Alfred Molina's return as Doctor Octopus is a rumor no more.
In a rather surprising move, actor Alfred Molina has taken it upon himself to confirm that he will, in fact, be reprising his role as the villain Dr. Otto Octavius/Doctor Octopus in Spider-Man: No Way Home, director Jon Watts' upcoming third Spider-Man film set within the Marvel Cinematic Universe. Molina previously starred as Doc Ock in director Sam Raimi's 2004 film Spider-Man 2.
"When we were shooting it, we were all under orders not to talk about it, because it was supposed to be some great big secret," Molina told Variety. "But, you know, it's all over the internet. I actually described myself as the worst kept secret in Hollywood!" He continued, "It was wonderful. It was very interesting going back after 17 years to play the same role, given that in the intervening years, I now have two chins, a wattle, crow's feet and a slightly dodgy lower back."
On that note, Molina strongly suggested that Marvel Studios would be using CGI to digitally de-age him for the film, as it has done in the past with the likes of Samuel L. Jackson, Michael Douglas, Michelle Pfeiffer, Kurt Russell, Robert Downey Jr. and even Stan Lee. Molina also implied that No Way Home would pick up Doc Ock's story following the character's supposed death in New York's East River at the end of Spider-Man 2.
Molina's involvement in the then-untitled No Way Home was first reported by The Hollywood Reporter back in December. Molina is one of multiple actors from Spidey's on-screen past said to be returning for the hero's latest MCU outing, which marks the return of Tom Holland as Peter Parker. Other characters who are reportedly making a comeback include Willem Dafoe's Norman Osborn, Jamie Foxx's Max Dillon (which Foxx seemingly confirmed in a now-deleted Instagram post), Kirsten Dunst's Mary Jane Watson and, of course, Andrew Garfield and Tobey Maguire's own respective versions of Peter. Such appearances are not unprecedented, as J.K. Simmons already reprised his role as J. Jonah Jameson in 2019's Spider-Man: Far From Home.
No Way Home is also rumored to feature appearances by Benedict Cumberbatch as Doctor Strange and Charlie Cox as Matt Murdock/Daredevil. Interestingly enough, Spider-Man trilogy director Raimi -- who worked with Maguire, Dunst, Dafoe, Simmons and Molina -- is himself joining the MCU to helm Doctor Strange in the Multiverse of Madness.
Directed by Jon Watts, Spider-Man: No Way Home stars Tom Holland, Zendaya, Jacob Batalon, Marisa Tomei, Tony Revolori, Jamie Foxx, Alfred Molina and Benedict Cumberbatch. The film arrives in theaters Dec. 17.
Source: Variety