Doctor Octopus
Doctor Octopus, as played by Alfred Molina, is the obvious pick, and likely the only member whose presence is truly essential. While buttressed by a tremendous performance, the villain’s tragic backstory made him into a beloved standout in 2004’s Spider-Man 2, depicted as a good man made into a villain by the (literal, mechanical) hands of fate. Yet, the elephant in the proverbial room is that the character (17-year-old spoiler ahead!) ended up coming to his senses and died heroically in the film while attempting to undo his own destructive nuclear experiment.
Green Goblin
The Green Goblin, as played by Willem Dafoe in 2002’s Spider-Man, is also obvious, albeit to a slightly lesser extent. While not seen in the trailer, a shot of one of his signature pumpkin bombs dropping to the ground against the audio of a familiar sinister laugh was all we needed for confirmation of his return.
While, in the comics, the Goblin has been part of past Sinister Six lineups, this version of the character, Norman Osborn, is not known as a team player, and his schizophrenia could create some tensions between him and Doc Ock, which could come to define the film’s dynamic, for better or worse. While Osborn’s fortune make him a convenient financial benefactor, it should be noted that the first comic lineup to include Green Goblin saw him as the leader amid the absence of Doc Ock. Consequently, the arrival of Dafoe’s Green Goblin—which also defies his movie demise—doesn’t necessarily guarantee his presence in the Sinister Six lineup.
Electro
Sandman
Sandman, presumably played by Thomas Hayden Church, who played the character in 2007’s Spider-Man 3, has also been a topic of speculation for this scene, since a tornado of sand appears to be forming behind the presumed Electro-bolt. Church, like Dafoe, has long been rumored for a role reprisal as his Raimi-era movie villain. Yet, when it comes to backstories, this version of Sandman stands as the most potentially intriguing. While the film maintained his real name as Flint Marko, his story was combined with that of the burglar who shot and killed Uncle Ben, thereby making the rivalry with Maguire’s Spider-Man more personal.
Who Else?
Beyond those, the final Sinister Six cinematic lineup is anyone’s guess at this point. The existing array of SPUMC players include Michael Keaton’s Vulture (a front-runner who was not teased in this trailer), Tom Hardy’s Venom, Woody Harrelson’s Carnage, Naomi Harris’s Shriek, Riz Ahmed’s Riot, Bokeem Woodbine’s Shocker, all of whom have chances (to varying degrees) of being slotted into the group. Some are set to debut, namely Jared Leto’s Morbius, and Kraven still has a solo movie on Sony’s docket.
Also, lest we forget, Jake Gyllenhaal’s Mysterio could still be out there, thereby proving that the “murder” for which Peter was framed was just another one of his illusion-based hoaxes. Additionally, Sony could pull a swerve and bring back some of the more controversial iterations of Spider-Man villains such as Topher Grace’s version of Venom from Spider-Man 3, Rhys Ifans’ Lizard from The Amazing Spider-Man, or even some of the maligned villains from 2014’s The Amazing Spider-Man 2 like Paul Giamatti’s Rhino or—in a scenario in which they want to watch the world burn—Dane DeHaan’s Green Goblin.
Get the best of Den of Geek delivered right to your inbox!
