Highlights
- Deleted scene from Into the Spider-Verse suggests that Kathryn Hahn's Doc Ock was originally planned as the villain in Across the Spider-Verse.
- Theory suggests that Doc Ock's ambition to travel the multiverse could have led to a multiversal Sinister Six or a "Council of Doc Ocks."
- Liv, played by Kathryn Hahn, was considered the franchise's main villain and may have manipulated The Spot to become a multiversal threat.
Spider-Man: Across the Spider-Verse turned The Spot from a villain of the week to a multiversal threat and Miles Morales' nemesis. However, a deleted scene from Into the Spider-Verse may reveal the original plan for the sequel’s villain.
Fans have started noticing more details from Spider-Man: Across the Spider-Verse now that it’s released digitally. They've also caught the differences between Spider-Man: Across the Spider-Verse's theatrical and digital releases. Additionally, fans have been returning to the first film, Into the Spider-Verse, and seeing all the foreshadowing and connections between the two films. Now someone has found a link between a deleted scene from Into the Spider-Verse and the villain of its sequels.
An X user posted the scene where The Spot returns from his first trip across the multiverse and says, “The power of the multiverse in the palm of my hand.” This is then compared to Alfred Molina's Doctor Octopus saying, “The power of the sun in the palm of my hand,” in Spider-Man 2. CanWeGetSomeToast quote tweeted it with a deleted scene from Into the Spider-Verse where Kathryn Han's Doc Ock (her friends call her Liv) says the same line as The Spot. This has led some to believe she would have been the original villain in Across the Spider-Verse.
This is an interesting theory, as it would make sense that the scientist who created the super collider and was so excited to find out that it worked would want to travel the multiverse and possibly break it. This could have led to various possibilities, like a multiversal Sinister Six or a “Council of Doc Ocks.” Additionally, Rodney Rothman the co-director of Spider-Man: Into the Spider-Verse, said in an interview that he considers Hahn's Doc Ock to be “Our most powerful bad guy. She's manipulating a lot of things to achieve her own grand ambitions."
It sounds like they wanted Liv to be the main villain for the rest of the franchisee, and maybe they still do. If Liv is manipulating things, perhaps she exploited The Spot to drive him to become such a multiversal threat. In the scene with Miles and Gwen in The Spot's apartment, they see a picture of The Spot with Liv, showing that he may have looked up to her. They may have cut Liv's scene in Spider-Man: Into the Spider-Verse because they didn’t want it to be too obvious there was a connection.
The Spider-Verse films are rewatchable for all the Spider-Man easter eggs and references, but there are also a lot of hidden details that can add layers to the plot and characters. Fans should go back and rewatch both films.
Spider-Man: Across the Spider-Verse is currently available digitally.
Source: CanWeGetSomeToast/X