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Credit: Sony PicturesMarvel Studios just rocked the internet yesterday with new reveals for its Phase 4 line-up including titles and release dates — Just in time to get fans excited to return to theaters for the delayed Black Widow, which will now debut on July 9, 2021.
However, news on the upcoming Spider-Man: No Way Home (December 17, 2021) was severely lacking, but now, Amazing Spider-Man (2012) Golden Globe-nominated actor Andrew Garfield has a new update on the film.
Related: All Phase 4 Marvel Films Will Intersect With Disney+
The announcement from Marvel gave MCU fans new titles like Black Panther: Wakanda Forever (July 9, 2021) and The Marvels (November 11, 2022) as well as new release dates for Ant-Man and the Wasp: Quantumania (February 17, 2023) and Guardians of the Galaxy Vol. 3 (May 5, 2023).
It even gave audiences their first glimpse of Chloe Zhao’s The Eternals (November 5, 2021), but fans of Tom Holland’s Spider-Man franchise were left hanging when the same title card from February was all they got. They did not get so much as a frame of Zendaya’s MJ or Jacob Batalon‘s Ned Leeds.
Rumors surrounding the production have been swarming ever since it was announced that Benedict Cumberbatch’s Doctor Strange was joining the film and that it would tie in with Doctor Strange in the Multiverse of Madness (March 25, 2022). The expectations for Spider-Man: No Way Home quickly swelled to critical levels.
Related: Everything Fans Believe Will Happen in ‘Spider-Man: No Way Home’
Since then, casting rumors have included both Sam Raimi’s Peter Parker (Tobey Maguire) and the other Spider-Man actor, Andrew Garfield, from the Marc Webb directed films. Fans want to see an MCU adaptation of the Marvel comic storyline Spider-Verse that brought characters from across the Spider-Man universe together.
And now, Andrew Garfield seems to have put those rumors to bed confirming in a recent interview with Josh Horowitz’s Happy Sad Confused Podcast that he never got a call to return.
He told Horowitz:
“There’s nothing to ruin. Like it’s so crazy too. Dude, it’s […] hilarious to me because it’s like […] I see like how often Spider-Man is trending and its people freaking out about a thing and I’m just like…guys, guys guys guys like…I wish I could just be able to speak to everyone and say like, I recommend that you chill. Like listen, I can’t speak for anything else but for myself. They might be doing something, but I ain’t got a call.”
Related: A Complete Guide To Sony’s Spider-Man Films Coming to Disney+
It’s definitely a blow for fans hoping for Marvel’s version of the Spider-Verse. But it is not completely unexpected as Tom Holland also previously denied that Tobey Maguire and Andrew Garfield would appear back in February. But the Jon Watts-directed movie was still filming at the time of Holland’s quote, but now we know Spider-Man: No Way Home wrapped back in March.
Since then, fans have held out hope since it’s been confirmed that the Amazing Spider-Man 2 (2014) villain, Electro, was returning and Jamie Foxx was going to play the same character. Then, Alfred Molina accidentally let it slip that he would be bringing Spider-Man 2‘s (2004) Dr. Otto Octavious AKA Doctor Octopus (“Doc Ock”) into the Marvel Cinematic Universe.
Related: Kevin Feige Compares Swinging Spider-Man to Flying Tinker Bell
While some fans are heartbroken to hear they may not get to see Garfield’s Peter Parker return others chose to believe he is just trying to avoid overhype that ruined the WandaVision finale. And others cling to the idea that this does not rule out Maguire from appearing in the film.
For example, one Twitter user, who goes by HabsGirl said:
He’s totally lying lol.
He’s totally lying lol
— HabsGirl (@FSOGfangirl) May 4, 2021
Related: Imminent Casting Could Shake the Foundation of the MCU
Many are disappointed they never got to see Garfield’s Peter Parker move on from the death of Gwen Stacy (played by Emma Stone), but there is still time until December for Marvel Studios to try to sneak in more cameos into the film. The version in Amazing Spider-Man could even appear in the mask, without Andrew Garfield showing up on set.
And there are plenty of other expectations still making the rounds on the internet. This includes that Charlie Cox’s Matt Murdock AKA Daredevil might appear and bring the Netflix characters back into the MCU. Even Jake Gyllenhaal’s Mysterio might return. There is even a rumor that William Defoe could come back as Norman Osborn AKA Green Goblin.
Fans clued into that recent Sony deal to bring these older Spider-Man films to Disney+ as a sign that these iconic characters might eventually be worked into an extended Marvel universe. Many credit Tobey Maguire’s Spider-Man (2002) as ushering in the golden age of superhero movies that led to Avengers: Infinity War (2018) and Avengers: Endgame (2019).
Are you still holding out hope for Andrew Garfield to show up?