Tom Holland's Spider-Man joined the MCU in 2016's Captain America: Civil War and has been a mainstay in the universe ever since. Much like his comic book counterpart, Holland's Spidey is a true teenager and deals with everyday problems, such as school and asking girls out. While there has been a handful of Spider-Men over the years (and hopefully we see them all again), Holland's Web-Head seems to be the favorite in the eyes of many fans.
One of the best parts of the MCU's Spidey is that he is constantly referencing movies and pop culture, which actually helps him in some of his physical battles and helps the viewers better understand this version of Peter Parker. While there's only one Spider-Man in the MCU as of October 2021, there are several random movie characters that remind fans of Holland's Friendly Neighborhood Spider-Man.
10 Spider-Man & Marty McFly Are Young Protagonist's Who Have Mentor's That Love Science
Back to the Future is one of the most successful and beloved movie trilogies of all time, thanks to time travel and Michael J. Fox's heroic Marty Mcfly. Tom Holland's third Spider-Man solo outing as Peter Parker is coming out in December, which means, much like Fox, he'll have a trilogy of movies being the main hero. The two young protagonists also share a love of pop culture and working on science projects, whether it's Marty working on Doc Brown's Delorean or Peter developing his own webbing.
Additionally, they also both have older mentors that are incredibly smart and both have worked on time travel, Doc Brown creating a Delorean to travel through time and Tony Stark helping The Avengers figure out the Quantum Realm. Stark and Doc Brown also used time travel to help their young proteges, including Doc's warning to Marty and Jennifer about their kids and Stark risking everything to bring Peter back after he was snapped away by Thanos.
9 Ferris Bueller Is A Teenager Who Bends The Rules, Much Like Holland's Spider-Man
Ferris Bueller's Day Off is an iconic 1980s comedy movie that would still work today, however, finding someone better than Matthew Broderick to portray the titular character would be difficult. Broderick's Ferris Bueller remains one of the greatest young movie characters created and the same can be said about Tom Holland's Spider-Man. While there have been two previous Spider-Man iterations in other films, Holland's seems to connect with fans of all ages the best and is the closest in age to his comic book counterpart.
While Ferris will do anything to avoid school and Principal Ed Rooney, Holland's Spidey sneaks around Tony Stark's back and hijacks a multi-million dollar suit. Ferris also has a best friend in Cameron and a girlfriend in Sloan, much like Spidey has Ned and either Liz or MJ, depending on which MCU Spidey movie is being compared. Regardless, Spidey and Ferris are young, rambunctious heroes that the audiences root for the entire time and would skip school to experience.
8 Luke Skywalker & Spidey Are Strong Heroes Who Join A Bigger Team
No movie trilogy is as iconic as Star Wars and anyone who disagrees doesn't know their blaster from their lightsaber. Although Darth Vader may be the best overall character throughout the Star Wars franchise, Luke Skywalker went from being a whiny little farm boy to becoming a Jedi Knight, cementing himself as one of the greatest fictional heroes. Tom Holland's Peter is a teenager himself and was thrust into this world of superheroes after a radioactive spider bit him and he lost his Uncle Ben.
The MCU recently confirmed Peter lost his Uncle Ben in Marvel's What If... ?, which is well known in the comics and previous films about Spidey but hadn't been talked about before. Regardless, both Luke and Peter knew they had to step up and help protect the world (or the galaxy) after losing a loved one. Whether it was Luke helping the Rebel Alliance take down the Empire or Spider-Man helping the Avengers take down Thanos, both heroes went from being boys to being men in a short period of time.
7 Spidey & Simba Both Disobey & Lose Their Father-Figures
The Lion King is a Disney animated classic that gave a fun look at what a world filled with talking animals would be like. Mufasa starts the movie as the king of the pack but is unfortunately betrayed and killed by his brother, Scar, who makes Mufasa's young son, Simba, feel as if he was responsible for his father's death. Simba goes on to become king and saves the kingdom from Scar, but it takes some help from friends and he had to learn from his mistakes. Spider-Man is a young hero, much like Simba, that learns from his mistakes and he eventually helped the Avengers save the universe from Thanos.
Unfortunately, Spidey and Simba also suffered tremendous losses in their lives, Spider-Man lost his Uncle Ben and Mr. Stark, and Simba lost his father, Mufasa. However, they both overcame their losses and went on to help their respective teams overcome an evil tyrant.
6 The Dragonfly In Superhero Movie Is A Comedic Take On Spider-Man & Superheroes
Parody movies have been around for decades, so when all these comic book movies started coming out every year, it was only a matter of time they would tackle the superhero genre. Superhero Movie is a hilarious take on some of the fans' favorite comic book movies, including several references to Spider-Man lore. The Dragonfly is almost a carbon comedic copy of the Wall-Crawler.
In a hilarious spoof of Spider-Man, Dragonfly starts sketching different costume possibilities, including a wedding dress, and is infatuated with his beautiful neighbor, who becomes his love interest. The Dragonfly was also bit by a radioactive dragonfly, much like Peter's radioactive spider bite. In addition to all the Spidey goofs and references, the controversial actor, Drake Bell, voiced an animated version of the Web-Head in Disney's Ultimate Spider-Man.
5 The DCEU's Flash Is Also A Younger Hero Who Fights Alongside Veteran Heroes
Marvel's success has outshined DC's for several years now, however, Zack Snyder's Justice League brought some credibility back to DC. Superman and Cyborg may have been the heart of the movie, but without Ezra Miller's Flash, the team would have never been able to defeat Steppenwolf. Much like Holland's Spidey, Miller's Flash is the youngest hero on a team of superheroes and they both always seem to lighten the mood by cracking jokes and making pop culture references.
The Scarlet Speedster may not be the strongest member of the Justice League but is incredibly gifted and seems to genuinely care about the powers he has, very much like Spidey in the MCU. In addition to their selflessness, both Flash and Spidey are most definitely the funniest members of their respective superhero teams.
4 Elliot from E.T. Is A Gifted Young Man With A Monumental Secret
Steven Spielberg has made countless classic films and continues to do so to this very day, however, E.T. may have been the most emotional and heartwarming movie he ever directed. Elliot may not have superpowers, but he does connect with a special alien and is forced to keep it a secret, similar to how Peter tries to keep his Spider-Man secret. ET is eventually discovered by Elliot's family, who initially seem frightened but warm up to him when they see he's not a threat.
Peter's secret is also found out by Tony Stark, his friend Ned, and his Aunt May, who also support him and realize he can help make the world a better place. Unfortunately, ET is found by the government, who wants to experiment on him when the alien gets sick, but with Elliot's help, ET recovers and returns to his alien family. It's strangely similar to how Peter goes through a near-death experience after being dusted by Thanos, but with the help of Tony and the Avengers, he is brought back to life and reunited with his family and friends.
3 Batman Forever's Robin Loses His Family & Becomes A Hero To Avenge Their Deaths
Tim Burton's 1989 Batman and 1992 Batman Returns changed the landscape of comic book movies and both films emphasized the dark in The Dark Knight. However, when director Joel Schumacher took over for the third outing, Batman Forever, things became a little outlandish and cartoony. However, Batman Forever is also underrated and still had some emotional moments, especially when young Dick Grayson loses his whole family and moves in with Bruce Wayne. Much like Dick, Peter knows what it's like to lose family and is actually the reason both young heroes become superheroes.
Tony Stark later recruits Peter to help the Avengers but loses faith in the young hero when he sneaks around in a multimillion-dollar suit. When Dick finds out Bruce is Batman, he tells him that he's going to be his sidekick and help stop criminals, to which Bruce says no. Eventually, Tony and Bruce realize their proteges have the potential to help and allow them to fight by their side. Peter Parker and Dick Grayson also have the ability to make jokes while crimefighting and bring a youthful innocence to their teams.
2 John Connor Is A Hero With A Strong Female Role-Model, Much Like Peter Has Aunt May
There have been many iterations of John Connor throughout the Terminator franchise, but Edward Furlong's portrayal is the most popular, thanks to the huge success of T2: Judgement Day. The sequel features the young actor interacting with a strong female hero and a strong male hero, similar to Tom Holland in Spider-Man: Homecoming.
Holland's Spidey is taken care of by his Aunt May and is Iron Man's protege, while John Connor has his mom, Sarah, and is protected by the updated T-800. John may be a little rougher around the edges than Spidey, but he still wants what's best for the world and goes to any length to help save it. Sarah always tells John that he has to take care of himself so he can be the leader of the Resistance, similar to how Stark goes back in time and sacrifices himself to save Peter and leave the young hero in a position of leadership.
1 Brodie From Mallrats Stands Up To The Bad Guy & Has A Vast Knowledge Of Spider-Man & Comics
Mallrats is director Kevin Smith's best movie from his View Askewniverse, thanks to a young Ben Affleck as the narcissistic villain and Jason Lee's Brody, who serves as the film's comedic hero. Brody and his girlfriend break up at the beginning of the movie, which leaves Brody and his buddy TS plenty of time to check out the mall scene. Mallrats features some iconic comedy moments and a lot of superhero references, including having Stan "The Man" Lee as a character who interacts with Brody and TS.
Tom Holland's Spider-Man is a hero who is constantly referencing pop culture, plus he has a close friend in Ned, and he's always on the lookout for a girlfriend, much like Brody does in the movie. Spidey also has to deal with multiple villains such as Vulture or Shocker, much like Brody deals with Ben Affleck's evil Shannon and Mr. Svenning. Spidey and Brody also are both hilarious and sometimes come off awkward, but in the end, they stop the villains and get the girl.