The live-action Spider-Verse can’t be stopped. It’s self-sustaining now. Alfred Molina is officially reprising his Doctor Octopus role from 2004’s classic Spider-Man 2 in Marvel’s upcoming third Spider-Man film (via The Hollywood Reporter).
Molina turned in a fan-favorite performance as Dr. Otto Octavius to face Tobey Maguire’s Spider-Man in the second entry in Sam Raimi’s trilogy. That film is widely considered one of the best superhero movies of all time. Now, Molina will strap on the mechanical arms once more to face off against Tom Holland’s Spidey in the hero’s third solo Marvel Cinematic Universe adventure.
The addition of another villain from a past series adds further confirmation that Spider-Man 3 is going to be a reality-hopping affair. Marvel blew the doors off the Spider-Verse surprise in October when it was revealed Jamie Foxx would be reprising his role as Electro from the much maligned The Amazing Spider-Man 2. A week later, it was confirmed that Benedict Cumberbatch would also be appearing as Doctor Strange, likely a conduit for the multiversal hijinks apparently at play.
Rumor has it Holland won’t have to deal with all these past supervillains alone, however. In a since deleted post, Foxx implied he’d be doing battle with all three live-action Spider-Men: Holland from the MCU, Maguire from the original trilogy, and Andrew Garfield from the Amazing series.
The follow-up to 2019’s Spider-Man: Far From Home (which stands as the most recent MCU film thanks to the pandemic release date shuffles) will once again be directed by Jon Watts. Also expected to return are Zendaya (MJ), Marisa Tomei (Aunt May), Jacob Batalon (Ned Leeds), and Tony Revoloriurning (Flash Thompson).
Editor’s Note: Stay safe by picking up one of our custom face masks. A portion of the proceeds will benefit MusiCares’ COVID-19 Artist Relief fund supporting independent musicians.