Including two major Marvel villains in Spider-Man: No Way Home has made their official debuts in Spider-Man’s MCU future ever harder to pull off. Spider-Man: No Way Home marked the final movie in Tom Holland’s original MCU trilogy, concluding Peter Parker’s origin story as Spider-Man by having everyone in the world forget his real identity, rendering him an anonymous hero in the MCU. Set firmly in the Multiverse Saga, Spider-Man: No Way Home explored the concept of alternate realities and variant characters more than any previous project, pitting Tom Holland’s Spider-Man against five iconic villains from the wall-crawler’s live-action history.

After Peter Parker botched Doctor Strange’s initial memory wipe spell in Spider-Man: No Way Home, multiversal heroes and villains were dragged into the MCU from Sony’s previous live-action Spider-Man franchises. This included Tobey Maguire and Andrew Garfield’s versions of Spider-Man, as well as a selection of their villains from Sam Raimi and Marc Webb’s Spider-Man films. While it was brilliant to see Tom Holland’s Spider-Man go up against some of Marvel Comics’ most memorable Spider-Man villains, their inclusion in No Way Home has created a huge challenge for Spider-Man’s future MCU stories.

No Way Home’s Green Goblin & Doctor Octopus Cameos Make The MCU’s Villain Introductions Much Trickier

As well as facing off against Jamie Foxx’s Electro, Rhys Ifans’ Lizard, and Thomas Haden Church’s Sandman from previous Spider-Man movies, Tom Holland’s Peter Parker also met two of Marvel Comics’ most threatening and significant Spider-Man villains. Willem Dafoe’s Norman Osborn, a.k.a. the Green Goblin, and Alfred Molina’s Otto Octavius, a.k.a. Doctor Octopus, returned from Sam Raimi’s Spider-Man franchise, finally bringing two of Spider-Man’s most iconic foes into the live-action MCU. However, reviving these versions of the characters in No Way Home may have created a bigger issue for Marvel Studios when developing new storylines for Spider-Man’s future.

The fact that Spider-Man: No Way Home refreshed viewers’ memories of how incredible Willem Dafoe and Alfred Molina were as the Green Goblin and Doctor Octopus, respectively, means it will be even more difficult to reinvent them in the MCU’s future. There has been no confirmation that Tom Holland’s Spider-Man will battle the MCU’s official versions of Norman Osborn and Otto Octavius, but this does seem likely heading into Spider-Man’s next MCU trilogy. Dafoe and Molina have set a very high standard by reprising their villainous roles, but Marvel Studios now has the opportunity to make these villains even better.

Tom Holland’s Spider-Man Needs His Own Green Goblin & Doctor Octopus

Even though Marvel Studios hasn’t provided any confirmation that the Green Goblin and Doctor Octopus will be reinvented for the MCU’s upcoming Spider-Man projects, this does seem very likely. The Green Goblin and Doctor Octopus are two of Spider-Man’s most memorable, consistent, and significant adversaries in Marvel Comics, and Marvel Studios only avoided introducing them sooner in an effort to do something new with the wall-crawler in the MCU. Heading into Tom Holland’s sophomore trilogy in the MCU, however, more of the hero’s more-recognizable antagonists could appear, including Norman Osborn and Otto Octavius.

A variant of Norman Osborn is set to have a major role in Marvel Animation’s Your Friendly Neighborhood Spider-Man series, which is expected to explore Peter Parker’s origin story as Spider-Man in an alternate, MCU-adjacent universe. There has also been recent speculation that The Boys’ Giancarlo Esposito may have been cast as the MCU’s official Norman Osborn, though this hasn’t been confirmed by Marvel Studios. It would be great to see both the Green Goblin and Doctor Octopus recreated for the MCU’s future, even though Spider-Man: No Way Home already featured strong interpretations of the villains.

Giancarlo Esposito has seemingly confirmed his casting in the MCU, though hasn’t revealed which character he will be playing, and Marvel Studios hasn’t provided any comment on the matter.

No Way Home Could Make The MCU’s Green Goblin & Doctor Octopus Even Better If Handled Right

While bringing back Willem Dafoe and Alfred Molina in Spider-Man: No Way Home could have a detrimental impact when reintroducing the Green Goblin and Doctor Octopus to the MCU, this creates the perfect opportunity for Marvel Studios to do something different with the villains. Since Tom Holland’s Peter Parker has already met versions of the villains, Marvel Studios could twist their origin stories to have the wall-crawler inadvertently create them. This would see Peter Parker follow in his mentor’s footsteps in the best way possible, as Tony Stark’s Iron Man regularly created his own villains.

The fact that Willem Dafoe and Alfred Molina set such a high standard for the Green Goblin and Doctor Octopus in Spider-Man: No Way Home also means that the official MCU incarnations of the villains need to be even stronger. This will be a challenge for the actors assuming these powerful roles, but may allow Marvel Studios to deliver the most terrifying interpretations of these villains ever. Many of the MCU’s heroes and villains have been inspired by Marvel Comics’ Ultimate Universe, so this reality’s darker versions of the Green Goblin and Doctor Octopus may be perfect for the MCU.