Spider-Man: No Way Home Trailer Breakdown: Be Careful What You Wish For

Last night brought the debut of the first trailer for "Spider-Man: No Way Home," and for longtime fans of the webslinging wallcrawler, it was nothing short of thrilling. Confirming months of rumors and reports, the trailer revealed that Peter Parker (Tom Holland) will be dealing with the ramifications of the creation of the multiverse. However, it doesn't look like this has anything to do with "Loki." Instead, Doctor Strange (Benedict Cumberbatch) agrees to grant to Peter's request to cast a spell that makes people forget that Mysterio revealed Spider-Man's secret identity. However, during the spell-casting, Peter can't stop talking about a few people he'd like to still remember this secret, and it completely throws off the spell and unleashes quite a problem for the two superheroes to deal with. 

So let's dig into the multiverse shenanigans that are about to unfold in this "Spider-Man: No Way Home" trailer breakdown.

The trailer begins with Peter Parker and MJ (Zendaya) laying beside each other on a rooftop. MJ is reading a copy of the New York Post with the headline "Spider-Minions," featuring an intentionally shoddily Photoshopped image of Peter Parker's face on Spider-Man's body, as well as two other figures with the faces of MJ and Ned (Jacob Batalon). MJ reads aloud speculation that Spider-Man can somehow hypnotize females, showing us that the rumors and fear-mongering about Spider-Man have grown significantly since he was revealed to be Peter Parker. But it's a nice, quiet moment for Peter and MJ, and it sounds like they've had a hard time getting those in the aftermath of this revelation.

Next comes footage from the credits scene of "Spider-Man: Far From Home," when Spidey is swinging around the city with MJ in his arms. However, the footage here appears to have a lot more skyscraper screens with J. Jonah Jameson's (J.K. Simmons) shocking reveal, including this shot labeling Peter Parker as "Public Enemy #1." Part of me wonders if this is a dream sequence where this reveal has been modified to become a nightmare that suddenly stirs Peter awake sometime after his secret identity has been spoiled. I'll explain why in a little bit.

At the police station, Peter is being interrogated by detectives about his involvement in the death of Mysterio after J. Jonah Jameson's shocking report. Peter has a hard time denying it since it seems like the drones were tied to the EDITH sunglasses given to him by Tony Stark, and there presumably isn't any evidence of Mysterio using them himself.

This has turned Peter into more of an unsavory masked menace than a superhero, despite the fact that he helped save the world (and the universe) before all this happened. It looks like his friends are receiving some of the hate too, as they walk alongside Peter and a crowd angrily yells at them and brandishes hurtful signs on their way into school.

Here's the shot that makes me think replaying the credits scene from "Spider-Man: No Way Home" has been turned into an extended nightmare. Spider-Man and MJ have been cornered on top of a bridge, with police and news helicopters circling them. What makes me think this is a dream sequence is the fact that there's a shot later in the trailer where police appear to be surrounding Aunt May's residence, which is likely when Peter actually gets apprehended by law enforcement. That's just speculation on my part, but unless Peter can make a daring escape off that bridge, it would seem weird to have two scenes that would basically accomplish the same thing.

Lending further credence to this idea is the fact that Aunt May is seen in one of the police interrogation rooms, indicating that she's been brought in as an accomplice to Peter Parker. The same can be said for Ned, who is also seen in the same situation in a similar shot. It's all this that pushes Peter to reach out to a friend who might be able to help make all this disappear, almost like a magic trick.

When Peter walks into the Sanctum Sanctorum in New York City, the interior looks very different from the last time we saw it. For some reason, everything is covered in ice and snow. We're not sure why such a drastic environment change has happened inside Doctor Strange's residence, but perhaps it has something to do with a spell that didn't work, which would be a good indicator that the other magic spell Strange is about to attempt could also go horribly wrong.

It would appear as this is an ongoing problem since Doctor Strange has the Cloak of Levitation fitted atop some winter gear, including a jacket, hoodie, sweatpants, and snow boots. Strange and Peter quickly cut to the chase after an awkward pleasantry. Now that Peter has been revealed as Spider-Man, his life has been completely uprooted, and he's hoping that Strange can somehow cast a spell to make it so that this never happened.

As Peter is talking about his new life struggles,  we have a shot of Spidey in his new black and gold suit that we've already seen revealed in merchandise. Peter rips off his mask in the middle of a cafeteria, likely the debut of FEAST in the MCU that we've heard about, and he appears to be actively chasing after someone or something. We've yet to hear how or why he has this new black and gold suit, so we're not entirely sure what could be going on in this particular sequence, but it's clear he doesn't have any regard for his secret identity.

After this request is made, Doctor's Strange's advisor Wong (Bendict Wong) sternly tells him not to cast that spell because it's too dangerous. Wong is clearly fed up with the winter makeover inside the Sanctum Sanctorum, as he leaves the lobby through a portal with two suitcases in hand.

Though Doctor Strange seems to adhere to Wong's demand, as soon as he leaves the room, he gives Peter a sly wink, and it's clear things are about to take a turn for the worse in the most insane way possible. If you think this is a completely stupid move on Strange's part, let's not forget that even though he learned a lesson or two in the first "Doctor Strange" movie, he's still just as arrogant and reckless as Tony Stark. Let us recall how Strange immediately broke several rules regarding the mystic arts when he was still trying to master them. Sure, he ended up saving the world by breaking the rules, but that personality flaw still stands.

Strange and Peter make their way into the underbelly of the Sanctum Sanctorum. Is it just me, or does this feel similar to the basement dwelling that Agatha Harkness created in the finale of "WandaVision" to keep Wanda from using her powers? Anyway, this must be where Strange executes the more complex spells, and we see him pouring a glowing liquid into a bowl that is surrounded by a variety of artifacts, including a strange crystal rock and a couple animal figurines.

As he works on the spell, Strange says, "The entire world is about to forget that Peter Parker is Spider-Man." But Peter suddenly realizes that might be an issue. MJ, Ned and Aunt May are people that he'd like to stay in the know about his secret, but Strange says that the spell doesn't really work that way.

Peter continues to protest, which looks to make the spell become unstable, causing the room to crumble around them. Suddenly we see a burst of color streams that we previously saw used to depict traveling through the quantum realm and flying through the multiverse, leaving Peter confused and asking, "What just happened?" We have the exact same question, but thankfully, we get an idea of what has happened in the footage that follows.

Spider-Man swings through New York as the city shifts around him in the same manor as we've seen happening in the Mirror Dimension, where sorcerers can manipulate the world without having any ramifications in the real world. My guess is that as soon as the spell is complete, Doctor Strange has no idea who Peter Parker is, and he's perhaps seen as a threat. In this shot, we see Strange flying after Spidey as he falls through the collapsing cityscape, almost as if it's going into a black hole. Then again, maybe he's training Peter to deal with the potential repercussions that might come from messing with the multiverse, which Strange admits is something they don't fully understand yet.

Here's where we get our first hit at the return of a villain from another universe. Reports have indicated that Jamie Foxx is reprising his role as Electro from "The Amazing Spider-Man 2." However, the villain used blue electricity to match with his glowing skin, so why is it yellow here? We're betting that this Electro is from another universe that's separate even from the "Amazing Spider-Man" franchise, where things are slightly different.

Things get even weirder as we see Doctor Strange, without the Cloak of Levitation for some reason, standing atop a speeding train in the middle of a canyon. This is why I think Strange views Spider-Man as a threat, because he appears to be fighting him in this sequence, trying to trap him by duplicating the train they're riding. This also seems like a fun way to put a spin on the train sequence from "Spider-Man 2," especially when you consider who shows up at the end of the trailer. But we'll get to that in a moment.

Back in the room where the spell was cast, Strange tells Peter that his real problem is trying to live two different lives. Is this a lecture he's giving Peter before the spell is cast or after? Then we get this shot where Strange pushes Peter's spirit out of Spider-Man's body. This is another moment that makes me think Strange isn't going to be too friendly with Peter after this spell is cast. However, I'm wondering exactly what that cube is that Peter is holding in his hands. It appears as if it has the same symbol as the Sanctum Sanctorum's skylight window at the top of the building, so it presumably has something to do with the mystic arts.

Even though we're seeing Spider-Man swing around in his upgraded suit given to him by Tony Stark, as well as the new black and gold suit, the Iron Spider suit is still around too. Standing on the freeway leading to the George Washington Bridge, we see Spidey standing with his hidden golden limbs opening up.

Then we cut to a shot where a building has been devastated by an explosion. We're not sure exactly what this location is, but it would appear that Happy Hogan (Jon Favreau) was nearby in the car. Soldiers armed with guns that have laser sight are closing in, which makes me think that maybe Hogan is being framed for some kind of bombing. Or maybe he just happened to be in the wrong place at the wrong time. Perhaps this is Aunt May's place that gets blasted, and he was outside waiting to pick her up. After all, there was some romance blossoming between them in "Spider-Man: Far From Home."

All right, here's one of the most perplexing shots in the entire trailer. Peter Parker can be seen all dressed up, and suddenly a portal opens up behind him to reveal a shadowy figure. However, this doesn't look like the same spark-like portal that Doctor Strange and other sorcerers can create. It's supremely difficult to make out any distinct features of whatever that shadowy figure lingering inside that portal might be.

Now here's where the villain teases for "Spider-Man: No Way Home" really ramp up. Not only do we get a shot of more yellow electricity blasting through the sky, but there's this huge cloud of dirt that's exploding with it. Could this have anything to do with rumors that Sandman will also be returning in this movie? Will Electro and Sandman combine their powers in an effort to defeat Spider-Man? We can see Spidey in his black and gold suit jumping away from this explosion, so he's definitely in danger.

In one of the most shocking moments of the trailer, we see a pumpkin bomb roll onto the freeway as the laugh of Willem Dafoe as Green Goblin is heard. Yes, those are the same pumpkin bombs from the original "Spider-Man" franchise directed by Sam Raimi (who will be at the helm of "Doctor Strange in the Multiverse of Madness").

The bomb goes off in the middle of traffic, creating a fireball on the freeway that will likely be the setting for a big battle between Spider-Man and multiple foes. Why do we say multiple foes? Well...

Just after we hear Strange menacingly say, "Be careful what you wish for, Parker," we see a large, familiar mechanical arm smash down to the ground. Not only is Doc Ock coming into the "Spider-Man" franchise in the Marvel Cinematic Universe, but it's the Doc Ock we all already know.

Out of the smoke, Alfred Molina appears as Dr. Otto Octavius, wearing a slight variation on the villain's look from "Spider-Man 2" in 2004. This is clearly a consequence of Doctor Strange's spell going horribly wrong, and Peter will certainly have a lot of questions for what the hell is happening. We're right there with you, Peter, and we can't wait to see how this all shakes out.

"Spider-Man: No Way Home" is slated to debut exclusively in theaters on December 17, 2021.