This weekend the world is being treated to the next iteration of everyone’s favorite wall crawling webslinger in Marvel’s Spider-Man Homecoming. Since the beginning of the Marvel Cinematic Universe fans have longed to see Spider-Man enter into the fold. In 2015 Marvel and Sony came to an agreement that would make Spiderman fans dreams finally come true. Marvel and Sony reached a deal that would allow both companies to share the rights to the character and his universe, opening up a whole new realm of possibilities for Marvel and Sony. Our first taste of this deal came in The Russo Brother’s 2016 Captain America Civil War when the duo introduced us to the Marvel Cinematic Universe iteration of Peter Parker, Spider-Man, and Aunt May. Audiences are extremely excited for Spider-Man Homecoming and with that excitement comes looking towards the future for the next installment. So I’ve put together a list of characters I’d love to see appear in future Spider-Man films.

Unknown Afro-Latino Actor as Miles Morales

Miles Morales originated in the Ultimates Universe as a young kid from Brooklyn who while visiting his criminal uncle was bitten by an “Oz” infused spider. The bite from the spider much like the spider that bit Peter Parker imbued Miles with spider-like superpowers. After revealing his powers to his friend Ganke Lee the two deduced that his powers were extremely similar to Spider-Man’s. Months after Miles gained his powers The Ultimates universe Peter Parker lost his life in an attempt to save his family from The Green Goblin. After the death of Peter Parker Miles then took on the mantle of Spider-Man. Unfortunately there aren’t many well-known young Afro-Latino actors and it’s important that we don’t erase Miles’s identity as Afro-Latino. It’s important that we take this opportunity to search for and uplift new and young Afro-Latino talent.

Kiersey Clemmons as Gwen “Spider-Gwen” Stacy

Gwen Stacy made her comic book debut in December of 1965 in the pages of The Amazing Spider-Man #31. Many fans are familiar with the 616 universes Gwen Stacey as Spider-Man’s first love interest as well as one of the first major deaths to happen in comics, however that’s not the version of Gwen I’d love to see. I’d love to see Earth-65’s version of Gwen Stacey known as Spider-Gwen who made her debut in November of 2014 in the pages of Edge of Spider-Verse #2. This version of Gwen gained her powers the same way as Peter and Miles by being bitten by a radioactive Spider. I chose this version of Gwen because it allows for the character to take on a much more interesting role than just a love interest or the character doomed to die. This version of Gwen subverts the classic Gwen Stacy story and also plays into my desire to see Spider-Man’s universe populated with other Spider characters. Kiersey Clemmons would absolutely own it as Spider-Gwen. Kiersey is a great at playing quirky, flawed, likeable characters which makes her the perfect choice.

Ernie Hudson as J. Jonah Jameson

J. Jonah Jameson made his comic book debut in March of 1963 in the pages of Amazing Spider-Man #3. Anyone familiar with Spider-Man in any capacity should recognize the Daily Bugle’s hotheaded quick-tempered owner J. Jonah Jameson. In 1968 after purchasing the then floundering Daily Bugle, J. Jonah Jameson purchased the Goodman Building where he moved his entire editorial staff. Jameson used the Bugle as a means to champion and crusade for civil rights as well as fight against organized crime. He would later use the paper for his famous crusade against Spider-Man believing the wall crawler to be, as he puts it, a “menace” and a “bad influence”. Little did Jameson know, the wall crawler himself would come to work for the Daily Bugle as a photographer. Ernie Hudson is quite possibly the only person capable of taking over the reins from the iconic J.K. Simmons and creating something new.

Arden Cho as Cindy “Silk” Moon

Making her debut in September of 2014 in the pages of Amazing Spider-Man Vol. 3 #4 Silk quickly rose to popularity. Cindy “Silk” Moon received her powers from the same spider that bit Peter Parker during a General Techtronics Corporation exhibition on the safe handling of nuclear lab waste materials. Unlike Peter, Cindy doesn’t use mechanical webshooters because she has organic webbing. Cindy was taken away and trained how to use her powers by Ezekiel Sims who would one day hide her away at the bottom of a tower to keep her away from the predator, Morlun. 13 years later Peter found out about her and freed her from her tower despite her protests due to the consequences that would follow. Cindy is Korean American and the avatar of an entity known as “The Bride”. Arden Cho is the perfect actress to bring Silk and her badassery to life.

Madelaine Mantock as Jessica “Spider-Woman” Drew

Jessica Drew ironically is a character that’s completely unrelated to Spider-Man in origin. Spider-Woman made her comic book debut in February of 1977 in the pages of Marvel Spotlight #32. When we meet drew she is a young sickly child whose father tests a spider blood serum on his daughter as a means to try to heal her. The process puts Drew into a sort of stasis which she awakes from years later with extremely decreased aging and superpowers. Through brainwashing Jessica ends up taking sanctuary and work with Hydra, which she would eventually free herself from. She broke the brainwashing when she refused to assassinate SHIELD’s former director, Nick Fury. Madelaine Mantock would make the perfect Jessica Drew because of her ability to both portray vulnerability and strength.

Jessica Lange as Cassandra “Madame Web” Webb

Madame Web made her comic book debut in November of 1980 in the pages of Amazing Spider-Man #210. Madame Web was born blind and with a neurological disorder which would eventually result her in gaining powerful psychic powers which she would use to her advantage to become a medium. Madame Web has aided Spider-Man and many other heroes over her many years. Jessica Lange is the perfect actress to bring Madame Webb to live action.

Kat Graham as Felicia “Black Cat” Hardy

Black Cat made her comic book debut in July of 1979 in the pages of Amazing Spider-Man #194. After being raped by someone she deemed to be her friend, Felicia began to train herself so that she could exact her revenge on her attacker. However before she could do so her rapist was killed in a drunk driving accident. Hardy was angry that she was robbed of her chance at revenge and so she turned to a life of crime just as her father had done. Over the years Black Cat and Spider-Man have crossed paths many times and even had their own fling. I’ve wanted to see Kat Graham play a superhero for years now and I think Black Cat would be the perfect chance.

Marton Csokas as Norman “Green Goblin” Osborn

Norman Osborn made his comic book debut in July 1964 in the pages of Amazing Spider-Man #14. Norman is the father of Harry Osborn one of Peter Parker’s childhood friends. The accident that turned Norman into the Green Goblin is a result of his son Harry finally being tired of his father ignoring him and putting him to the side. Harry replaced the ingredients in a serum that Norman intended to use to gain superhuman powers. Norman is one of Spider-Man’s greatest and most iconic villains. The Green Goblin has been the scourge of the Marvel universe from the murder of Gwen Stacy to his stint in The Dark Avengers. His role in Into the Badlands shows that Marton Csokas would make the perfect Green Goblin.

Sendhil Ramamurthy as Dr. Curtis “The Lizard” Connors

The Lizard made his comic book debut in November 1963 in the pages of Amazing Spider-Man #6. After he lost his arm in an explosion Dr. Curtis Connors devoted the rest of his life to regenerating his lost limb. Dr. Connors developed a serum from the blood of reptiles with the ability to regenerate lost limbs in the hope that it would finally make his dream come true. He used himself as the first test subject and successfully regenerated his arm. Little did Connors know the serum would alter his DNA causing him to become a vicious reptilian humanoid. Connors and Spider-Man have come to blows many times since the character was introduced. Sendhil Ramamurthy would make for a great Dr. Connors.

BD Wong as Dr. Otto “Doctor Octopus” Octavius 

Doctor Octopus made his first comic book appearance in July 1963 in the pages of Amazing Spider-Man #3. While working for the U.S. Atomic Research Center, Octavius began developing a mechanical four-armed chest harness in order to manipulate radioactive materials from a safe distance. After an accident Octavius was given the ability to mentally control the device but also suffered irreversible mental damage. Octavius became a megalomaniac and then turned to a life of crime. BD Wong is an insanely talented actor who would breathe new life into the role of Doctor Octopus.

Hafthor Julius Bjornsson as Aleksei “The Rhino” Sytsevich

Aleksei Sytsevich made his comic book debut in October of 1966 in the pages of Amazing Spider-Man #41. Sytsevich used to be a run of the mill Russian mobster chasing fast money and power. He underwent a series of radioactive treatments that would eventually bond powerful armor (based on rhino hide) to his skin and give him super strength. Two scientists Igor and Georgi chose the form that Aleksei took and with the success of the procedure they chose him to become an agent. He was given the codename Rhino. Because of his size and ability to portray brutish tendencies, Game of Thrones‘s Hafthor Julius Bjornsson is the perfect choice for The Rhino.

Andrew Scott as Quentin “Mysterio” Beck

Mysterio made his comic book debut in May of 1963 in the pages of Amazing Spider-Man #2. Quentin Beck is a former special effects wizard who had talent and big dreams of forging a name for himself in the Hollywood film industry. He started as a Hollywood stuntman who began to take an interest in special effects. Though he was extremely talented, Quentin’s work lacked recognition which caused him to gain an interest in acting. Lacking the looks to be an actor and the patience to be a director Quentin saw his career in the film industry quickly drawing to an end. Based off the suggestion from a friend Beck quickly began to plan and strategize a way to take out Spider-Man as a way to gain fame. Mysterio needs a very eccentric actor and Sherlock Holmes‘s Andrew Scott is the perfect candidate.

Joe Manganiello as Sergei “Kraven the Hunter” Kravinoff

Sergei Kravinoff made his comic book debut in August 1964 in the pages of Amazing Spider-Man #15. Sergei was born into an aristocracy that was at an end. In an attempt to gain back some sense of nobility, Sergei became one of the worlds greatest and most renowned hunters. Kravinoff took up residence in Kenya, Africa where he would later develop a desire to hunt very large animals with his barehands. Sergei would later come across a Voodoo witch doctor that would give him a potion to enhance his strength, senses, and give him the senses of a jungle cat. Joe Manganiello would make the perfect Kraven the Hunter because of his ability to portray a showboat.

Leonard Nam as Johnathan “Spot” Ohnn

Spot made his comic book debut in January of 1985 in the pages of Peter Parker, The Spectacular Spider-Man #98. Johnathan Ohnn was a scientist for Kingpin and was supposed to recreate the powers of The Cloak. Late one night Ohnn succeeded in creating a singular circle-shaped portal. However due to the drain on the city the portal became unstable; unwilling to let the effects of his work disappear Ohnn stepped inside. Ohnn found himself inside a dark dimension only to discover an infinite number of portals surrounding him. When he found his way through the portals and back to his lab he discovered that his body had undergone a transition. Ohnn awoke to his body covered his hundreds of little portals. Spot is a Spider-Man villain I’ve wanted to see make the live action leap for quite a while now and Leonard Nam would be a fun candidate to play the role.

Joseph Morgan as Dr. Michael Morbius

Dr Michael Morbius made his comic book debut in October of 1971 in the pages of Amazing Spider-Man #101. Morbius was a brilliant and promising biochemist. Morbius would go on to win a Nobel Prize for Biochemistry. Suffering from an insanely debilitating blood disorder Michael began to develop an experimental treatment from the blood of vampire bats and electroshock therapy. The treatment worked but it in turn changed Morbius into a faux vampire. Morbius gained an extreme sensitivity to sunlight, pale white skin, blood-red eyes, fangs, a bat like nose, and a thirst for blood. He gained the same skills as a vampire from super speed to super strength, flight, and healing. Though still dealing with his blood lust, Morbius vowed to only drink the blood of the wicked and corrupt.

Javier Bardem as Mephisto

Mephisto made his comic book debut in December 1968 in the pages of Silver Surfer #3. Mephisto is an extra dimensional demon who rules over a pocket universe which he refers to as Hell. Mephisto refers to his dimension as Hell in an attempt to exploit humanities belief in a singular evil entity. He also allows himself to be refered to by names that are traditionally associated with devils and Satan in a further attempt to tap into this same belief. Mephiso is neither a devil nor is he Satan but his realm is populated by himself, the lesser extra dimensional demons who serve him, and astral forms of deceased human beings. Mephisto and Spider-Man have crossed paths multiple times most notably after Civil War when Peter publicly revealed his identity which resulted in the death of Aunt May. Javier Bardem would make for the perfect Mephisto.

Dont forget to check out Spider-Man Homecoming this weekend and support this amazingly diverse and awesome cast. Spider-Man is one of Marvel’s most popular characters and hopefully this new film lives up to expectations and adds another dope intro into the Spider-Man film catalog. Who knows maybe we will see some of these characters make appearances in Homecoming and hopefully we see these characters make the jump to live action.

Published by Tevin Murphy

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