Everything we thought we knew about the Marvel Cinematic Universe’s Spider-Man 3 was thrown completely out of the window when it was announced that Jamie Foxx would be reprising his role as Electro from The Amazing Spider-Man 2, and all bets are now officially off following the news that Benedict Cumberbatch’s Doctor Strange has also boarded the upcoming sequel.
Of course, the Sorcerer Supreme has shown up in other franchises before, with his brief cameo in Thor: Ragnarok hardly integral to the overall plot, but the fact that the character’s long-awaited solo sequel is titled Multiverse of Madness surely gives some indication as to how he’ll factor into the latest adventure for Tom Holland’s Peter Parker, especially with a Sony villain we last saw six years ago coming back for a second bite at the cherry.
The rumor mill was already going into overdrive that Electro’s return could eventually lead to a live-action Spider-Verse, and now insider Daniel Richtman claims that Marvel are far from finished when it comes to surprise additions. According to him, the studio are planning to feature even more supporting characters and cameos from the back catalogue as Spider-Man 3 becomes an essential building block in the MCU’s multiverse.
“Since they can’t have too many cameos in Doctor Strange 2 and because Sony wants more money out of Spider-Man 3 they have a plan to include lot of cameos and supporting roles for characters from other Earths in SM3 as well,” he says
Doctor Strange in the Multiverse of Madness has already been speculated to be loading up on cameos, but to stop Sam Raimi’s blockbuster from becoming overstuffed with teases and fan service, it would appear that Spider-Man 3 is looking to pick up some of the slack. And with shooting set to start next week, further casting news, plot details and the inevitable deluge of set photos should see the bigger picture become much clearer over the coming months.