One of Marvel’s grandest trilogies is coming to an end with Spider-Man: No Way Home. Fans have seen Peter Parker, MJ, and Ned grow throughout Spider-Man: Homecoming, its sequel, and various other appearances in the Marvel Cinematic Universe. ComingSoon’s Jonathan Sim spoke with Spider-Man: No Way Home stars Tom Holland, Zendaya, and Jacob Batalon about their character development throughout the future, how Peter Parker has evolved, and more.
Jonathan Sim: Hello, Tom, Zendaya, and Jacob.
Tom Holland: Oh, You have the [whiteboard with names on it]. I like your background.
Yeah. Thank you so much This feels like a long time ago, but I love it.
Holland: It really broke the Internet.
Jacob Batalon: Yeah, everyone went crazy.
Yeah. I had no idea what the real title was. You guys really put me through something there.
Holland: That was fun. I enjoyed doing that. That went well. It’s always nice to manipulate the world.
Zendaya: I was late. I was stuck on a phone call.
Holland: But you were on that phone call. Cause remember you got…you got stressed! I remember.
So, Tom, this first question goes to you. This is the first time in Spider-Man cinematic history, where the world knows Peter Parker’s secret identity. How do you think that the character has evolved since Captain America: Civil War, as he’s placed into this new situation?
Holland: I mean, I think he’s evolved a lot. He’s kind of gone from being a young boy to being a young man, which is something that everyone has to try and navigate. It’s especially complicated when you throw a little bit of superhero into the mix. I think he’s become, a really strong and dependable Avenger in his own right. I think what’s really exciting is to see how nervous he was on his first go-around with the Avengers in Captain America: Civil War, to then how confident he was in the final battle in Avengers: Endgame. And to now, in Spider-Man: No Way Home, having the confidence to just go and knock on Doctor Stranger’s door and sort of say, “I need a favor, mate, can you help me out?” So, it’s been a very nice progression.
Yeah, I agree. Zendaya, MJ is such a fascinating character because the way she acts around Peter is usually different from how she acts around other characters. So what would you say you like the most about playing this character and having this dynamic with the other characters?
Zendaya: I think what’s special about MJ is, I don’t know. I think [director of Spider-Man: No Way Home Jon Watts] really took his time with MJ, and I think the love story between MJ and Peter. It wasn’t like one of those things where, I think sometimes in movies, It’s like the whole love arc happens in one movie, whereas this one is like, nice and slow. So, we kind of get to know them as people first and get to see all the little awkward, cute moments that lead up to them finally being able to be together. And I think that Peter and Ned offer a family for her, they offer support and a place where she can feel loved and safe. Which I think is a little bit of a new feeling for her, people that she can actually trust. So, in this movie, I think we really get to see her be more vulnerable than she’s ever been, more open, and watch those kind of walls that she’s built and that we kind of see this like tough shell that she portrays to the world kind of slowly crumble.
Yeah, and I’m excited to see you do more of that. Jacob, the character of Ned has always been a fan-favorite, he’s always been a favorite of mine. Assuming that you remain in the MCU for years to come, what are some places that you would like the character Ned to go beyond the guy in the chair?
Batalon: Yeah. I feel like we’d all have the opportunity to do more. But I think that if I were given the reins full control of what I would do, I feel like Ned would want to be more heroes guy in the chair.
Holland: Have the guy in the chair agency.
Batalon: Yeah. He’ll just start his own, like, computer agency and be in everyone’s ear. And I think that Ned would absolutely relish being in other superheros ears like that. And I think just for me, I would just have more work to do [laughs], but I think again, I think that he just would love to be in more superhero’s lives. But most importantly, I feel like he’d be making sure that Peter and MJ are still in his life, because at the end of the day it’s still team Spider-Man.
Holland: I feel like you could be the director of S.W.O.R.D. You could take over.
Batalon: It’d be interesting for sure.
