The Differences Between the US and International Trailers For Spider-Man: Homecoming

It’s not uncommon, when the trailer for a major motion picture comes out, for there to be two versions: One for the United States/North American market, and one for the rest of the world.

There are a number of peculiarities to why this happens, including pandering to your audience by playing up different elements of the film that will play better in different markets (some movie stars are bigger globally than in the US, some ideas resonate more with Americans than anybody else, etc.), getting approvals from regulatory boards, and more.

In most cases, though, the trailer are materially the same, share about 90% of the same footage/music/dialogue, and don’t give you too much of a different impression of the movie.

Spider-Man: Homecoming isn’t most cases.

The international version of the Spider-Man: Homecoming trailer is about 30 second shorter than the U.S. version, focuses much more heavily on Spidey’s ties to the Marvel Cinematic Universe, and uses quite a lot of footage that didn’t appear in the U.S. version (which, again, for a shorter trailer means there’s also a whole lot in the U.S. version that doesn’t appear in the international one).

Overall, the tone of the international is more of a general superhero movie, with a focus on its ties to Marvel’s hugely profitable films and almost no attention paid to Peter being young and in high school. From that trailer, it could almost be a continuation of the Amazing Spider-Man series, except for the actor and the costume. The soundtrack is also a bit more…curated in the U.S. version, with a pop aesthetic as opposed to kind of action movie trailer music.

We’re going to take a look and try to break down what the big differences are. Check it out…!

More Spider-Man: Homecoming: Domestic Trailer / International Trailer / First Look at Shocker / Iron Man Cameo Revealed / SPIDER-MAN HAS WINGS! / Jacob Batalon Reveals Role / Will Liz Allan Be Peter Parker’s Love Interest?

Doctor Strange is now in theaters; Guardians of the Galaxy Vol. 2 – May 5, 2017; Spider-Man: Homecoming – July 7, 2017; Thor: Ragnarok – November 3, 2017; Black Panther – February 16, 2018; Avengers: Infinity War – May 4, 2018; Ant-Man and the Wasp – July 6, 2018; and Captain Marvel on March 8, 2019.

STARTING POINT

Right off the bat, the international trailer starts with Spider-Man’s fan-favorite guest appearance from Captain America: Civil War, rather than footage from the actual movie.

Once it gets into the Spider-Man: Homecoming footage (just a few seconds in), the music is an upbeat, instrumental jam over shots of the city during the day.

TONY TALKS

After a few establishing moments, the US version heads into a bank robbery Spidey is foiling; it’s a long, lazy shot that reveals him standing there watching the crime for a moment before he calls the robbers’ attention to him and takes them out with ease, declaring his excitement at the end.

In the international version, we do get to see some of that footage — later, and not as full — but there’s a lot more focus on the Tony Stark/Iron Man cameo. Cutting straight to that scene, we get more dialogue, including Tony’s admonition that Peter isn’t a “real Avenger.”

NO CLASS

While the U.S. version them brings Peter and his friends back to high school, there’s no class in the international version, which introduces The Shocker, and gives us a good look at Michael Keaton as he snarls about the world changing around them, and how his (we’re assuming) gang is going to change, too.

HORROR MOVIE

Series star Tom Holland has said that The Vulture feels at times like he’s out of a horror movie, and that’s something that we see more clearly in the U.S. version with the creepy music and the slow reveal of his face. After that, there’s actually a good chunk of trailer — dealing with Tony’s advice to Peter to stay out of the fray and Peter feeling infantilized — that is the same in both trailers, but tonally it’s worth noting that the U.S. treats The Vulture reveal like a bigger deal, and plays him up as scarier, whereas it’s the action beats that are emphasized internationally.

MORE SCHOOL DAYS

In the U.S. version, the relationship between Peter and Liz is played up toward the end of the trailer, which takes it back to high school again. And once again, the international cut removes almost all references to school in favor of focusing on action.

This time, though, they also miss out on the cameo appearances by both Donald Glover and a second Shocker-looking guy (check out that jacket!). Those two appear in the U.S. trailer.

From that point on, though? The Vulture attacks the boat, Spidey tries to hold it together with webs, and then he and Iron Man fly out of frame together? The same trailer.