For the first time in cinematic history, Spider-Man's identity is revealed, bringing his superhero responsibilities into conflict with his normal life and putting those he cares about most at risk. Desperate to restore his secret, Peter Parker turns to Doctor Strange for magical help, but the spell goes horribly wrong, tearing a hole in their world. This unleashes the most powerful villains who have ever fought a Spider-Man in any universe, forcing Peter to overcome his greatest challenge yet to save not only his own future but the fabric of the multiverse itself.
Information |
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Language |
English |
Country |
United States |
Premiere date |
December 17, 2021 |
Running time |
148 minutes |
Genre |
Action Adventure Fantasy Sci-Fi |
Budget |
$200,000,000 |
Box Office |
$1,921,847,111 |
Crew |
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Directed by |
Jon Watts |
Produced by |
Kevin Feige Amy Pascal |
Written by |
Chris McKenna Erik Sommers |
Music by |
Michael Giacchino |
Cinematography |
Mauro Fiore |
Edited by |
Jeffrey Ford Leigh Folsom Boyd |
Production Co. |
Columbia Pictures Marvel Studios Pascal Pictures |
Distributed by |
Sony Pictures Releasing |
Top Cast |
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Official Trailer |
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Movie Collection |
Movie Order: #03 in Spider-Man Collection
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The Plot
Public Enemy Number One
Following the shocking revelation by J. Jonah Jameson of The Daily Bugle, Peter Parker’s secret identity as Spider-Man is exposed to the world. Simultaneously framed for the death of Mysterio and an alleged mass casualty event in London, Parker finds his life instantly upended. Swarmed by an angry mob and aggressive media, he and Michelle "MJ" Jones are forced to flee the scene, seeking refuge in Parker's apartment. There, they reunite with May Parker and Happy Hogan, who awkwardly reveal that they have ended their relationship. The respite is short-lived, as the United States Department of Damage Control (DODC) raids the apartment, taking Parker, MJ, May, and Ned Leeds into custody for interrogation regarding the Stark Industries technology used in the London attack.
Desperate for legal assistance, Parker hires attorney Matt Murdock, whose expertise manages to get the criminal charges against Parker dropped. However, the court of public opinion remains hostile. As Parker, MJ, and Leeds return to Midtown High to begin their senior year, they are ostracized by the intense controversy surrounding them. The fallout extends to their academic futures; all three are rejected from every college they apply to, including their dream school, MIT. Guilt-ridden that his double life has ruined his friends' futures, Parker decides to take drastic action.
The Runes of Kof-Kol
Parker visits the New York Sanctum to seek the aid of Doctor Strange, hoping the sorcerer can reverse time to undo the identity reveal. Strange explains that he no longer possesses the Time Stone but proposes an alternative: the Runes of Kof-Kol, a powerful spell capable of making the entire world forget that Peter Parker is Spider-Man. Despite a stern warning from Wong—who has ascended to Sorcerer Supreme—that the spell is too dangerous, Strange proceeds to cast it out of sympathy for Parker’s plight.
As Strange begins the incantation, Parker realizes the implications: everyone, including MJ, Ned, and May, will forget him. Panic sets in, and Parker incessantly interrupts the casting, requesting specific exemptions for his girlfriend, best friend, and aunt. These constant alterations destabilize the magic, causing the spell to spiral out of control. Strange barely manages to contain the chaotic energy within a mystical containment unit. Furious that Parker approached him without first trying to appeal to the college administrators directly, Strange kicks him out of the Sanctum.
Ambush on the Alexander Hamilton Bridge
Acting on a tip from Flash Thompson, who was admitted to MIT, Parker tracks down an MIT administrator heading to the airport via the Alexander Hamilton Bridge to plead his case for MJ and Ned. While stuck in traffic, Parker’s Spider-Sense flares as he is suddenly ambushed by Doctor Otto Octavius (Doctor Octopus). The villain attacks relentlessly, seemingly recognizing Parker but confused by his appearance. During the brawl, Octavius rips a piece of nanotechnology off the Iron Spider Armor, inadvertently allowing the suit's nanites to bond with his mechanical tentacles.
Before Octavius can deliver a killing blow, the nanites allow Parker to hack into the tentacles and seize control of them. Parker unmasks, and Octavius is bewildered to see a face he does not recognize. Using the controlled arms, Parker saves the MIT administrator from falling off the bridge; in gratitude, she promises to help get him and his friends admitted. The victory is interrupted by the arrival of the Green Goblin. Before the Goblin can attack, Doctor Strange teleports Parker and Octavius back to the Sanctum Sanctorum, where he has already imprisoned another intruder: Curt Connors, the Lizard.
Visitors from the Multiverse
Strange reveals the consequences of the botched spell: it cracked the boundaries between universes, pulling in individuals who know that Peter Parker is Spider-Man from other realities. Strange tasks Parker with finding and capturing these "visitors" so they can be sent back. Equipped with a magic-enhanced gauntlet, Parker recruits MJ and Ned to help. They locate Max Dillon (Electro) wandering outside the city, absorbing electricity from power lines. Electro attacks, but Flint Marko (Sandman) intervenes, shielding Parker. Together, they disable the power lines, restoring Electro's physical form, and transport him to the Sanctum. However, Marko, believing Parker has killed Dillon, turns hostile and is also captured.
Meanwhile, Norman Osborn, wrestling with his Green Goblin persona, destroys his mask and flees to a F.E.A.S.T. shelter seeking help. May alerts her nephew, and Parker gently brings a confused Osborn to the Sanctum. Reunited in the undercroft, Osborn, Octavius, and Dillon discuss their origins. A horrified realization dawns upon them: they were all pulled from their universes moments before their deaths while fighting their respective versions of Spider-Man. Octavius confirms that returning home means returning to their graves.
The Clash in the Mirror Dimension
Doctor Strange prepares to use a mystical relic, the Macchina di Kadavus, to reverse the spell and send the villains back to their original timelines. He explains that their deaths are their destiny and necessary for the stability of the Multiverse. Parker, influenced by May’s belief that everyone deserves a second chance, refuses to send them back to die. He steals the Macchina containing the spell and flees.
Strange pursues Parker into the Mirror Dimension, attempting to reclaim the box. A spectacular chase ensues through the warping reality, where Strange attempts to lecture Parker on the greater good. Unfazed, Parker uses his knowledge of geometry to trap Strange within his own mathematical constructs, entangling him in a complex web matrix. Parker steals Strange’s Sling Ring and returns to the Earthly Plane, leaving the sorcerer trapped. He entrusts the Sling Ring to Ned and the Macchina to MJ, then releases the villains from their cells with a plan to cure them of their afflictions before sending them home.
Tragedy at Happy’s Condo
Parker takes the villains to Happy Hogan’s condominium to develop cures. Using a Stark Industries Fabricator, he successfully replaces Octavius’s broken inhibitor chip, restoring his higher brain function and returning him to a benevolent state. He then begins working on an energy siphon to cure Electro. However, the Green Goblin persona reasserts control over Norman Osborn. Manipulation sets in; the Goblin convinces Electro to rip off the siphon just as it begins to work. Electro steals an Arc Reactor for limitless power and blasts Octavius out of the building. The Lizard, Sandman, and Electro escape, leaving Parker alone to face the Green Goblin.
The Goblin brutally pummels Parker, smashing him through the floors of the building. In the lobby, May attempts to inject the Goblin with an antidote, but it fails. The Goblin summons his glider, striking May down. As he flies away, he tosses two Pumpkin Bombs. Parker manages to deflect one, but the explosions cause massive structural damage. In the rubble, May seems initially fine, telling a tearful Peter that he did the right thing. She delivers a final lesson: "With great power, there must also come great responsibility." Moments later, she collapses and dies from her internal injuries. As DODC officers swarm the scene, a grief-stricken Parker is forced to leave May’s body behind, while Happy arrives just in time to see the destruction and is arrested.
The Three Spider-Men
Guilt and grief consume Parker as he hides on the roof of Midtown High, ignoring the world while Jameson broadcasts hate speech against him. Worried for their friend, MJ and Ned attempt to use the Sling Ring to find him. Ned inadvertently opens a portal, but the Spider-Man who steps through is not their Peter Parker. It is an alternate version (Peter-Three), who fought the Lizard and Electro. Ned tries again, summoning yet another Peter Parker (Peter-Two), an older version who fought the Goblin, Octavius, and Sandman. The two variants locate the grieving Parker at the school.
They attempt to console him, but Parker is consumed by rage and a desire for vengeance against the Goblin. To help him, the alternates share their own stories of loss—Peter-Two recalls the death of Uncle Ben, and Peter-Three speaks of losing Gwen Stacy. They help him realize that May’s death wasn't in vain and that he isn't alone. Reinvigorated, the three Spider-Men agree to finish the mission: curing the villains. They retreat to a laboratory in the school to manufacture the remaining antidotes: an anti-serum for the Goblin, a cure for Sandman, and a reversal agent for the Lizard.
Showdown at the Statue of Liberty
Parker contacts The Daily Bugle to broadcast a message, luring the villains to the Statue of Liberty, which is under construction. Ned and MJ accompany the three heroes, protecting the Macchina di Kadavus. The villains arrive, and a chaotic battle ensues. The three Spider-Men initially struggle to coordinate, getting in each other's way. Realizing they need structure, Peter-One (the MCU Parker) assumes command, drawing on his Avengers experience to organize the team.
Executing their plan, they target Sandman first. Peter-Two and Peter-One coordinate to deliver the cure, turning Flint Marko back into a human. Next, they turn their attention to the Lizard. While Peter-One fights him, Ned uses the Sling Ring to open a portal, allowing them to force the Lizard to inhale the antidote gas, reverting him to Curt Connors. However, the sheer power of the Arc Reactor-enhanced Electro proves difficult to overcome. Just as Electro overpowers Peter-Two and Peter-Three, a cured Doctor Octopus arrives. Feigning an alliance with Electro, Octavius rips the Arc Reactor from his chest and installs the cure, depowering Dillon and reconciling with him.
The Cracked Multiverse
Ned accidentally frees Doctor Strange from the Mirror Dimension, who arrives demanding the Macchina. Suddenly, the Green Goblin attacks, snatching the box. As Strange and Octavius attempt to wrestle it back, the Goblin triggers a Pumpkin Bomb hidden inside the device. The explosion destroys the box, and the contained spell breaks loose, tearing violet rifts in the sky. The force of the blast knocks MJ off the scaffolding. Peter-One dives to save her but is intercepted by the Goblin's glider. Seeing history repeat itself, Peter-Three dives after her, catching MJ and landing safely—finally finding redemption for his failure to save Gwen.
On top of the shield, Peter-One engages the Green Goblin in a brutal, no-holds-barred brawl. Consumed by vengeance, Peter-One gains the upper hand, beating Osborn nearly to death. He picks up the Goblin's glider, ready to impale him, but Peter-Two intercedes, stopping the fatal blow. Peter-One drops the glider, snapping out of his rage. However, the Goblin seizes the moment to stab Peter-Two in the back. Peter-Three tosses the anti-serum to Peter-One, who injects Osborn, finally banishing the Goblin persona and returning a horrified Norman Osborn to his senses.
The Final Spell
As Peter-Two collapses from his non-fatal wound, the rifts in the sky widen, revealing countless silhouettes of beings from across the Multiverse attempting to break through. Strange struggles to hold the barriers together. Peter-One realizes the only way to save their reality is to finish what they started: cast a new spell to make the world forget Peter Parker ever existed—including Strange, MJ, and Ned. Strange, initially reluctant, agrees. Peter says emotional goodbyes to his alternate selves and promises MJ and Ned that he will find them and make them remember him.
Strange unleashes the spell. The alternate Spider-Men and the cured villains fade away, returning to their respective universes. Simultaneously, the world’s memory of Peter Parker is wiped clean. Peter visits the donut shop where MJ works, intending to reintroduce himself. However, seeing MJ and Ned happy and heading to MIT, and noticing the bandage on MJ’s head from the battle, he decides to keep his distance to keep them safe, breaking his promise for their sake.
A New Beginning
Later, Peter visits May’s grave. Happy Hogan is there, but he does not recognize Peter, asking how he knew the deceased. Peter replies that he knew her through Spider-Man. With his identity erased and no legal records of his existence, Peter moves into a small, run-down apartment. He studies for his GED to forge a new future. Hearing a police scanner report, he dons a new, homemade suit sewn from red and blue fabric. Embracing his responsibility, Spider-Man swings through the snowy streets of New York, continuing his vigilantism alone.
In a mid-credits scene, Eddie Brock and Venom, who were inadvertently transported to this universe by the first spell, are drinking at a bar in Mexico, trying to understand this new reality's superheroes. Suddenly, the second spell takes effect, and they are teleported back to their home universe. However, a small fragment of the black Venom symbiote is left behind on the bar counter, moving slightly before the screen cuts to black.
