Leading up to its theatrical debut, there were a lot of questions surrounding what Spider-Man: No Way Home would include in terms of references and homages to other Spider-Man media. It was clear from the trailers that some sort of crossover content would be in the movie given the appearances of villains like Doc Ock, Electro, and other characters from Sony’s other Spider-Man franchises, but when Tom Holland mentioned that No Way Home features a move from Insomniac’s Marvel’s Spider-Man, fans were on the lookout during screenings to see exactly which move Holland was referring to.
Given how athletic Holland is, it seemed like just about everything from Marvel’s Spider-Man was on the table to be potentially included in No Way Home. Fans speculated that the move could be something that happens frequently in the game like throwing a manhole cover, which is also seen in the final moments of The Amazing Spider-Man 2, or, given the conclusion of the game with its fight against Otto Octavius who was heavily featured in No Way Home’s marketing, a move straight out of the PS4 title’s final fight scene. However, the move may actually happen during the film’s opening.
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Spider-Man: No Way Home’s Spider-Man PS4 Connection
Now that the film is out, eagle-eyed fans were able to catch the moment that Holland was referring to, but it happens so quickly that it’s no wonder why some Spider-Man fans left the theaters still curious about which move the actor was referring to. In his fight against the Green Goblin in Happy’s apartment complex, Spider-Man slams the villain through the ground and into the floor below by jumping over the Goblin, webbing the ground, and coming smashing down. This move comes directly from a similar scene in the PS4 game.
The opening moments of Marvel’s Spider-Man see Peter Parker swinging over to Fisk tower and confronting the mob boss Kingpin. This is the tutorial section of the game, but it ends with a cinematic boss fight against Wilson Fisk that wrecks his building as he and Spider-Man punch each other through walls and bust through the floor. Towards the end of the fight, as seen at roughly 4:22 in the video by Boss Fight Database above, Spider-Man does the exact same move as seen in No Way Home kicking the Kingpin through the floor just as he does with the Green Goblin.
As more and more fans have seen the movie, however, they’re beginning to detect other moments that might be homages to the PS4 title with Spider-Man’s fighting style. It’s not always easy to determine what is a purposeful nod and what is simply an example of both the game and No Way Home using classic examples of Spider-Man’s powers, but either way, it’s nice to see that the movie was interested in featuring the Insomniac game given how popular it is.
Some fans believe that (seriously this time, major No Way Home spoiler incoming) Aunt May’s death in the film is also a nod to Marvel’s Spider-Man given how Peter’s parental figure meets a similar fate at the end of the game, While it’s not impossible that the PS4 title could have potentially influenced or inspired the film to make this narrative choice, Aunt May’s death isn’t a story beat told exclusively in the game, and the game’s narrative moments surrounding it don’t have much in common with how it goes down in the film other than the simple fact that the character dies in both pieces of media. What’s more, the two versions of Aunt May don’t have a whole lot specifically connecting them other than they’re the same character and share a lot of details that are shared across all versions of the character. Her grave does include a quote from the game, though, so there is some evidence for this idea.
Regardless, fans looking for the Marvel’s Spider-Man move may want to keep an eye on Peter’s first clash with Green Goblin during the film.
Spider-Man: No Way Home is in theaters now.
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