This Ambitious Spider-Man Comic Book Event Could Serve As the Basis for the Next MCU Film

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The Marvel Cinematic Universe is leading toward Avengers: Secret Wars, and there are only a few films left to go before it comes out. Thunderbolts* and The Fantastic Four: First Steps will round out Marvel Studios’ theatrical releases this year, while Avengers: Doomsday and Spider-Man 4 are due out in 2026. Marvel Studios recently announced the cast for Doomsday, which doesn’t include one of the MCU’s biggest characters: Spider-Man.

Spider-Man’s absence from the Doomsday cast raises even more questions about what will occur in his next film, since it comes out between it and Secret Wars. So far, few confirmations are out there, beyond Tom Holland returning as the masked Avenger, Destin Daniel Cretton stepping in to direct and Sadie Sink starring in an unknown role. Despite the scarce details, there’s been no shortage of rumors about the upcoming film, suggesting it could be everything from a street-level approach to another multiverse adventure. Spider-Man 4 can go in any direction after the Wall Crawler erased his Peter Parker identity, but here’s why the sequel could take heavy inspiration from a major comic book storyline from recent years.

What IsSpider-Island and How Does It Connect to Secret Wars?

Renowned Spider-Man writer Dan Slott was the mastermind behind the Spider-Island event, with stunning art from Humberto Ramos.

The Spider-Man comic book event took place over 33 issues and ran from August to November in 2011.

Spider-Island was a major comic book storyline that began in 2011 and crossed over into various other Marvel titles to make up 33 issues. While the storyline doesn’t initially connect to the 2015 Secret Wars event, it eventually does. The original run of Spider-Island revolves around the people of Manhattan obtaining Spider-Man’s abilities. One of them is Peter Parker’s girlfriend, Carlie Cooper, a sleeper choice for who Sink could wind up playing. This also leads to various characters causing havoc with their newfound powers. With the street-level characters like Daredevil absent from the Doomsday cast, including them in Spider-Man 4 with the Spider-Island storyline would be an easy way to explain their absence.

Drawing inspiration from the Spider-Island storyline would also be an easy way for the next Spider-Man film to be both street-level like so many fans want and become just as grand as No Way Home since it would involve many characters in a large-scale event that takes place across New York City. Marvel Studios going down the Spider-Island route would also be a way to do another huge Spider-Man story without it feeling too repetitive to the Spider-Verse films. Additionally, a Spider-Island miniseries takes place on Battleworld and in an alternate universe. Marvel Studios could go in a similar direction and tie Spider-Island to Battleworld and lead into Secret Wars since the Spider-Man sequel comes out before it.

Spider-Man Teams Up With Shang-Ch in Spider-Island

Spider-Man and Shang-Chi cross paths in Spider-Island.

Destin Daniel Cretton previously directed Shang-Chi and the Legned of the Ten Rings.

Marvel Studios has yet to announce a Shang-Chi sequel, but the MCU character will appear in Avengers: Doomsday next.

Spider-Man has teamed up with numerous Marvel characters over the years, and in Spider-Island, he teamed up with a surprising one. Shang-Chi has emerged as a major player in the MCU after his solo film and will return in Doomsday. Even though Shang-Chi will be in the next Avengers film, he could still serve as a major connective tissue between it and the upcoming Spider-Man sequel. Moreover, Spider-Man 4‘s director previously helmed Shang-Chi and the Legend of the Ten Rings and Marvel Studios might’ve put him on the project because of his appearance in the film.

“Oh, I’m not even… I’m not even going near that one. I haven’t heard anything, [but] I love people who love those movies, and I also love those movies.” — Simu Liu on a potential team-up between Shang-Chi and Spider-Man in March 2025.

This could all be a stretch, but Shang-Chi also plays a role in the Spider-Island comic, and is yet another reason why it’s the direction Marvel Studios could take Spidey in the MCU. In the comic, Spider-Man teams up with Shang-Chi to create the Way of the Spider martial arts form. Spider-Man needs to learn his martial arts ability after he losses is Spider -Sense. Not only would this give Spider-Man a new challenge in the upcoming film, but it would also allow the action to follow the same style as Cretton’s Shang-Chi and the Legend of the Ten Rings film with the newly formed fighting style. In the MCU, Spider-Man tends to team up with other heroes, and pairing him up with a character like Shang-Chi would allow the franchise to go in a refreshing direction.

TheSpider-IslandStoryline Features a Female Villain

It’s wild to think that out of all the Spider-Man movies there have been so far, Peter Parker has never gone up against a female villain in live-action. If the current rumors surrounding the next Spider-Man film are true, that could finally change. Prior to No Way Home, Marvel Studios made an effort to introduce villains Spider-Man never faced off before on film and Spider-Man 4 could see a return to that. If the next villain is female, many point to Black Cat since she is the most notable. However, another option also has a major tie to the Spider-Island comic book run.

Both The Jakal and The Queen are the ones behind the events that occur in Spider-Island, something that could easily translate over into the MCU. The Queen is an obscure Spider-Man villain who only appeared in one Spider-Man comic in 2004 before becoming a major foe in the Spider-Island story arc. The Queen’s real name is Adriana Soria and one of her main abilities is that she can control anyone with her insect gene. Using her blood, she partners up with The Jakal to spread Spider-Man’s powers to the citizens across Manhattan. In the comics, The Queen has also been another love interest of Spider-Man, another element that could come into play with the next film. Spider-Man has one of the best rogue’s galleries in comics, but so many have already been used in past films. Marvel Studios has found plenty of success in the past by pulling lesser-known villains and making them memorable and The Queen could serve as another example of this.

Spider-Man is one of the greatest comic book character ever and a lot of that has to do with all the incredible stories that make up his history. Many of those storylines have made their way into the Spider-Man films and that will undoubtedly continue. Like the comics, Spider-Man films have become bolder with the inclusion of the multiverse and various MCU connections. Therefore, it makes sense for Marvel Studios to look at a comic book storyline like Spider-Island and use it as a starting point. The story is a wild concept that would add a new wrinkle to a franchise with so much part of its past.

While Marvel Studios wouldn’t adapt the Spider-Island story verbatim, based on the rumors surrounding the sequel and what’s confirmed, it’s easy to see how elements from the comic book storyline could make its way into the MCU. Not to mention the Spider-Island storyline could tie-into Secret Wars and combine the street-level corner of the MCU with the rest. The ongoing debate with Spider-Man 4 online is the desire from many fans to see a grounded story after the set up in No Way Home. The reality is, the Spider-Man franchise has never been bigger. Borrowing the premise of Spider-Island and putting an MCU spin on it would create the perfect balance of an epic Spider-Man story that would also satisfy the crowd who wants something street-level next.

“}]] Based on a few clues and rumors, Marvel Studios seems to be using the Spider-Island comic book event to inspire the next Spider-Man film.  Read More