Spider-Man: Far From Home ended with Mysterio revealing the hero's secret identity to the world, with the fallout taking centre stage in Spider-Man: No Way Home.
The web-slinger turned to Doctor Strange for help, only for the spell meant to make everyone forget Quentin Beck's actions to go wrong and tear open the Multiverse. After teaming up with his fellow Spider-Men, the teenager had no other choice than to get the sorcerer to cast a new spell which would make everyone - including his friends and family - forget Peter Parker ever existed.
The world still has Spider-Man, but MJ, Ned, and even his fellow Avengers have no recollection of the man beneath the mask.
According to The Cosmic Circus, that will be a pivotal plot point in the upcoming Spider-Man 4.
"The idea now moving forward is to give him a sense of independence," the site explains. "In his mind, Peter Parker is no more...but Spider-Man lives on."
"Since he has either lost or detached himself from everyone he’s ever loved, all he has to keep him going is being Spider-Man, whether the city loves him for it or not. And as the title of Spider-Man continues to consume Peter’s life little by little, Peter Parker will take a back seat and continue to fade from existence slowly. This story point can be compared to Robert Pattinson’s Batman in The Batman."
That sounds like a fascinating direction to take Spidey in and will no doubt play into the people Peter cares about eventually remembering who he is...well, we hope so, anyway.
There are lots of rumours surrounding Spider-Man 4, including plans for the hero to team up with Daredevil (and potentially Ant-Man) for a battle with The Kingpin. Sony Pictures is said to be pushing for a Multiversal element to the story, so we may well end up seeing Tobey Maguire and Andrew Garfield enter the fray as well.
Miles Morales is also expected to make his MCU debut, while Drew Goddard has emerged as the frontrunner to direct the movie in place of Jon Watts.
Last year, Holland shared his thoughts on potentially sharing the screen with Miles. "I would be honored to bring Miles Morales into the live action world," the actor enthused. "How we do that, I don't know, but given the opportunity, I would jump at it."
While there's currently a great deal of uncertainty surrounding Spider-Man's MCU future, a fourth solo outing is happening and the web-slinger is still expected to be a lead character in Avengers: The Kang Dynasty and Avengers: Secret Wars.
Spider-Man 4 is currently expected to be released in theaters in 2025 or, more likely, 2026.