Why it’s so fantastic that Zendaya will play Mary Jane in ‘Spider-Man: Homecoming’

Image from Refinery29

For the first time in the character’s 50-year-long history, Spider-Man’s long-time love interest Mary Jane Watson will be portrayed by a black woman.

The Wrap reported that actress and singer Zendaya would be playing Mary Jane in next summer’s Spider-Man: Homecoming, a reboot of the Spider-Man franchise helmed by both Marvel and Sony that would bring the adventures of Peter Parker into Marvel’s already sprawling cinematic universe.

Even though she’s often written as being Peter Parker’s damsel in distress, Mary Jane is as important a part of Spider-Man’s mythos as the radioactive spider that bit him or even Uncle Ben. Mary Jane isn’t just the girl that Peter has a crush on—she plays a key role in binding together the friends and family that he holds so dear and ultimately becomes one of the first people to discover his secret identity.

Flash Thompson, Peter’s high school nemesis, Ned Leeds, Peter’s best friend, and Liz Allan, another of Peter’s love interests, are all traditionally white characters who will be played by actors of color in Homecoming. After years of depicting Peter Parker’s Queens neighborhood of being a bubble of lily-whiteness, Sony’s finally decided to better reflect the actual communities that Spider-Man defends, and that’s a very good thing.

Zendaya’s casting as Mary Jane makes it abundantly clear that, for the first time ever, there’ll be a series of Spider-Man stories that doesn’t focus solely around the lives of white people. That’s incredibly important, because a story of great power coming with great responsibility means so much more when you can see yourself in it.

Image from Fusion

http://fusion.net/story/338253/zendaya-mary-jane-spiderman-homecoming/

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Text from Fusion

Spider-Man: Homecoming Report Suggests Zendaya is Mary Jane

Photo from Den of Geek

Currently, the official stance is that Zendaya is playing Michelle, a student in Peter Parker’s high school class whom Sony has described as a “key role.” However, this would be a unique choice since there are no major “Michelles” in Spidey mythos while many fans have been curious to see a new version of MJ since Kirsten Dunst played Miss Watson in Sam Raimi’s Spider-Man Trilogy in the 2000s. And now, The Wrap has issued a report with some fair amount of confidence.

According to Umberto Gonzalez, two unnamed sources have confirmed that Zendaya will indeed be playing Mary Jane. Apparently, the film will not reveal this initially but “at least one recent draft of the script has Zendaya’s character dropping several clues to her identity as Mary Jane.”

Such pre-release misdirection prior to in-story revelations has been common in recent blockbusters like The Dark Knight Rises, Star Trek Into Darkness, Skyfall, and Spectre.

http://www.denofgeek.com/us/movies/spider-man/257919/spider-man-homecoming-report-suggests-zendaya-is-mary-jane

Photo and text from Den of Geek

Zendaya Says That Spider-Man Cast Gets To Be Kids

Image from MCU Exchange

The little bit of press that we have seen from the young cast of Spider-Man Homecoming has shown us an energetic group of actors with a positive attitude and excitement over what they are creating. After the clips were shown in Hall H of San Diego Comic-Con this past weekend, Tom Holland, Spider-Man himself, was as excited as any of the audience members. According to Zendaya, in an interview with Collider immediately following the event, the characters that we will see in the feature film are a lot like their real-life counterparts.

What’s really cool is that it’s so real and it’s so funny and it’s so honest and I think the funny comes out of the realness and awkward moments. And what’s even cooler is that I think everyone is very much like their character. The casting is crazy. I was just talking to someone and they were like, “Tell us about your cast,” and I said, “Look right over there. My cast members are running up and down the press line and they’re jumping. That’s us. We get to be the kids.”

The actress went on to say that she isn’t around for what they are filming this week, and doesn’t know what action is in store for the cast as they move along in development. We don’t know much about Zendaya’s role, except that her character’s name is “Michelle.” 

That's pretty cute.

http://mcuexchange.com/zendaya-says-that-spider-man-cast-gets-to-be-kids/

Image and text from MCU Exchange

First Look At Some SPIDER-MAN: HOMECOMING Supporting Stars On Set With A New Cast Addition

Photo from Comic Book Movie

At this point it may be easier to list the people NOT in the upcoming Spiderman: Homecoming movie. The cast is already quite extensive, talented and diverse(!). Check out the info and pictures from Comic Book Movie below:

Laurra Harrier, Kenneth Choi, Martin Starr, and Abraham Attah have all reported to the set of Spider-Man: Homecoming with a newly-revealed member of the growing cast. 

The latest batch of photos from the Atlanta set of Spider-Man: Homecoming have offered a first look at some of the many supporting stars of the much-anticipated Marvel reboot. As students and faculty of Peter Parker’s Midtown School of Science and Technology, stars Laurra Harrier, Kenneth Choi, Martin Starr, and Abraham Attah were spotted on the set.

 

Judging by these images alone, it seems Martin Starr is playing a teacher in Homecoming, while Laurra Harrier and Abraham Attah have roles within Tom Holland’s Peter Parker’s group of friends. And it was previously reported Kenneth Choi will be playing the principal.

 

What’s more interesting about these photos is that they may reveal yet another addition to the ever-growing ensemble cast. Seen recently in White House Down as the First Lady, actress Garcelle Beauvais appears to be walking beside Laurra Harrier in one pic indicating she, too, has a role in Spider-Man: Homecoming.

http://www.comicbookmovie.com/spider-man/first-look-at-some-spider-man-homecoming-supporting-stars-on-set-with-a142873

Photo and text from Comic Book Movie