Spider-Man: No Way Home star Tom Holland say the upcoming threequel will be much darker in tone than the previous two films in the Marvel Cinematic Universe's Spider-Man franchise.
Spider-Man: Homecoming and Spider-Man: Far From Home were both relatively light-hearted compared to other films in the Marvel Cinematic Universe, but it appears the third film will amp up the intensity. "What people will be really surprised about is that it's not fun, this film," Holland told Total Film. "It's dark and it's sad, and it's going to be really affecting. You're going to see characters that you love go through things that you would never wish for them to go through. And I was just really excited to kind of lean into that side of Peter Parker."
He continued, "Peter Parker is always someone who's looking up. He's always really positive. He's always like, 'I can fix this. I can do this.' Whereas in this film, he feels like he's met his match. He's like, 'I don't know what to do.' That was an aspect of the character that I'd never seen before, and I was really, really excited to try to tackle."
Although No Way Home might be less "fun" than its two predecessors, Holland still believes it surpasses them. "I haven’t seen the film yet but I’ve seen pieces of the film, and it's the best work we've ever done," he said. "It's the best Spider-Man film that we've ever made. I really don't think fans are at all ready for what they've put together. I know that I'm not ready, and I know that it's going to be brutal."
The darker tone of No Way Home may be partially thanks to the inclusion of various villains from throughout the different Spider-Man franchises, which occurs after Doctor Strange (Benedict Cumberbatch) casts a spell that breaks open the multiverse. Holland, who said the film represents "three generations coming together," confirmed that Jamie Foxx's Electro from The Amazing Spider-Man 2 (2014) will be making an appearance. It's already been confirmed that Alfred Molina's Doc Ock from Spider-Man 2 (2004) will return and heavily implied that Willem Dafoe's Green Goblin from Spider-Man (2002) will pop up as well. Thomas Hayden Church's Sandman from Spider-Man 3 (2007) is also believed to be returning.
However, Holland denied the persistent rumors that Tobey Maguire and Andrew Garfield are reprising their respective iterations of Peter Parker. "People don't believe me when I say that [Maguire and Garfield] are not coming back. But people are going to have to believe me at some point," he said.
Spider-Man: No Way Home swings into theaters on Dec. 17.
Source: Total Film