Emma Stone first played Gwen Stacy in 2012's The Amazing Spider-Man and reprised the role two years later in The Amazing Spider-Man 2. Sony Pictures pulled the plug on the franchise after that sequel, scrapping plans for two more movies, Sinister Six, and even a Venom movie set in the same world.
Spidey then swung into the MCU, with Tom Holland taking over as Peter Parker in Captain America: Civil War.
Despite Gwen's death in the second movie, the plan had been for her to be resurrected in The Amazing Spider-Man 3 (along with Norman Osborn and her father, Captain George Stacy). Fortunately, that never happened.
While that looked to be it for the short-lived franchise, Garfield reprised the role in 2021's Spider-Man: No Way Home, alongside Spider-Man trilogy star Tobey Maguire. He spent months denying his involvement with the movie, even amid leaked images and wild—yet accurate—claims from a food delivery driver.
Talking to Josh Horowitz, Stone confirmed that she was among those kept in the dark by her former co-star. "I asked him if he was gonna be in that [movie] and he was like, ‘I don’t know what you’re talking about,'" she recalled. "I was like, 'What?' Oh, I guess that means no, but it wasn't no, it was yes. Good for him. He kept it really close to the vest."
Horowitz pointed out that there's a pivotal scene regarding Peter's relationship with Gwen, but that came as news to the Oscar-winner. "I actually haven't seen it, no. It would be very emotional, I'm sure. I've heard it was fantastic. I will see it eventually."
It's been four years, so watching Spider-Man: No Way Home clearly isn't a huge priority for the Bugonia star. In fairness, she's very much moved on from Marvel, and given that Gwen is still dead in Peter #3's reality, we wouldn't bank on her even returning for a cameo role in Avengers: Secret Wars.
As for Garfield, he's recently denied that he'll suit up again in the next Avengers movies, but we know better than to believe him at this point. Several reliable insiders have said both he and Maguire will return, with the latter likely to show up in Doomsday next December.
Regardless, you have to give him credit for going to such great lengths to keep a secret. Even with the leaks, it was a special experience sitting down and seeing the three Spider-Men on screen together for the first time on the big screen.
"I really loved doing 'Spider-Man,'" Stone said earlier this year. "I loved everybody I worked with. I met Andrew [Garfield] there. I met Sally Field. Marc Webb was wonderful. It was a really special time in my life. That’s a recurring theme: The people more than the film itself is what sticks with me for so long. I only have fond memories of this experience."
You can check out the full interview with Stone in the player below.