Spoiler Alert: Zendaya’s ‘Spider-Man: Homecoming’ Role Isn’t Who You Think
Marvel and Sony have gone to great lengths to keep the true identity of Zendaya’s character in Spider-Man: Homecoming a secret — and if you’d like to preserve the mystery for a few more weeks, now’s your chance to look away because the following article contains a big ol’ honkin’ SPOILER for Spidey’s upcoming reboot. As it turns out, those significant rumors about Zendaya’s role in Homecoming were way off the mark, and if you want to find out who she’s really playing, keep reading. Or turn back now. This is your final spoiler warning.
Still with us? Great! Although Marvel and Sony have been keeping the identity of Zendaya’s Michelle under wraps for well over a year, it looks like the secret is out. According to Nerdist, the source is a pretty official one: The junior novelization of Spider-Man: Homecoming.
It was previously (and rather heavily) rumored that Zendaya’s role is that of Peter Parker’s iconic longtime love interest Mary Jane Watson, with her real identity reportedly intended to be a big reveal in the film. But that’s not the case. Additional speculation suggested that Zendaya may be playing a somewhat altered version of Michele Gonzalez, a character who appears in the comics as the sister of Peter’s roommate Vin. That is also not the case.
So, who is Zendaya actually playing and why has her full name been kept a secret all this time? As revealed in the junior novelization of Homecoming, Michelle’s last name is Toomes…as in Adrian Toomes, aka the Vulture (played by Michael Keaton), which means Peter Parker’s new high school pal has a very personal connection to the film’s primary villain. That certainly complicates things, putting our young hero in a uniquely difficult position — one that’s obviously similar to Peter’s friendship with Harry Osborn, the son of one of Spider-Man’s most formidable villains, Norman, aka the Green Goblin.
Spider-Man: Homecoming also stars Tom Holland, Robert Downey Jr., Marisa Tomei, Jacob Batalon and Jon Favreau, and hits theaters on July 7.