Tom Holland Finally Gives Update on Spider-Man 4; ‘We Have a Legacy to Protect’

Tom Holland has finally opened up about whether he is set to return to the MCU as Spider-Man, and not only is that seemingly guaranteed, but the actor is also heavily involved in the creative process behind Spider-Man 4. There have been plenty of rumors about Holland’s next Spider-Man entry in the franchise, and it would be foolish to ever assume that it might not happen at some point. Now, Holland has shared a little insight into where things currently stand in respect of his web-slinging return.

Holland made an appearance at the Sands International Film Festival in St Andrews, Scotland. Although he was there in support of the short film Last Call, which was co-written and directed by his brother Harry Holland and stars Tom and Blackbird star Lindsay Duncan, it did not take long for the subject of Spider-Man to come up. Speaking to Deadline at the event, Holland said when asked about possibly returning to the role:

However, as he has eluded to in the past, the biggest concern for Holland is making sure that whatever path the character takes next, it should not simply retread the same path as the previous movies. With this in mind, it seems that Holland has become much more involved in working out what story he will tell when Peter Parker does make his next appearance. He continued:

“We have the best in the business working toward whatever the story might be. But until we’ve cracked it, we have a legacy to protect. The third movie was so special in so many ways that we need to make sure we do the things right. This is the first time in this process that I’ve been part of the creative so early. It’s just a process where I’m watching and learning. It’s just a really fun stage for me. Like I said, everyone wants it to happen. But we want to make sure we’re not overdoing somethings.”

Spider-Man 4 is Reportedly Caught Between Sony and Marvel Studios

For MCU fans, there is still a vivid memory of the moment it was announced that Sony and Marvel Studios were cutting ties on the Spider-Man franchise, and that there would be no further outings for the character within the MCU. This came after Spider-Man: Far From Home’s cliffhanger ending of Peter Parker’s identity as Spider-Man being revealed to the world by Mysterio.

However, disaster was not only avoided when the two companies settled their financial arrangements around the character, but the new deal resulted in Spider-Man: No Way Home. Arguably one of the most satisfying Spider-Man projects ever made, the film became one of the highest grossing movies of all-time, and tied up several Spider-Man franchise questions as a result.

The development of Spider-Man 4 has not just been beleaguered with a need to do justice to its predecessor, but also reported conflicts between Sony and Marvel Studios’ boss Kevin Feige over exactly which direction the character should be taken next. These reports have suggested that Sony are looking to have Peter Parker embark on another multiverse-spanning spectacle – which may or may not link to their own poorly-received Spider-Man Universe movies – but Feige wants to bring Spider-Man back down to Earth with a “street-level” story that could potentially tie into other heroes such as Daredevil, and see Parker facing off against Kingpin further down the line.

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The most important thing right now is that Holland’s comments have confirmed that work on Spider-Man 4 is clearly ongoing, and he is heavily involved in that process. Having now played the character for eight years since his first full appearance in 2016’s Captain America: Civil War, Holland should know as much as anyone exactly what is needed to maintain the high standard that his Spider-Man movies have delivered so far.