The MCU’s Spider-Man 4 with Tom Holland has the perfect chance to reverse a major plot point from Sam Raimi’s Spider-Man 2 starring Tobey Maguire.

The MCU’s Spider-Man 4 has a unique opportunity to reverse Sam Raimi’s Spider-Man 2. Starring Tobey Maguire as Peter Parker, Spider-Man 2 saw the iconic live-action Webslinger taking on Doctor Octopus while also struggling to balance his dual lives. To that end, Tom Holland’s Spider-Man may be faced with a similar crisis in his next movie, one that would likely see him making a very different choice compared to Maguire’s Wallcrawler.

Marvel Studios and Sony Pictures’ fourth Spider-Man movie in the MCU is currently in development. However, very little is known about the upcoming film beyond Tom Holland’s return as the titular Webslinger. That said, the aftermath of 2021’s Spider-Man: No Way Home has likely set up a scenario in which the MCU’s Peter Parker could be dealing with the reverse of what happens in Raimi’s Spider-Man 2.

The Aftermath Of No Way Home Was Brutal For Peter Parker

Losing His Friends And Loved Ones

Following Doctor Strange’s original spell to make the world forget that Peter Parker was Spider-Man (which Peter accidentally botched), multiple villains from other realities came to the MCU in Spider-Man: No Way Home. Ultimately, the only way to set everything right and prevent the risk of a full-scale multiversal incursion was for the world to forget Peter Parker entirely. This included Peter’s fellow heroes, his friends, and his girlfriend MJ (Zendaya). As a result, Peter Parker is well and truly on his own by No Way Home’s ending, living in a small New York apartment.

For the first time in the cinematic history of Spider-Man, our friendly neighborhood hero is unmasked and no longer able to separate his normal life from the trials and tribulations of being a superhero. In Spider-Man: No Way Home, Peter Parker (Tom Holland) asks for help from Doctor Strange (Benedict Cumberbatch) when his identity becomes a problem for the ones he loves. Unfortunately, when the spell goes wrong, Spider-Man will now have to face off with villains such as Doctor Octopus (Alfred Molina) and Electro (Jamie Foxx) as Peter finally comes to terms that he can’t run from being Spider-Man. Supported by his close friends and help from an unexpected place (or multiverse), Spider-Man will go toe-to-toe with some of the most legendary foes in his storied history.

To make matters even more tragic, Norman Osborn’s Green Goblin killed Peter’s Aunt May (Marisa Tomei). As such, the deep loss nearly drove the MCU’s Spider-Man to murder the Goblin in No Way Home’s final act. However, he was thankfully saved from that dark act by Maguire’s Peter Parker who’d also come to the MCU (along with Andrew Garfield’s Spider-Man). Nevertheless, one has to imagine that Holland’s Peter is still holding onto that darkness in No Way Home’s aftermath, especially now that no one remembers who he is.

Spider-Man Is The Only Good Thing In Peter Parker’s Life

It’s All He Has Left

Considering the fallout of Spider-Man: No Way Home, there’s not much that Peter Parker has left beyond Spider-Man. This is especially true with Peter having decided not to remind MJ and Ned about who he is and what he once meant to them prior to Strange’s new spell. Instead, Peter has a brand-new Spider-Man suit and a police scanner among his limited possessions, seemingly determined to continue using his power responsibly as a hero.

For all intents and purposes, being the MCU’s Spider-Man looks to be the only good thing Peter has going on in his life. Even though the public is likely still being swayed by figures like J. Jonah Jameson and the Daily Bugle to frame Spider-Man as a menace, it’s not as if the Webslinger has anything positive going on as Peter Parker. After all, it’s not as if he has anyone waiting for him to come home once he takes off his mask.

How The MCU’s Spider-Man 4 Can Flip Raimi’s Spider-Man 2

Peter Parker No More

Keeping this idea in mind, a greater emphasis on being Spider-Man could be the core concept behind the MCU’s Spider-Man 4 and where audiences will find the Webslinger. Perhaps “Peter Parker” is left behind as the hero spends more and more time under the mask as Spider-Man, devoting all of his time as a New York hero rather than trying to maintain a dual life. Again, it’s doubtful that he’ll have anything (or anyone) to take his mask off for, a deeply tragic yet very compelling place for the character to start out in Marvel and Sony’s next Spider-Man movie.

Essentially, the MCU’s Spider-Man 4 can be the reverse 2004’s Spider-Man 2. In the Raimi universe, Tobey Maguire’s Peter Parker decides to stop being Spider-Man following a lapse in his powers alongside constant struggles in his life as Peter Parker. Mirroring the “Spider-Man No More” storyline from the comics, being a superhero temporarily took a back seat in favor of a greater focus on being Peter Parker (at least until the call of responsibility became too great combined with the return of Spider-Man’s powers). As such, Spider-Man 4 could go the other way with “Peter Parker No More”.

Spider-Man’s Identity Crisis Is The Best Way To Start His New MCU Trilogy

A New Balance For A New Era

Seeing a Spider-Man with no time for Peter Parker would certainly be a dynamic foundation for the next MCU trilogy. At least at the onset, a major identity crisis for Tom Holland’s Peter could be the best way to start his new trilogy from Marvel Studios and Sony. After all, the major status quo change created in the aftermath of Spider-Man: No Way Home has to be addressed. A transition period where Peter Parker can figure out how to grow from his pain and loss feels right before a new era can truly begin for the Wallcrawler.

Forging a new life as Peter Parker beyond the responsibility of Spider-Man will likely need to happen and would be very exciting to see. That said, seeing Spider-Man without the current burden and pain of being Peter Parker is a concept that does feel quite likely considering how the character was left in the wake of No Way Home. While tragic and all kinds of heartbreaking, it would be such a good and darkly entertaining place to start building Peter Parker back up for a new Spider-Man era in the MCU with the upcoming Spider-Man 4.