It's fair to say that the current iteration of Spider-Man on screen has been a huge success for Marvel. With Tom Holland taking over as the friendly neighborhood Spider-Man and Marvel reacquiring the motion picture rights from Sony, Peter Parker was finally able to join the MCU.
After three standalone films and multiple wider universe appearances, the fourth Spider-Man film starring Tom Holland is on its way. While there's currently no plot information out there, there are definitely a few things we would like to see in a fourth installment.
No Extraneous Marvel Heroes
For the entirety of Holland's run as Spidey, there's always been at least one other MCU hero ready to jump him and help. Of course, this makes sense. Peter is still in high school when he becomes Spider-Man and so Tony Stark is on hand to be his guide/mentor.
After Stark's death in Avengers: Endgame, Peter placed his trust in Quentin Beck A.K.A Mysterio, which led to the world learning his identity and a visit to Doctor Strange in the hope that a spell could make everyone forget. Of course, this went horribly wrong and began the multiverse era of the MCU that we are currently in.
Over the last several years, the MCU has become more and more reliant on ensembles and crossovers, and considering how much Holland’s Spider-Man has been through, it’s time for him to stand fully on his own. Not to mention Spidey is more often than not working alone dealing with New York’s crime.
A New York-centric Story
He’s not called “Your friendly neighborhood Spider-Man” for nothing. In general, Peter Parker tends to stick to his native New York and protects the city, much like Batman does with Gotham City. If there’s a bigger problem on the horizon he will join forces with other heroes, like The Avengers, to help out but he tends to stick to the city he loves. It also helps to stay local in order to keep up his double life, although no iteration of Peter Parker has been particularly good at that.
It would be great to finally have Holland’s Spider-Man return home to New York and patrol the city more. After globe-trotting adventures with Mysterio and multiverse infractions thanks to spells gone awry, facing some home-grown villains would be a nice change of pace. Not everything has to be part of an overarching narrative, and Marvel needs to remember that in general. These characters are heroes in their own right, and they have lives and adventures outside of team-ups.
Bring Back Michel Keaton’s Vulture
In Spider-Man: Homecoming Michael Keaton appeared as the father of Peter Parker’s potential love interest Liz. Keaton played Adrian Toomes, also known as the Vulture. Toomes’ company was initially contracted to clean up after the battle in The Avengers, but after being driven out of business by Tony Stark Toomes turns to creating and selling advanced weaponry from the alien technology he and his goons have scavenged.
Keaton put in an incredible and menacing performance as Vulture, and also appeared in the mid-credit scene of Morbius. The multiverse mix-ups brought about by Peter and Strange’s spell led to Toomes being transported to the universe of Morbius. Similarly, this happened to Tom Hardy’s Eddie Brock/Venom who appeared in the mid-credit scene for Spider-Man: No Way Home. Bringing Toomes back into Peter’s life considering their history would be an interesting story. Of course, with Keaton also popping up as Batman in the DCEU it’s impossible to know if it could happen.
Let Peter Parker and Eddie Brock Meet
After a rocky start, Eddie Brock and the symbiote Venom have learned to live in a sort of harmony. Instead of the often-depicted villain, the latest incarnation of Venom is more inclined to heroics thanks to the character of Eddie. The fact that Hardy has appeared, albeit briefly, in Peter Parker’s universe is a perfect gateway to bring the two together.
The last time Venom was brought to the silver screen in Sam Raimi’s Spider-Man 3 the character wasn’t given enough time to shine and was completely different from Hardy’s Venom. Having Holland and Hardy team up for a film has the potential to be incredibly fun, and possibly a little more adult.