Seeing Andrew Garfield as Peter Parker on the big screen once again was definitely one of the biggest highlights of Spider-Man: No Way Home, but had things gone differently, it’s possible fans would have never gotten to see Tom Holland play the character. Sony began their new Spider-Man series in 2012 starting with The Amazing Spider-Man following Sam Raimi’s exit from Spider-Man 4.
By the time The Amazing Spider-Man 2 was released in theaters, Sony had already planned a whole cinematic universe to rival that of Disney’s MCU. Many of the ideas were quite over the top and could have upset fans. It’s probably for the best most of these concepts didn’t come to fruition.
10 George Stacy is Resurrected
George Stacy’s death in the first film was integral as he tells Peter to stay away from Gwen. This becomes an important plot point in the second film as well with Peter even seeing hallucinations of George, almost as a manifestation of his guilt. It’s an interesting arc and when Gwen dies at the end of the film, it’s all the more heartbreaking.
George Stacy actor Denis Leary outlined the plans via IndieWire, saying, “Spider-Man would be able to take this formula and regenerate the people in his life that died. So there was this discussion that Captain Stacy would come back even bigger in episode three.” Ultimately this plan didn’t come to fruition, but it would have really made his sacrifice in the first film meaningless.
9 Aunt May Spinoff Movie
One of Sony’s most ridiculous ideas was the fact they toyed with the possibility of developing an Aunt May spinoff film. Once the news broke out, the concept was quickly ridiculed and Sony swiftly denied the film’s existence.
However, leaks from the 2014 Sony Hack prove otherwise, as there was evidence the idea was toyed with, according to Gizmodo. The film would have reportedly taken place during the Cold War and followed Aunt May as a spy. With that kind of background, surely she’d know more on what happened Peter’s biological parents.
8 Sinister Six Team-Up
Before the Sinister Six villains are set to appear in Sony’s Spider-Man Universe, there was a plan to have a film centered around them. Spider-Man would have appeared as well in a starring role. The film was planned as a reactionary response from Sony to compete with Warner Bros’ Suicide Squad project. Daredevil creator and showrunner Drew Goddard was set to take on the project.
This version would have been comprised of Doc Ock (as the leader), Vulture, Sandman, Mysterio, Black Cat and interestingly enough… Spider-Man. Parker would have been forced to work with them as they take on an even bigger threat. Casting talks emerged too with Sony courting Matt Damon as Octavius, Tom Hardy as Sandman and Colin Firth as Vulture, from a report by Spider-Man Crawlspace, analyzing the leaked emails.
7 Richard Parker Survived the Plane Crash
Although it didn’t make the final cut, a scene featuring Peter at Gwen’s gravesite being reunited with his father Richard was included in the home media release of The Amazing Spider-Man 2. It’s unclear how he would have survived the plane crash from the opening of the film.
While the subplot of the parents was a new take for Spider-Man in film, many filmgoers weren’t too fond of exploring this idea. Perhaps it could have been really well done had the third film been made.
6 Spider-Man 2099 is Sent Back in Time to the Present
While Peter Parker and Miles Morales are probably the best known versions of Spider-Man, comic book fans will be excited to see Spider-Man 2099 as a starring character in Across the Spider-Verse. Before his animated debut, Miguel O’Hara was set to be introduced in his own film to be released in 2017 where he would be chased through time by Morlun per Spider-Man Crawlspace.
Upon entering the present, he would team up with Andrew Garfield’s Spidey and other Spider-Man characters in a Maximum Carnage-inspired crossover film, according to Spider-Man Crawlspace. Sony was certainly ambitious in terms of its goals for the franchise.
5 Norman Osborn Never Died
Although Norman Osborn seemingly died in The Amazing Spider-Man 2, that was never the end. In one of the wilder potential turns for the franchise, Norman Osborn’s head was to be frozen, and then he would have been resurrected before mutating into an actual Goblin, similar to the Ultimate Comics (according to Murphy’s Multiverse).
Director Marc Webb relayed to Murphy’s Multiverse, in the same article, “We had some notions about how to do it…that was going to be the main villain. He was going to come out and lead the Sinister Six.” This plan would have been after the Sinister Six film.
4 Gwen Stacy Returns as Carnage
In the plans for The Amazing Spider-Man franchise, Gwen was never meant to stay dead. Before settling on a potential resurrection with the symbiote, there were also talks with Westworld co-creator Lisa Joy to pen a Spider-Gwen film following Emma Stone as Gwen Stacy from an alternate universe, according to Spider-Man Crawlspace.
Of the leaked emails from Sony Hack, Sony executive Hannah Minghella said, via WikiLeaks, “We started talking about how Gwen Stacey comes back as Carnage in one of the comics. We had a good giggle looking at the sexy red Gwen/Carnage images online. Definitely a thought to consider for the future… could be really cool/sexy/intense to see her and Spidey fight. Or her and MJ…” It’s a good thing this idea never made it past the concept stage.
3 Sinister Six Fighting Dinosaurs in the Savage Land
The main gimmick behind the Sinister Six film was time portals and alternate dimensions, per Spider-Man Crawlspace. The film would have been a globe-trotting adventure also taking place in New York, Paris and London. There was also a huge sequence planned for the villains to face off against Dinosaurs in the Savage Land.
Funnily enough, Sony later realized they might not have the rights to use the Savage Land since it first appeared in a series still owned by Marvel. Amy Pascal later sent an email to other executives, per WikiLeaks, saying, “I suggest you guys get in a room this morning and go over Drew’s pitch and what is in savage land comics and make sure we are okay and not in a situation where they can find any foot faults. We have known for weeks that Drew was setting his story on a tropical island with dinosaurs and time travel portals. We can not be in a vulnerable position in any way.”
2 Spider-Man vs The Amazing Spider-Man
After receiving mixed to negative reviews and less money than anticipated with The Amazing Spider-Man 2, Sony was keen on changing their plan for the franchise. They began toying with several ideas including a crossover film featuring both Andrew Garfield and Tobey Maguire, via ScreenRant.
The best part is that Sam Raimi was set to direct the project. While the film never made it past talks, the two Spideys had somewhat of a brief duel last year in No Way Home.
1 MCU Crossover
Potentially the most disappointing entry on this list, Andrew Garfield was indeed going to join the MCU… on two separate occasions! Per IGN, talks between Marvel and Sony arose to feature the Oscorp tower in The Avengers but sadly things didn’t work out. This would have cemented The Amazing Spider-Man as an MCU film had it been done.
According to ScreenRant, Kevin Feige pitched to Sony about merging the MCU and the Amazing Spider-Man series as one unified universe. The idea was entertained for a bit, but ultimately Kevin Feige ended up convincing Sony to reboot the character with a new actor as Andrew Garfield was closer to 30 years old by Captain America: Civil War.
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