Spider-Man: No Way Home gave fans arguably the biggest solo superhero movie in history with three web-slingers, five classic villains, and an endless supply of Multiversal madness. But after all that, it also brought one of the saddest endings to any MCU project ever as fans caught up with Tom Holland's Peter Parker, Jacob Batalon's Ned Leeds, and Zendaya's Michelle Jones-Watson.
After Doctor Strange performed his memory wipe spell the way it was initially meant to be done, Peter had to let go of his entire life, the most painful part of that being losing his best friend and his girlfriend. This was confirmed in one of No Way Home's final moments when Peter visited MJ's coffee shop, only to find out that the spell worked and made it so that she and Ned thought they had never met him before.
Fans now have a chance to revisit this heartbreaking moment with the threequel back in theaters, as Sony brings 11 more minutes of unseen footage in Spider-Man: No Way Home - The More Fun Stuff Version. This also happens to come as Zendaya celebrates her 26th birthday, which Sony took the opportunity to acknowledge on social media.
Sony Wishes Spider-Man's Zendaya a Happy Birthday
The official @SpiderManMovie Twitter account posted an image of Zendaya from Spider-Man: No Way Home to celebrate the actress' 26th birthday on September 1. The account included the following caption along with an image of Zendaya from the final scene of the Spider-Man threequel, where she's working at her coffee shop before reuniting with Peter Parker:
"Wishing a very happy birthday to the one and only, Zendaya! Catch her in Spider-Man: No Way Home now back in theaters!"
Zendaya is also one to share in the birthday love, as she did in June 2022 for Tom Holland's birthday. Being one of Hollywood's power couples, Zendaya posted an adorable picture of the two of them sharing an embrace with huge smiles on their faces.
Shortly after No Way Home debuted, Zendaya shared her thoughts on the movie's ending, which she wishes could have gone a different way. She described that ending as "awfully sad" while imagining what could have been if Peter and MJ had gotten to go to college together and let their relationship evolve.
A few days later, Zendaya looked at the way that Peter and MJ's roles were reversed in the threequel, with each of them taking on a part of the other's personality. Peter partially adopted “a more negative nihilistic outlook" on life after dealing with so many intense situations while MJ gained a new level of confidence in herself after dating the Friendly Neighborhood Spider-Man:
“She doesn’t want to lose this person that really has allowed her to feel more and more like herself, and more and more confident in who she is, and loves her exactly for all the quirks and things that make her who she is. Because he’s going through so much, she now takes on his positivity that maybe he’s losing a little bit. He takes on a more negative nihilistic outlook.”
She also expressed how sad it was that the Multiverse doomed Peter and MJ's relationship, saying that the two "don't want to" say goodbye to each other while the movie had to have the Multiverse take precedence.
Zendaya's Birthday Brings Emotional Spider-Man Memories
With appearances in all three movies from the MCU's Spider-Man trilogy, Zendaya became a fan-favorite as she brought a unique version of MJ into the Marvel Studios narrative. Having worked on this role since she was 20 years old, Sony understands how meaningful the end of Spider-Man: No Way Home was for her as the threequel comes back into the international spotlight.
This movie allowed fans to see Peter and MJ's relationship evolve to new levels as boyfriend and girlfriend, making the final moments that much more devastating as the love of Peter's life lost all memory of him. Even with Holland and Zendaya still thriving together as a couple after finishing that trilogy, No Way Home still managed to break open the tear ducts for fans worldwide as Peter finds his way in a new world.
Even with a chance for Zendaya to return to the MCU in the expected Spider-Man 4, there's no telling what kind of role she'll play in a world that knows nothing about Peter Parker's existence. But for now, the young star gets to enjoy another trip around the sun as she waits for more news on what her MCU future holds.
Spider-Man: No Way Home - The More Fun Stuff Version is now playing in theaters.
