Until Spider-Man: No Way Home brought back some familiar faces from the past, Marvel Studios' Spider-Man movies prioritised villains we hadn't seen on screen before.
The Vulture, Shocker, and The Tinkerer appeared in 2017's Spider-Man: Homecoming, while Spider-Man: Far From Home focused on Mysterio and "Elemental" versions of bad guys like Molten Man and Hydro-Man. The upcoming Spider-Man: Brand New Day will add more villains from the comics to the MCU, though we don't currently know who is playing most of them!
In a recent interview with Josh Horowitz, Hamilton star Lin-Manuel Miranda revealed that he was being lined up to play Adrian Toomes in Spider-Man: Homecoming before the role ultimately went to former Batman Michael Keaton.
"I would have been miscast," Miranda started. "It was Vulture, and [Marvel Studios boss] Kevin Feige told me the whole plot [of Spider-Man: Homecoming] over the phone."
"'And they get to the door, and it's her dad'," Miranda continued, remembering Feige breaking down the unforgettable moment Peter Parker learns that Liz Allen's father is a supervillain. "I went 'Oh!' over the phone. I was the canary in the coal mine," he added, claiming that Feige later told him that his shocked reaction was the moment he realised that the film was going to work."
However, while he was excited by the prospect of playing The Vulture, Marvel Studios wanted to begin shooting Spider-Man: Homecoming "literally as [I] stepped off the stage doing Hamilton" after a nearly 18-month run on Broadway.
"I went, 'I would really like this, I really like these movies, but I would like to stay married, so I cannot do this.' And god, it would have been terrible," Miranda noted. "Michael Keaton was perfect, they found exactly who they needed. And I'm very glad. I have no regrets, I needed a vacation so badly, and I think I would have been deeply miscast."
Another MCU role hasn't come up for him since then (and if it has, he didn't mention it here), though it certainly doesn't sound like he'd be against the idea. Still, it's been at least a decade since he was offered the chance to play The Vuture, meaning the moment may have passed.
Keaton reprised his role as Toomes in Morbius' baffling post-credits scene and had been eyed for a surprise appearance in Spider-Man: No Way Home before that. However, it's thought that the pandemic and scheduling issues closed the door on the possibility. The Vulture is still out there somewhere, though, and could appear in this next trilogy.
You can hear more from Miranda on his Spider-Man near-miss in the player below.