One simple search on YouTube will reveal that fans are actually extremely worried about Spider-Man: No Way Home. Unlike other films in the Marvel Cinematic Universe, which have had fans swell up with excitement, Spider-Man: No Way Home has fostered a sort of unrelenting dread. It may be because fans feel as though they may be let down by their unrealistic fan casting choices. After all, we're still not 100% sure that previous Spider-Man actor Andrew Garfield will show up in the film, let alone the absolutely beloved Tobey MacGuire. We know it's a multiverse film, but we definitely aren't sure we'll get more than one Spider-Man.
Some fans have never quite grabbed onto Tom Holland or Marvel's take on the character either. Meaning they preferred director Sam Raimi's style or even just a less goofy Spider-Man. But the main reason the fans appear to be totally worried about the upcoming MCU film has to do with the villains and, specifically, the return of fan-favorite Doc Ock, played by Alfred Molina.
Why Fans Absolutely Adore Doc Ock
Fans may have been initially very excited to see Doc Ock in the new trailer, but as soon as they started thinking about his return they started to worry. This is because there's a very good chance that the new movie could ruin the beloved Spider-Man villain. While fans of the Sam Raimi Spider-Man films adored Willem Dafoe's take on The Green Goblin, it's Alfred Molina's Doc Ock from Spider-Man 2 that truly captured their hearts. Not only was the character menacing, visually engaging, and proved himself to be a worthy physical adversary for the web-slinger, but Alfred also laced his tortured scientist character with heart and soul.
In 2004's Spider-Man 2, we got to see the full arc of Dr. Otto Octavius's character. When he's introduced he's a kindly mentor to Peter Parker. Sure, he was overly driven and a bit mad. After all, what kind of man designs monstrous AI tentacles to help with his experiments? However, we were given an impressive level of character dimension right off the bat. This all changed when his energy experiment went terribly wrong and resulted in the death of his wife. It's also what turned him into Doc Ock as the AI tentacles become fused to his spine and brain.
Visually, we see this transition in the lights within the hands of each tentacle. When Otto was in charge of the arms, the light was white. But when he lost control and became Doc Ock, the lights were red.
By the end of the movie, Doc Ock regained much of what made us gravitate to him in the first place. He retook control of his arms and sacrificed himself to save Peter, Mary-Jane, and all of New York City.
Unlike most superhero villains, Doc Ock wasn't a mustache-twirling maniac. He had a clear goal at the beginning of the film. And this goal eventually corrupted him to the point where only sacrificing his life could make up for what he had done in the ruthless pursuit of his goal. But Spider-Man: No Way Home threatens to undo all of that.
Why Fans Are Worried About Doc Ock And The Villians
In The Spider-Man: No Way Home trailer, the lights in Doc Ock's tentacles are red, signifying that he does not have control of them. This could mean one of two things. Firstly, given that the film takes place in a multi-verse, this version of Doc Ock could never have regained control of his arms meaning that he's still the stark-raving lunatic he was throughout the majority of Spider-Man 2. It also means that he is likely to be lacking the incredible dimension laid out in Alfred Molina's first take on the character.
Secondly, it could mean that the end of Spider-Man 2 meant nothing. That the redemption arc that the writers had skillfully crafted and Alfred Molina had even more skillfully executed literally was useless. This would be a major disappointment and fans all over the internet appear to be feeling that way.
Even if the director Jon Watts can manage to craft a new redemption arc for Doc Ock, he'll have to do that for the other villains expected to appear in the movie. We've already mentioned Willem Dafoe's Green Goblin, but Jamie Foxx's Electro will also show his face. And then there are rumors of The Lizard, Sandman from Spider-Man 3 (who also received a redemption arc), and even a sixth villain to fill out the Sinister Six from the comics.
With so many characters, most of whom as beloved as Doc Ock, appearing in one film, there will be little time to give any of them much to do. The screentime for the heroes of the movie will also be sacrificed and that's indeed something to worry about.