A couple of high-profile Marvel stars are expected to return in “Spider-Man: No Way Home,” the third installment in the MCU’s Tom Holland-led Spidey franchise set for release in December. But Willem Dafoe won’t confirm or deny if he’ll return as the Green Goblin for what looks to be quite a multiversal adventure.
TheWrap caught up with Dafoe to talk about his work on upcoming video game “Twelve Minutes,” and we couldn’t resist asking him the question that’s been on a lot of hardcore Spidey fans’ minds for a while now: Will he reprise his role as Norman Osborn in “No Way Home”?
At first, Dafoe sidestepped the question and pointed out that at the time he was on the video call to discuss his work with the Annapurna Interactive game. But he didn’t exactly refuse to answer the question, and said he understands why we felt compelled to ask — he’s probably gotten this question a lot lately.
When asked if his comment on his potential involvement in “No Way Home” would just actually be “no comment” Dafoe said, “I’m afraid so.”
“I got lots of stuff happening now. And, you know, I always feel like when a film comes out, that’s when it’s time to talk about it,” Dafoe added.
Cryptic indeed, but definitely not a takedown of the idea. Dafoe didn’t say that he won’t be appearing in “Spider-Man: No Way Home,” but he also sure didn’t say yes, either. It’s a much more nebulous response than we usually get to those sorts of questions — more often, actors will simply deny it regardless of the actual truth if their casting hasn’t actually been officially confirmed.
The reason why this is a topic is because “Spider-Man: No Way Home” is reportedly bringing back some other folks from the non-MCU “Spider-Man” movies. Like Jamie Foxx, who is expected to return in “No Way Home” as villain Electro, who first appeared in 2014’s “The Amazing Spider-Man 2.”
The most recent spider-flick, “Spider-Man: Far From Home,” already dipped its toe into the multiverse by bringing back J.K. Simmons as newsman J. Jonah Jameson from the original Raimi trilogy.
Andrew Garfield has tried to shoot down rumors he’d show up as his Spidey from the 2012 “Amazing Spider-Man” series but it’s rumored that he might show up alongside Tobey Maguire as his Spider-Man from the Sam Raimi films. Reps for both actors, along with Marvel Studios, and Sony previously didn’t respond to numerous requests for comment.
And on top of all that, we’re also expecting Alfred Molina to pop up as Doc Ock, the role he played in Raimi’s “Spider-Man 2” in 2004.
So, while we still don’t know whether or not Dafoe will show up as the Green Goblin/Norman Osborn in “No Way Home,” his comments certainly aren’t even an attempt to shut the door on that speculation. Stay tuned for the film’s release on Dec. 17 to find out one way or the other.