Warning! Spoilers for Spider-Man: Homecoming lie below!
Keeping a secret identity under-wraps is a challenge; Just ask Peter Parker. This weekend, Spider-Man: Homecoming hit theaters, and the film revealed the teenager’s superhero status to more than moviegoers. Peter’s best friend, arch enemy, and aunt were all clued into his alter-ego. However, according to the film’s writers, Aunt May absolutely needed to learn about her nephew’s antics early on.
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During an interview with The Hollywood Reporter, screenwriters John Francis Daley and Jonathan Goldstein expanded on several of Spider-Man‘s biggest scenes. The pair turned their focus to the final scene where Aunt May walks in on Peter Parker donning his newly returned Spider-Man suit. As the writers explain, Peter needed to have May discover his secret so that she can truly become a part of his new life.
When asked how Spider-Man’s story moves forward now that May knows about her nephew, Goldstein said, “It just sort of diminishes what is often the most trivial part of superhero worlds, which is finding your secret. It takes the emphasis off that, lets her become part of what’s really his life, so it’s not cloak-and-dagger stuff.”
“It’s how does he best use these powers to help the world, help himself and his family and act responsibly,” the screenwriter continued. “What’s funny is, when we first went in to Marvel, we said we were imagining that Aunt May would be a Marisa Tomei type, and they kind of exchanged a look, because they were already secretly in negotiations with her. So things worked out well; we were all on the same page.”
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Chiming in, Daley also emphasized how May’s discovery allows her to be a more in-tune maternal character. “It sets up a fun storyline of having this maternal figure, who is supposed to protect this kid, but also knowing this kid is so much stronger than she is, and in fact his job is going to be to protect her, presumably,” he said.
When it comes to Spider-Man: Homecoming, May is not the only authority figure looking out for Peter. Iron Man becomes an unwitting mentor to the boy following their superhero team-up in Captain America: Civil War. Tony Stark admits he feels a sense of responsibility for Spider-Man after their stint in Germany, so the hero is filling a gap presumably left by Uncle Ben’s passing. With two watchers hovering over him, Spider-Man’s transition into a fully fledged hero will be a complicated one to navigate, but Peter can do it.
After all, the kid does have Ned as his ‘guy in the chair.’ Anything is possible with that kind of help around.
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A young Peter Parker/Spider-Man (Tom Holland), who made his sensational debut in Captain America: Civil War, begins to navigate his newfound identity as the web-slinging super hero in Spider-Man: Homecoming. Thrilled by his experience with the Avengers, Peter returns home, where he lives with his Aunt May (Marisa Tomei), under the watchful eye of his new mentor Tony Stark (Robert Downey, Jr.). Peter tries to fall back into his normal daily routine – distracted by thoughts of proving himself to be more than just your friendly neighborhood Spider-Man – but when the Vulture (Michael Keaton) emerges as a new villain, everything that Peter holds most important will be threatened.
The cast includes Tom Holland, Michael Keaton, Zendaya, Donald Glover, JacobBatalon, Laura Harrier, Tony Revolori, Tyne Daly, Bokeem Woodbine, with Marisa Tomei, and Robert Downey Jr. It also includes Jon Favreau, Martin Starr, Kenneth Choi, Michael Mando, Selenis Leyva, Isabella Amara, Jorge Lendeborg, Jr., JJ Totah, and Hannibal Buress.
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