From the moment Jamie Foxx dropped that fan art depicting the three live-action Spider-Men battling Electro, a seemingly endless series of rumors have done the rounds online about what fans should expect from Spider-Man: No Way Home. Throw in some big leaks, and it's no wonder the web-slinger has dominated headlines for the past year or more.
Now, with the film playing in theaters, we thought it might be a good time to look back on the rumors that have proven themselves to be 100% complete and utter bullsh*t.
Many came from what we believed to be reliable sources, and others from the usual suspects. Mistakes happen, of course, and plans change, so it's feasible there was once some truth to these. As it stands, however, they didn't pan out and it's now crazy to think about what might have been.
We should caution that you may find spoilers for Spider-Man: No Way Home from this point on!
8. A Live-Action Miles Morales
In the midst of rumors about Tobey Maguire and Andrew Garfield returning as their respective versions (Variants?) of Peter Parker, we heard from MCU Cosmic's now-disgraced Jeremy Conrad that Marvel Studios and Sony Pictures had found an actor to play a live-action Miles Morales.
Given the source, this story didn't break the internet, but it definitely got fans of the character excited. After all, Spider-Man: Homecoming confirmed the existence of Miles in the Marvel Cinematic Universe, and it was feasible he could have been aged up thanks to Avengers: Endgame's five-year time jump.
Alas, we'll be waiting a little longer for Miles to swing into a live-action film because he's nowhere to be found in Spider-Man: No Way Home. There is, however, a fun nod to a possible Black Spider-Man.
7. Spider-Slayers
According to a report shared by Murphy's Multiverse, Spider-Man: No Way Home was going to feature the big screen debuts of Dr. Spencer Smythe and the Spider-Slayers.
J. Jonah Jameson was the one who commissioned the creation of those robots in the comic books. Given his return at the end of Spider-Man: Far From Home, it would have made sense for Jonah to be the one who attempts to bring Peter Parker to justice in the threequel. Having seen the finished film, there's simply no way there would have ever been room for this subplot.
The site claimed this intel came from a "trusted source," but the report was also made up of a great deal of speculation. Regardless, we'd be happy to see this storyline in a possible Spider-Man 4.
6. Spider-Man 3 And Spider-Man 4 Would Shoot Back To Back
Early on, it became apparent Spider-Man: No Way Home would be a big film. That could explain why this rumor about Spider-Man 3 being shot back-to-back with a fourth MCU film managed to gain traction online.
An epic, two-part Multiverse film sounded like it could be something special, and with Sony acutely aware of COVID impacting productions (and director Jon Watts moving on to Fantastic Four), the studio would have surely been happy having two Spider-Man films ready to release once theaters re-opened and moviegoers were desperate for that big screen experience.
Spider-Man 4 has not been shot, but this was only ever a social media rumor and not a concrete report shared by any major websites or self-proclaimed "scoopers."
5. Emma Stone And Kirsten Dunst's Return
Hot off the news of Jamie Foxx and Alfred Molina reprising their respective roles as Electro and Doc Ock, Collider shared a scoop claiming to have confirmed that Spider-Man: No Way Home would also feature the return of Tobey Maguire, Andrew Garfield...and Emma Stone and Kirsten Dunst.
Jeff Sneider, who no longer writes for the site, claimed Dunst was locked in to play Mary Jane Watson again, but that character never appears. As for Stone, while the report indicated she was only "expected" to come back as Gwen, that never made any sense, and the Cruella star didn't show up as Gwen, Spider-Gwen, or any other Variant.
COVID may well have played a role in their absence (Stone was also pregnant during production), but we're guessing this was a good example of throwing everything at the wall to see what sticks.
4. Mysterio Rises From The Dead
The very nature of Quentin Beck always meant it was at least possible he faked his death. That was the prevailing theory among fans, anyway, despite Spider-Man: Far From Home arguably providing a definitive answer about Mysterio's fate after he failed to defeat Peter Parker.
When a rumor from FandomWire cropped up alleging that Jake Gyllenhaal was set to return as the villain, it wasn't hard to believe. Set photos suggested he might still be around (turns out that was just propaganda from his supporters), while him being the mastermind behind these villains making their way into the MCU did make sense, especially given his claims about the Multiverse.
While he appears via archival footage in the first few seconds of the film, that's a far cry from the grand return this rumor promised. Once again, it was clearly just an "educated guess."
3. Another Green Goblin
With the signs pointing to Willem Dafoe suiting up as the Green Goblin again, LRM Online was the first of many sites to suggest that Dane DeHaan's Harry Osborn would be back as well.
The Amazing Spider-Man 2 baddie is universally despised by fans, and no one was crying out to see more of him. DeHaan denied his involvement with Spider-Man: No Way Home on multiple occasions, and the actor was telling the truth; thankfully, he doesn't receive so much as a mention in this film.
One villain from each of the wall-crawler's previous big screen appearances proved to be more than enough, and given the way the story plays out, it seems doubtful this Harry was ever even considered.
2. The Sinister Sixth Member Of That Team
As time went on, it started to become clear that a team of villains would assemble to battle Spider-Man in his latest film. We'd hoped for the Sinister Six, but with all signs pointing to the five baddies we now know are in the blockbuster, who would that mysterious sixth member be?
Mysterio, perhaps? Nope. On Jeff Sneider's Sneider Cut podcast, he claimed that Sandman and The Lizard would be part of Spider-Man: No Way Home alongside Electro, the Green Goblin, Doctor Octopus, and The Amazing Spider-Man 2's most forgettable baddie: Paul Giamatti's Rhino.
It's certainly possible there were tentative plans to include him (especially if it meant addressing that sequel's cliffhanger ending), but he's not part of this film and there is no Sinister Six. A Sinister Five, sure.
1. Ned Leeds Suits Up As Hobgoblin
In hindsight, this might be the dumbest Spider-Man: No Way Home rumor of them all. To his credit, actor Jacob Batalon dropped a lot of weight after Spider-Man: Far From Home and appears to be all the happier and healthier for it. This may have inspired this bold claim, but it's still ridiculous.
FandomWire alleged that Ned Leeds actor Jacob Batalon would be taking on a villainous role in the film, likely suiting up as Hobgoblin. The comic book version of Ned was framed as the villain by Roderick Kingsley, but if this version of the character hailed from another Earth, that could explain why he was wearing the suit.
There's no reason to believe this couldn't happen down the line, but for Spider-Man: No Way Home, it always felt like something of a step too far.