Unused Spider-Man: No Way Home Scene Would’ve Ruined A Scene It Took 9 Years To Make

Concept art reveals one unused scene from Spider-Man: No Way Home that would have ruined one emotional MCU scene that paid off a tragic moment from Sony’s The Amazing Spider-Man 2. After Loki season 1 ended with the Sacred Timeline being unraveled, the new multiverse became a key plot element in 2021’s Spider-Man: No Way Home, as Doctor Strange’s botched spell brought characters from Sony’s previous Spider-Man films into the MCU. As well as five multiversal villains, Tobey Maguire and Andrew Garfield also reprised their roles as Peter Parker alongside Tom Holland as the MCU’s Spider-Man in the Spider-Man: No Way Home cast, giving them the opportunity to address unresolved storylines from their previous Spider-Man adventures.

Spider-Man: No Way Home saw the three Spider-Men battle the Green Goblin, Doctor Octopus, and Sandman from Sam Raimi’s Spider-Man trilogy, and Lizard and Electro from Marc Webb’s The Amazing Spider-Man duology. While battling their respective villains, No Way Home provided the opportunity for the three Peter Parkers to connect with each other, primarily over their shared experiences. One of the most important experiences that each Spider-Man shares is their love stories with MJ for Maguire and Holland’s versions, and Gwen Stacy for Garfield’s. In Garfield’s case, the tragic end of his relationship with Gwen was addressed in an emotional moment in No Way Home, but this almost didn’t happen.

MJ Was Originally Saved By Doctor Strange’s Cloak In Spider-Man: No Way Home

During Spider-Man: No Way Home’s final battle at the Statue of Liberty, the three Spider-Men fight to cure their villains, but Holland’s Peter Parker’s friends, MJ and Ned Leeds, are caught in the crossfire. In one climactic moment, MJ falls from the scaffolding, harking back to Gwen Stacy falling from the clock tower in The Amazing Spider-Man 2. However, while Andrew Garfield’s Peter Parker was unable to save Gwen, he learned from his experience and safely caught MJ, landing both safely on the ground in a hugely cathartic and touching moment. This scene was almost very different, however, as shown in newly-released concept art from Spider-Man: No Way Home.

Concept artist Phil Saunders revealed that the original plan for MJ’s fall in Spider-Man: No Way Home’s final battle would have seen her be saved by Doctor Strange’s Cloak of Levitation. According to Saunders, this led to “a liberating moment of freedom for MJ as she gets to experience flying for herself.” Doctor Strange’s sentient Cloak of Levitation has come to the Master of the Mystic Arts’ aid several times since 2016’s Doctor Strange, and ended up attaching itself to Ned Leeds. The fact that Ned got this honor instead of MJ allowed Marvel Studios to include one of the MCU’s most emotional moments during No Way Home’s final battle.

No Way Home’s Original Plan Would Have Ruined Andrew Garfield’s Redemption Moment

While it would have been great to see MJ flying around the end battle of Spider-Man: No Way Home, having her be saved by the Cloak of Levitation would have stripped Andrew Garfield’s Spider-Man of the opportunity to redeem his story. Garfield’s Spider-Man was seriously impacted by his failure to save Gwen Stacy in The Amazing Spider-Man 2, so him being able to actually save MJ was incredibly relieving and forgiving for the wall-crawler. By having Garfield’s Peter save MJ in Spider-Man: No Way Home, one of the most distressing scenes in Spider-Man’s history has now been paid off, and Garfield could return as a more hopeful Spider-Man.