‘Spider-Man: No Way Home’: Zendaya and Tom Holland on Peter and MJ’s ‘Role-Reversal’
Spider-Man: No Way Home is the latest Marvel film to hit the big screen, and fans of all ages just can’t get enough. The blockbuster film has defied all expectations and solidified Tom Holland’s status as a power player in the Marvel Cinematic Universe. His Spider-Man/Peter Parker matures onscreen for all to see, and by the end of the film, fans can see that the events of the movie, have shaken him to his core. In a recent interview Holland and his co-star Zendaya, who plays MJ, opened up about the way Peter Parker and MJ’s relationship changed during Spider-Man: No Way Home, and why the two characters come to rely on each other so much.
Tom Holland and Zendaya play Peter Parker and MJ
The most recent Spider-Man trilogy has flipped the superhero genre upside down, telling the story of a high-school-age Peter Parker and the way he grows to maturation, all while accepting his identity as the web-slinging Spider-Man. Along the way, Peter relies on the help of his good friends, Ned, played by Jacob Batalon, and MJ, played by Zendaya. In the first film in the trilogy, Spider-Man: Homecoming, Peter and MJ begin to develop an attraction to each other, and in the second film, Spider-Man: Far from Home, the two teenagers start a romantic relationship.
In Spider-Man: No Way Home, fans watch as Peter and MJ grapple with the effects of their relationship going public. Even as Peter watches his friends experience disappointment after disappointment, he and MJ lean on each other for support and encouragement. By the end of the most recent film, fans can see that both Peter and MJ have undergone a major maturation process.
What did Tom Holland say about Peter Parker and MJ’s ‘role-reversal’ in ‘Spider-Man: No Way Home’?
In a recent interview, Holland and Zendaya opened up about Peter Parker and MJ’s relationship. As reported by Marvel, Holland stated that he believes the two characters underwent a “role reversal” of sorts, with the notoriously sarcastic MJ taking on a more positive outlook in order to help balance out Peter’s struggles. Zendaya agreed, noting “Peter helps to melt MJ a little bit, and break the shell that she’s had to build in order to protect herself from the world. She doesn’t have many people she feels that she can trust and rely on, and Peter has now become one of those people. And she doesn’t want to lose him.”
Zendaya went on to reveal that MJ becomes Peter’s support system: “Because he’s going through so much, she now takes on his positivity that maybe he’s losing a little bit. He takes on a more negative nihilistic outlook.”
What’s next for Tom Holland’s Spider-Man?
Unfortunately, the end of Spider-Man: No Way Home sees Peter Parker and MJ having to say goodbye to each other, after Peter makes the tough decision to have Doctor Strange wipe the collective memories of the world to forget who Peter Parker is – all in the name of saving the world from numerous Multiverse threats. The result is that MJ doesn’t have any memories of Peter.
The ending of the film leaves Spider-Man/Peter Parker’s future in the MCU open, with fans unsure about what will happen next to the characters that they have grown to love. According to ScreenRant, Holland will likely be returning as Spider-Man in the near future, although no specific movie plans have been released. This means that Zendaya’s MJ will probably be returning as well, so fans might well expect a satisfying conclusion to the love story between Peter and MJ.
