Spider-Man: No Way Home calls back to 20 years of Spider-Man villains

Spider-Man has no way home is officially in theaters and yes — it really does have all those villains from the trailer. Green Goblin and Doc Ock are back. Electro and Sandman were also in the trailer.

So, let’s take a tour through cinematic Spider-villainous history — after all, it’s been a long time since the Green Goblin first snarled on to screens, since Doc Ock waved his first tentacle, and since the Lizard tried to turn everyone in New York City into a reptile.

The Green Goblin, Willem Dafoe Spider-Man (2002)

Image: Sony Pictures

Sam Raimi made his highly anticipated Spider-Man movie in 2002. Starring TobeyMaguire, Kirsten Dunkst, James Franco and, of course Willem Dafoe. Dafoe brought to screen what is arguably one of the most iconic villains from Spider-Man’s rogues gallery, the Green Goblin. In Raimi’s film, Norman Osborn was the head of a massive corporation, Oscorp, and the father of Peter’s best friend Harry. Norman frequently ignores his son Harry in favor of Peter, in whom he sees himself – as he puts it, both he and Peter are “something of a scientist.”

Oscorp is quickly revealed to be in danger of going bankrupt. The only solution is to obtain a lucrative U.S. military contract. Osborn tests the serum himself after some of his subjects lose their mind. The serum does enhance his strength and his agility, but it fractures Norman’s identity into Norman, a cutthroat businessman who cares for his son and his legacy, and the Green Goblin, who immediately murders the Oscorp scientist he forced to help him through his serum procedure.

Norman’s transformation doesn’t drastically change his physical appearance. Instead Dafoe wears a costume and mask when he’s acting as the Green Goblin, his fearsome mask becoming a symbol of the Goblin personality to Norman. At first, Norman doesn’t seem to be aware of the things he’s doing as the Goblin, but once he does – after an iconic Willem Dafoe talks to Willem Dafoe scene – he leans all the way in. After Spider-Man refuses to join him, Goblin attacks everyone in Peter Parker’s life, from Mary Jane to dear old Aunt May. He is eventually accidentally impaled using his own technology in an attempt to kill Spider-Man.

Doctor Octopus by Alfred Molina Spider-Man 2 (2004)

Image: Sony Pictures

The film is widely considered to be one of the most important Spider-Man movies of all-time. Spider-Man 2Alfred Molina, who played the role of Doctor Otto Octavius introduced them to him. Otto, a nuclear scientist for Oscorp under Harry Osborn, was trying to build fusion power. Octavius had also taken Peter under his wing as a mentor, And so both Peter and Harry were at a demonstration of Otto’s where he wore a harness of AI-run robotic tentacles he invented to help him manipulate dangerous substances.

Unfortunately, the demonstration went wrong, killing Otto’s wife and dealing critical damage to his arms’ inhibitor chip — allowing the AI program that ran the tentacles complete access to his nervous system. Surprise! And surprise! Loving murder. This iconic scene was created when doctors tried to extract the arms of an unconscious Octavius.

Once Otto woke up, he went on the run – inspiring the Bugle to dub him Doctor Octopus. Doc Ock began to believe that the AI was gaining more influence and control over Otto’s nervous system. He decided to repeat the experiment again, leading him back to Harry Osborn. Oscorp was the only source of a radioactive isotope necessary for Otto’s work, and Harry agreed to give it up If Otto took down Spider-Man, who he blames for his father’s death.

Following Harry’s confirmation that Peter Parker is the key for finding Spider-Man’s identity, Otto kidnapped Mary Jane. This triggered another Spider-Man iconic scene where our hero stopped a subway car from running away. Otto and Spidey’s final battle happened around Otto’s second attempt at a fusion reactor, which again threatened to obliterate the city. Otto was convinced by Spider-Man that it wasn’t worth the risk and Doc Ock gave his life to save New York.

Sandman (Thomas Haden Church). Spider-Man 3 (2007)

Image: Sony Pictures

It’s an understatement to say that there’s a LotsContinue reading Spider-Man 3. One of three villains in this movie, Sandman, aka Flint Marko — played by Thomas Haden Church — pops onto the scene fairly early in the movie. After escaping prison to get some money for his family, he fell in a particle accelerator as he ran from police. Don’t ask.

Naturally, the accelerator turned on and fused Marko’s body with the sand lying on the ground, turning him into Sandman, a man with the ability to turn into different shapes made of sand, as well as to absorb massive quantities of sand in order to be come a big sand…man. Again, there’s a LotsContinue reading Spider-Man 3But Marko and Venom, played by Topher grace, eventually team up to take out Spider-Man.

Together, they battled Spider-Man and Harry Osborn, wearing his dad’s Goblin armor, in a construction site full of sand, during which Marko is mortally wounded, and dissipates into sand in the wind.

Lizard (Rhys Ifans). Amazing Spider-Man (2012)

Image: Sony Pictures

Amazing Spider-Man is Andrew Garfield’s first stint as Peter Parker, and for his villain of choice, Sony went with Dr. Curt Connors, aka Lizard, played by Rhys Ifans. Peter discovers his father Richard Parker worked with biologist Connors on cross-species genetics. He ends up meeting Connors in person and begins a mentorship.

Connors seems like a good man at first. He’s delighted when Peter provides him with Richard’s missing piece of a formula, so Connors can begin his experiments on limb regeneration – an issue close to home for him, as he’s missing an arm. Unfortunately, the success of the formula in animal trials leads to Connors’ boss pressuring him to rush into human testing, in order to find a cure for a dying Norman Osborn. Connors rejects the offer and is fired by Oscorp.

Instead, he decided to test the formula himself and he was able to regenerate his arm. He discovers that Oscorp, his boss, is trying to use the formula against veterans who have not consented. When Connors meets the man, he discovers that his lizard DNA cure transforms him into a lizard-man with scales and claws. He also has a tail. Spider-Man showed up, to deal with the lizard rampage and Connors fled into the sewers – but was already obsessed with the idea that his new form represented biological perfection. You will be able to do this with Lizard DNA.

Several Spidey against Lizard battles keep going, but eventually Connors launches the final move. A chemica bomb will make all New Yorkers lizard-like. Spider-Man is able to exterminate a lizard-antidote before he starts to slide from the top of a structure. With the last of his waning lizard strength, Connors saved Spidey’s life and turned himself in. Amazing Spider-ManThe episode ended with Connors being admitted to a psychiatric facility, suggesting that he still had some of the Lizard in him.

Electro (Jamie Foxx). Amazing Spider-Man 2 (2014)

Image: Sony Pictures

Unlike his comics counterpart, TASM2’s Maxwell Dhillon is meek and mumbling, painted as kind of a loser. It all starts when he meets a friend of Spider-Man. He thinks they’re friends.

Max fell in a tank filled with genetically-engineered electric eels while he was working on maintenance. This transformed him into Electro. He can conduct and absorb electricity. Max, like many Spider-Man film villains, gets involved in the plans of Harry Osborn, and is ultimately defeated by Spider-Man, Gwen Stacy, and his power overloaded, which causes him to explode.