one of his classmates, Liz Allan, so he asked her to the school dance. When he went to pick her up for the event, Toomes opened the door, revealing himself as her father. Peter decided to keep Liz in the dark, a decision that cost him a chance with her.
At the end of Homecoming, Liz moved out of town with her mother after her father landed in jail. She hasn't been heard from since, outside of appearing on a few magazine covers in No Way Home. After Peter's secret came to light, she decided to smear his name in the press. Well, for as long as she could, because after No Way Home, she forgot all about what happened with Peter in high school.
