There have been rumors that Tobey Maguire will return for Spider-Man 4, and some reasons explain why Sony needs to bring the canceled movie back.

Years after the movie was canceled, there are many reasons why Spider-Man 4 with Tobey Maguire as Peter Parker should be one of the next Sony Marvel movies. Maguire is responsible for some of the best Spider-Man movies, with the actor having starred in the wall-crawler’s first movie trilogy. Maguire’s Spider-Man movies with director Sam Raimi have become iconic, helping pave the way for the Marvel Cinematic Universe and modern superhero films as a whole.

After several years away from the role, Maguire returned as his version of Peter Parker in the MCU’s Spider-Man: No Way Home in 2021. The actor’s return was extremely well-received, with Marvel fans asking for the actor to return for more. While Spider-Man 4 was canceled a long time ago, the time is right for the movie to finally be brought back. Here are the exciting reasons that show why Maguire’s Spider-Man 4 becoming part of the list of upcoming Marvel movies would make a lot of sense.

10. Tobey Maguire Wants To Play Spider-Man Again

The Actor Has Returned As The Hero In The MCU

Maguire’s Spider-Man 4 was canceled in 2010, with Sony deciding to reboot the franchise with Andrew Garfield playing Peter Parker in 2012’s The Amazing Spider-Man. Thankfully, that was not the end of the line for the star’s time as Spider-Man. Maguire showed through his earnest performance in Spider-Man: No Way Home that he continues to embody the ideal Peter Parker to this day.

After his return in the MCU multiverse movie, Maguire responded to questions about doing more as Spider-Man. The actor would like to continue playing Peter beyond his return project, with Maguire game to appear in multiple movies as Spider-Man in the future. The actor’s enthusiasm to play the role again and his ability to still deliver quality performances as Spider-Man makes the case for him to get another solo movie, with Spider-Man 4 possibly finally happening.

9. Sam Raimi Is Already In The MCU

The Director Is Key To The Multiverse Saga

While Maguire was undoubtedly the main reason for the success of the original Spider-Man movie trilogy, he was not the only contributor to the movies’ popularity. Director Sam Raimi infused the Spider-Man franchise with his dynamic camera angles, emotional storytelling, and overall flair. Following his work on Maguire’s Spider-Man movies, Raimi would go more than a decade without helming a superhero movie; however, he returned to the medium in a major way.

Raimi joined the MCU to direct Doctor Strange in the Multiverse of Madness. The movie was a box office hit, getting close to the $1 billion mark, and served to establish some crucial elements to Marvel Studios’ Multiverse Saga. Given his positive working relationship with Marvel, Raimi could use that to get Maguire’s Spider-Man 4 made. The director also wants to helm the MCU’s Avengers: Secret Wars.

8. Bruce Campbell Could Finally Play Mysterio

The Actor Had Cameos Throughout Raimi’s Spider-Man Trilogy

There were many exciting ideas that had to be abandoned when Raimi’s Spider-Man 4 was canceled. One of the most interesting of them was seeing long-time Raimi collaborator Bruce Campbell get to play a bigger role in the Spider-Man franchise. The actor had previously appeared as different characters in all three of Maguire’s Spider-Man movies; however, Spider-Man 4 would have revealed the star’s real role in the franchise.

Campbell would have played none other than Mysterio in Spider-Man 4. The movie planned to include many Spider-Man villains as part of an action-packed opening montage, and through that, it would have been revealed that all of Campbell’s cameos were actually serving as misdirection, with Mysterio acting in the shadows all along. If brought back, Spider-Man 4 could finally allow fans to see what Campbell as Mysterio would look like.

After Spider-Man 4 was canceled, Mysterio got to be the main villain of the MCU’s Spider-Man: Far From Home, with Jake Gyllenhaal playing Quentin Beck in the film.

7. Spider-Man: No Way Home Set Up An Emotional Story For Spider-Man 4

Maguire’s Spider-Man Needs To Deal With The Movie’s Fallout

Spider-Man: No Way Home‘s ending is by far the most emotional of Tom Holland’s MCU trilogy. To prevent all the characters who knew about Spider-Man being Peter Parker from across the multiverse from coming to the MCU, Holland’s Peter asked Benedict Cumberbatch’s Doctor Strange to cast a spell that made everyone forget who he was. While the MCU’s Peter Parker is all alone now, the spell should also affect both Maguire and Andrew Garfield’s versions of Spider-Man.

As the two Spider-Man variants were only shown fading into light as the spell sent them back to their respective universes, that tragic fate has not been addressed yet. Maguire’s Spider-Man 4 would be the perfect project to deal with the No Way Home fallout, with Peter returning home only to see that Kirsten Dunst’s Mary Jane Watson and more have no idea who he is.

6. Sony’s Spider-Man Universe Is Underperforming

Madame Web Broke Negative Records For The Franchise

Sony is currently attempting to establish a shared universe of Spider-Man-related characters. However, Sony’s Spider-Man Universe not featuring a wall-crawler of its own has led to several issues. The studio has tried to go to smaller characters for the movies Morbius and Madame Web, both of which bombed at the box office and have become the butt of jokes from fans. Tom Hardy’s Venom movies stand as the only successful SSU entries.

However, the upcoming Venom: The Last Dance, which releases this October, will mark the end of the line for the character’s franchise. With the R-rated Kraven the Hunter not generating much excitement, the SSU’s future is not looking good. That could lead Sony to re-focus its efforts on a crowdpleasing franchise, and Maguire back as a standalone Spider-Man could do the trick, with Spider-Man 4 marking his full-on return.

5. Multiple Actors From Sam Raimi’s Spider-Man Trilogy Want To Return

Mary Jane Watson And More Could Be Back

Maguire and Raimi are both willing to come back to the Spider-Man franchise, and there are more actors from the wall-crawler’s first movie trilogy who would also be happy to return to their roles. Mary Jane Watson actress Kirsten Dunst has commented on coming back as the character multiple times, with the actress even having said that she would have signed on for Spider-Man: No Way Home had she been asked.

Two Raimi Spider-Man franchise actors who did appear in the MCU crossover movie would also be game to come back for Spider-Man 4. Sandman actor Thomas Haden Church revealed that Sony had an option to bring him back for Spider-Man 4 when the movie was originally planned, and Green Goblin star Willem Dafoe would return for another go at Norman Osborn “If everything was right.”

4. Spider-Man 4 Could Show How The Raimiverse Is Doing

Maguire’s Return Failed To Deliver On That

Seeing Maguire back as his version of Spider-Man, as well as the original trilogy’s Sandman, Doc Ock, and Green Goblin, was exciting. However, Spider-Man: No Way Home did not really delve into the full potential that Maguire coming back as Spider-Man could have. While his Peter Parker made a couple of comments about what his life was like, the MCU movie did not spend any time in the Raimiverse to show what a present-day version of that world looks like.

Spider-Man 4 could make that right. The Raimi movies spent a lot of time on Maguire’s Spider-Man swinging through New York City, making the city feel like a major character in the franchise. That is something Holland’s Spider-Man movies have been lacking. Spider-Man 4 could once again deliver that classic Spider-Man setting while also showing how the Raimiverse has evolved in the years since 2007’s Spider-Man 3.

3. Spider-Man 4 Could Introduce A New Doctor Strange

There Are A Few Key Reasons For That

Spider-Man 4 could finally show one or more heroes who are not Maguire’s Spidey in the Raimiverse. The most likely candidate for that would be Doctor Strange. Firstly, as Cumberbatch’s Doctor Strange was responsible for the spell that made everyone forget who Peter Parker was, it would make sense for a version of the hero to be the one responsible for reverting the spell on Maguire’s Earth.

In Raimi’s Spider-Man 2, Daily Bugle journalist Ted Hoffman suggests naming Otto Octavius Doctor Strange instead of Doc Ock, only for J. Jonah Jameson to reveal that the name is already taken. That cemented that there is a Doctor Strange in the Raimiverse. With the fact that Raimi’s return to superhero movies was in Doctor Strange in the Multiverse of Madness, all the pieces are in place for the director to use the character again in a possible Spider-Man 4.

2. Spider-Man 4 Would Be A Guaranteed Box Office Hit

Raimi & Maguire Are A Successful Team

Helping the case for Sony to make Spider-Man 4 is the enormous box office potential that the movie has. All of the Raimi Spider-Man movies with Maguire achieved from $794 million to $878 million worldwide. Sony’s Spider-Man Universe has only managed to get within that range once, with the first Venom. Holland’s Spider-Man movies also show how Spider-Man 4 would be a major hit.

While the MCU’s Spider-Man franchise had seen healthy numbers before Maguire and Garfield returned in a major multiverse movie, there is a clear difference between the films they were not a part of and the one they appeared in. Spider-Man: No Way Home reached Avengers-level box office numbers by getting shy of $2 billion at the box office, which shows how there is still a huge interest in Maguire as Spider-Man.

1. Spider-Man 4 Could Tell A Different Peter Parker Story

Maguire Would Be A Veteran Spider-Man

While Holland’s MCU Spider-Man 4 will follow the character in a new stage of his life, having left high school behind, Peter is still too young for a beloved ongoing Spider-Man comic book story. The new version of Ultimate Spider-Man in Marvel Comics focuses on an older Spider-Man who has a family. Holland could not be that Peter yet, but Maguire would be perfect for it.

In order for Maguire’s Spider-Man 4 to get made, the movie would have to be distinct from Marvel Studios’ plans for the character with Holland. Making Peter Parker a veteran Spider-Man who has to balance his superhero duties with his day job and raising a family would bring a fresh kind of cinematic Spider-Man story. That plot would allow Dunst’s MJ to play a major role alongside Maguire, making for an emotional return to the Raimiverse in Spider-Man 4.