Spider-Man: Homecoming star Michael Mando says there’s “always a chance” Mac Gargan suits up as Scorpion in the Marvel Cinematic Universe. A professional criminal with an extensive record, Gargan was the once partner of Aaron Davis (Donald Glover), nicknamed Prowler, and was wanted by the CIA and NSA when he engaged in dealings with Adrian Toomes, a blue-collar salvage worker who suited up as the high-flying Vulture when selling stolen alien technology. This black market was discovered by a meddling Spider-Man (Tom Holland), who intercepted Toomes’ crew on the Staten Island Ferry. Gargan was left with a vendetta against Spider-Man when he was knocked overboard and maimed during an ensuing fight that ended with him in FBI custody.
“There is a chance,” Mando told Steve Varley with a laugh when asked if audiences will ever see Scorpion re-enter the MCU. “There’s always a chance.”
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Gargan was last seen in a Homecoming credits scene menacing Toomes in prison, where Toomes denied rumors he learned Spider-Man’s secret identity. The superhero’s alter-ego would be exposed years later by Mysterio (Jake Gyllenhaal), who framed Spider-Man for his “murder” in Spider-Man: Far From Home.
Because Far From Home ended with online pundit J. Jonah Jameson (J.K. Simmons) outing Peter Parker as Spider-Man on national television, there exists speculation Scorpion could take revenge on the wall-crawler in the untitled Spider-Man 3. In the Marvel comic books, it was Jameson who financed Gargan’s transformation into Scorpion, a process that made him one of Spider-Man’s most lethal enemies.
“We never really found the right moment to do something like that. It’s always just about it being right for the story and not just some sort of shoehorned-in cameo,” Homecoming and Far From Home director Jon Watts previously told Digital Spy when explaining why Vulture and Scorpion did not appear in Far From Home despite a credits scene pointing towards the eventual assembly of the Sinister Six. “But I do love the idea that they’re both still out there, and I like the idea that as we move forward with these films, we’re building out this rich world that we can continually draw from.”
The Sinister Six, a group of six recurring Spider-Man foes, were “never talked about” for Far From Home, Watts said in a prior interview. “It’s just a question of what is the best idea for the story we are telling. Hopefully, the best idea always wins but what’s exciting about working with Marvel is that you feel like every idea is always on the table.”
Spider-Man 3 swings into theaters July 16, 2021.
