Spider-Man: Dangerous Games is a 2019 film released in the Earth-11584 continuity of the Marvel Cinematic Universe. It is the direct sequel to 2017's The Spectacular Spider-Man, the second film in Phase 4 and the 30th film overall in the MCU. The film once again stars Tom Holland as the titular wall-crawler as he struggles with his near-death encounter during the events of Infinity Gauntlet, and his place as a hero in New York, while also dealing with the arrival of big game hunter Sergei Kravinoff and a psychopathic criminal named Scorpion who plan on hunting him down.
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Production
Work on what was originally titled "Spectacular Spider-Man 2" started almost immediately after filming wrapped on the first film. Director Jon Watts was given free reign to use almost any villain in Spider-Man's rogues gallery, and eventually chose on Kraven the Hunter, with a very loose adaptation of "Kraven's Last Hunt" being on his mind for the sequel. Marvel, however, wanted to use the Scorpion as a future bridge to a larger Sinister Six film, and eventually both villains would be used. Paul Giamatti was initially cast to play Mac Gargan, but he dropped out due to scheduling reasons. The role was then recast for Jackie Earle Haley, joining first choice Viggo Mortensen who was cast to play Kraven.
Filming was conducted from October of 2018 through December of that year, with further location shooting done in March of 2019.
Plot Summary
We begin a few weeks before the Sakaaran Incident, with a small neighborhood credit union being robbed by four amateurs in masks. The seeming leader of the group, who goes by the name "Mac", tells the other three men (all of whom are far younger than he is) not to worry and to just follow his lead. The four men adopt their masked personas and head into the lobby, threatening the tellers with guns and telling them to fill the bags with money and open the safe. The branch's manager argues that it's a time lock safe and that they can't simply just open it. Mac threatens him with a gun...only for said handgun to be hit with webbing and pulled out of his hand. The four men turn and see Spider-Man clinging to the ceiling of the bank. The sight of the wall crawler sends two of the would-be bank robbers into a panic, and they quickly drop their weapons and run outside in an effort to get away (only to be tripped up by Spidey's own webbing). The third amateur drops his gun and immediately surrenders, causing Mac to flip out and attack him in frustration. Spider-Man watches the two robbers fight amongst themselves before webbing them up as well, thanking them for making his job easy. Mac tells Spider-Man that he'll get even with him one of these days. He'll remember the name of Mac Gargan. Spidey laughs at the name briefly before swinging out to the applause of the saved bank tellers as Mac continues to curse Spider-Man, saying one day he won't be so confident and on top of the world...
Flash forward to a few weeks after the newfound Infinity War, and Spider-Man is having difficulty with a new villain calling himself the Shocker, as he uses rudimentary gauntlets to fire concussive electrical blasts at the wall-crawler. Spidey attempts his best to keep the damage to a minimum around the people of New York, and seems to be holding his own, but a moment during the fight triggers a flashback to Peter fighting Thanos on his orbital platform, causing Spider-Man to miss a jump and get blasted into a brick wall, knocking him for a loop. Shocker gloats that he's going to be the one who causes a Spider-Splat, but Peter eventually uses his brains to lure Shocker into blasting a fire hydrant, causing a feedback of electrical shocks into the Shocker's rudimentary suit, electrocuting him into unconsciousness. Spider-Man removes the Shocker's gauntlets and smashes them to bits before webbing up the dangerous threat from the public. He leaves the scene, grabbing his camera that had been mounted to the wall as he does so, but still unable to shake the feeling of fear from before.
Inside the offices of the Daily Bugle, J. Jonah Jameson is busy speaking on the phone with some guy named Mojo that they won't run advertisements for his "souped up Super Hero Squad" when Peter walks in, delivering the latest photos of his alter-ego. Jameson looks at them and gives his usual off the cuff remarks about Spider-Man being a menace. It is all Peter can do to hold his temper, as he asks about the new Spider guy on the west coast, giving a guffaw from Jameson in response, who casually dismisses Peter with the usual fee for the pictures. Peter is then seen heading home on the train, deciding to forgo web-slinging his way there just to be alone with his thoughts. He dials his phone, looking for some answers from his mentor Tony Stark, but gets nothing but voicemail on the other end...again. Sighing, Peter trudges homeward, only perking up when he sees Gwen Stacy near his house. The two embrace and Gwen asks him if he can come over for dinner that night...she'd already cleared it with his Aunt. Smiling, Peter says he could use a distraction, but Gwen chimes in that it isn't a distraction; he's going to meet her father that night. Peter rushes home and asks his aunt for one of his Uncle Ben's old suits to wear to impress Gwen's dad, and amidst his worried muttering, May tells him to simply calm down and be his own self.
Elsewhere in prison, Mac Gargan is awoken for a doctor's appointment. The aging burglar is told that he has stage 4 pancreatic cancer and that the prognosis is terminal. Cynically defiant when approached about the possibility of treatment, Gargan returns to general population without saying anything else. While in the cafeteria, by chance he meets with Herman Schultz, the hood that Spider-Man had defeated before. Schultz and Gargan make small talk, each one familiar with the other due to being in and out of jail most of their lives. When talk turns to Gargan's prognosis, Schultz directs Mac to speak with a Doctor Kristin Farley, who's looking for "human guinea pigs" for her "freak show experiments." Gargan dismisses the idea at first, but later that night in his cell considers the idea with a business card Schultz had handed him. Inside the home of Gwen Stacy, Peter makes small talk with Gwen and her father as they sit down to a quiet dinner together, with the discussion inevitably turning to the recent alien invasion and the Avengers. George Stacy, despite some experience with "a bunch of bloodsuckers in Brooklyn", doesn't really see the need for super-heroes in an everyday context, though he does admit that some of them help to a good extent. Gwen surreptitiously brings up Spider-Man, whom Stacy is not a fan of due to the propaganda espoused by the Daily Bugle, causing Peter to quiet down quickly. Stacy realizes that Peter is the one who takes the hero's picture, and tells him not to trust Spider-Man, which Peter says he'll keep in mind. Captain Stacy suddenly gets a call over the radio, telling him of animals loose in the Queens Zoo, including several dangerous ones escaping into the city. Stacy cuts the dinner short and, after he leaves, Peter says goodbye to Gwen and quietly tracks beyond Captain Stacy's squad car.
Outside the Queens Zoo, Peter has little trouble trying to herd the animals into an area where zoo staff and animal control can get them under control, operating under the watchful eye of Captain Stacy. After saving a scout troop from a rampaging lion that appears rabid, Peter sees a small blow dart in the back of said lion and examines it. His Spider-Sense goes off and he turns around, narrowly dodging a gorilla that has also been affected by the same dart. After the primate and Spider-Man fight briefly, Peter is able to subdue the beast and web himself back into the rooftops, looking at the dart in his hand. He turns around and spots a man standing on a balcony several feet away. Peter tries to call out to him but, with cat like reflexes, the man is able to run off and escape Spider-Man's pursuit, leaving Peter only with the toxic dart as a clue.
Elsewhere, Mac Gargan enters a laboratory and is greeted by Dr. Kristin Farley. Dr. Farley explains briefly that Gargan's cancer and his lengthy prison stay makes him a prime candidate for testing for their Neogenics process, which could help cure cancer for millions of people. Gargan says he's not interested in curing people, just himself, even if that cure means his prison sentence won't be cut short by his untimely demise. Farley leads Gargan into a small chamber and closes the door, explaining to the prison guards that she needs to ask him some private health questions. Once inside she activates a switch and gas begins to fill in the room before, knocking out the prison guards. Farley explains that this experiment won't just cure his cancer, it will turn him into a living weapon designed to do one thing: destroy Spider-Man and any other hero that gets in her employer's way. When Gargan says he thought this whole thing was funded by Oscorp, Farley disavows any connection to Norman Osborn. Mac smiles and says that anything that will help him get revenge on the wall crawler is a plus to him. Farley explains that when the soldier's awake with no memory, they'll be told there was an explosion and that Gargan died in a fire. That way, he can go free.
The following day in the school library, Peter is looking at the blow dart that he managed to procure from the scene, scanning through encyclopedias online to try and find a match to the tribal markings that he saw on the sides of the dart. He also comments on the psychotropic drug that was found on the dart, muttering to himself that he wouldn't want any of that in his bloodstream. His efforts are interrupted by the arrival of Ned Leeds and Harry Osborn, who remind Peter of the tutoring session he has with them at this very moment. Peter apologizes for spacing out, surreptitiously placing the dart away in his back pack. The three begin to discuss almost anything but science, with Harry eventually inviting Peter to bring Gwen and Ned to a pool party he's having at his penthouse that weekend. At first Peter is reluctant, given his duties as Spider-Man, but Ned eventually talks him into it. After Harry leaves Peter pulls out the dart, but then places it back in, wanting to spend time just hanging out with his friends and not being Spider-Man for once.
Elsewhere, Mac Gargan has been hooked up into a machine that has a Neogenic Recombinator. He has also been dressed in a green bio-mechanical suit with a prosthetic tail attached to it. When he asks about the "clown outfit", Dr. Farley tells him that his DNA will be given some traits of a scorpion, given that scorpions are a natural predator of spiders. It's only fitting that he look the part. The suit comes from one of their suppliers, who shall remain anonymous for now. Gargan also asks about the rumors he heard about a lizard creature and this being connected to it. Farley admits that she was involved in those "early experiments" but says that the procedure is flawless now. Before Gargan can back out, Farley activates the Recombinator and Gargan screams as his body reshapes itself into a younger, more fit version of itself. We cut away back to Peter as he is at home trying on what "fancy" clothes he has for the party that night. May looks at him smiling, saying that he looks like his Uncle Ben did when he used to go out with friends. May asks Peter if he's going to keep his "other suit" handy, and Peter admits that, after everything that happened with Thanos, he just wants to take a bit of a break if he can. May says that's good news; in spite of her pride in his hero work she still worries about him whenever he's out there, thinking he could die. Peter just nods his head, apparently having never told May that he did in fact briefly die in the Infinity War. Before long he leaves and catches a ride with Captain Stacy, who is also taking Gwen to the party (after making sure it's properly chaperoned by the Osborn's butler.)
Peter has fun with his friends, and we get a montage of him just simply acting like a teenager for once with Gwen, Ned and Harry (and even Flash Thompson briefly). He even manages to showcase his strength a bit in a game of tug of war, easily besting Flash's team and pulling them into the pool. All too soon though Peter's Spider-Sense is tingled and he looks off in the distance. He sees a shadowy figure watching from the bushes nearby. He quietly excuses himself from the party, reluctantly, simply saying he has a "phone call." Surreptitiously, as he is without his suit, Peter tries to quietly sneak up on the man who remains motionless in the bushes. He sneaks up on him, and is surprised when his Spider-Sense goes off again and the man attacks like a coiled viper. Peter fights him to an even draw until the mustached man breaks off the attack, telling Parker that he has skills and must have learned them from his prey. Peter asks him who he is and the man identifies himself as simply Kraven. He has been hired by parties unknown to hunt Spider-Man, and he was observing Spider-Man's friends in their natural environment. Peter immediately becomes worried, but his fears are alleviated somewhat as Kraven says he knows Peter is the one who is paid to take Spider-Man's picture, and he wants him to deliver a message to him...tell him he is hunted. Peter asks why the hunter wants the prey to know he's coming, causing Kraven to laugh and remark that "it wouldn't be fair otherwise." Disturbed, Peter quietly goes back to the party after Kraven departs the area. Once back at the party, Gwen can tell he is disturbed by something but can't get him to say what.
Elsewhere, Dr. Farley is working in her laboratory, watching Mac Gargan test out his new strength and abilities on inanimate drones. Gargan says that he feels like a brand new man, and he's ready to take on the Spider at any time. Dr. Farley tells him to be patient, but she gets a call on the line from "upstairs". We cut to Norman Osborn's office at Oscorp, as he demands to know exactly what she was thinking at trying to restart these experiments without his authorization. Farley insists that no one knows of his involvement, and she asks what has changed, as just a few weeks ago he seemed fully on board. Osborn reiterates that at the moment he can't be connected to something like this, for reasons that he can't really elaborate on. He orders Farley to shut down the experiments and to turn over all of her research, and to consider herself terminated. As she leaves, she gets a nasty gleam in her eye and calls down to Gargan, telling him to leave the building and meet her at an undisclosed location. She knows exactly how to get her job back.
The following day Peter is web-slinging through New York after school, trying to keep his mind off of what he was told by Kraven, when he suddenly gets a call on his cellphone. He heads to a rooftop and answers it, thinking that it is Tony Stark returning his call. However as he answers he quickly realizes that it is in fact Happy Hogan, who grumpily asks Peter why he keeps calling Tony's private number. Peter says that he just needs to talk about everything that happened with Thanos and begins to spill his insecurities before Happy cuts him off, telling Peter that Tony is "on holiday" for a while with Pepper, and that he isn't to be disturbed. Peter tries to talk to Happy then, but Peter is cut off by Happy simply hanging up the phone on him. Peter doesn't have time to think before he sees a commotion at the headquarters of the Daily Bugle. Without hesitation, Peter heads in that direction, only to be confronted by Mac Gargan, who now calls himself the Scorpion. Gargan asks Spider-Man if he remembers him, but Peter's reply is that he would remember someone as ugly as him (Peter does make a point to call him "Paste-Pot Pete" to irk him). The two fight amidst the fleeing staff of the Daily Bugle, Jameson yelling at Spider-Man for the damage to his building. The fight between the two is evenly matched, but Spider-Man gets the upper hand briefly, until Gargan remembers he has "fancy new toys on this rig", firing off acid at the wall crawler from his tail. Peter tries desperately to avoid the acid, especially as Scorpion starts to fire indiscriminately at the crowd. In order to save Robbie Robertson from getting hit, Spider-Man shoves him out of the way and gets clipped in the leg by the acid, his costume burning away and causing severe burns to the flesh below. Scorpion laughs to himself and approaches Spider-Man, and Peter is suddenly overcome with fear as he witnesses flashbacks to his battle with Thanos. Scorpion prepares to "finish the job", but is suddenly called away by Dr. Farley, who wants him to come meet her somewhere else. Scorpion argues with her through his headpiece, but a sudden jolt of electricity through his suit causes him to flee the scene as quickly as he arrived.
Peter struggles to get to his feet, both due to his injuries and the fear that has gripped him. Jameson is stunned by what he witnessed, but quickly resumes berating Spider-Man from afar, only stopping when Robbie tells him too. Robbie helps Spider-Man to his feet, as he struggles to stay standing on an injured leg. An ambulance arrives bearing the logo of the Avengers, and the door opens to reveal Happy Hogan behind the wheel, telling Spider-Man to get in as they drive off. Peter removes his mask as an automated system checks over his leg and begins applying a healing balm, struggling to breath and in the midst of a panic attack. Happy doesn't seem to understand what's going on, until eventually he compares it to Tony's panic attacks suffered in the aftermath of New York. He tries to get Peter to calm down, eventually succeeding as the autopilot driver takes them to a satellite compound near Avengers Tower. Happy tries to find out what happened back there, but Peter is reluctant to talk about it, instead changing the subject to where the Avengers are. Happy says last he knew they were looking for Natasha somewhere in the world.
Their conversation is cut short by a sudden attack on the medical facility, as Peter puts his mask back on and limps his way outside. He sees Kraven sitting perched on top of a nearby car, as he tells him he has come to find his prey. Spider-Man fights off some of Kraven's hired goons and goes toe to toe with the hunter himself, but is clearly no match for him in his injured state. Kraven is distracted, however, when Happy comes to and activates automated defense turrets that hold Kraven at bay, forcing him to retreat and allowing Spider-Man to swing away. Kraven however manages to get a drop of blood from Spider-Man and pockets it in a vial as he jumps away from the turrets and heads for the rooftops.
Elsewhere, Scorpion meets with Dr. Farley and lambasts her for calling him off just as he was about to finish Spider-Man. Farley says that finishing the Spider now was never her plan, they needed Scorpion to just show how powerful a tool he could really be to their benefactor. Gargan says he didn't sign up just to be a poster boy for a billionaire industrialist, but Farley says that he signed up to work for her. The shocks in his suit should be evidence enough of that. Gargan blows her off and says next time, he finishes Spider-Man for good. Farley departs the room, leaving Scorpion to his thoughts. He looks at himself in the mirror, looking in his mouth and seeing elongated incisors along his teeth. He shrugs this off as a trick of the light and goes to catch some sleep.
Back at his home, Peter limps into the living room and May is instantly worried about him, having seen the fight with the Scorpion on the news. Peter tells her not to worry, as he was patched up by Happy and some supplies from the Avengers. However the scarring on his leg from the acid burns too little to alleviate her concerns. He says at least maybe now Jameson might be thankful for him saving his life, but this thought is dashed the moment he looks to the TV and sees a ranting Jameson on screen, complaining as usual about the wall-crawling menace. Peter nearly tosses the remote through the TV in response, earning a rebuke from his Aunt, and the two have a long discussion about his hero work. May tells him she knows she can't stop him from being Spider-Man anymore than she could be a ballerina. But she does ask him if this is really what he wants to do with his life, being a hero is great, but not necessarily at the expense of his own happiness too. Peter talks about his responsibility, and we get a flashback to a scene between a younger Peter and his Uncle Ben, in which the famous words of Great Power and Responsibility echo in his mind. May replies that Ben would be proud of him, and reminds him that it wasn't his fault that Ben died. As strong as Spider-Man is, he can't face down the world alone. Peter thanks her for the talk and goes outside his apartment building to be alone with his thoughts, smiling when he sees Gwen waiting for him yet again. He asks how she knew to be here, and Gwen playfully chimes in that he's not the only one with a "Spidey-Sense." Elsewhere, Kraven is seen analyzing the blood he obtained underneath a microscope and running it through a centrifuge. One of his goons asks him what he is doing, and Kraven simply responds that he is getting his prey's scent.
Despite his desire for a normal life, Peter does find some more information about the tribal dart that he had acquired and of the man known as Kraven, learning that he is a Russian oligarch named Sergei Kravinoff who disappeared from his native country some ten years earlier. There were rumors of him disappearing into the African jungle, but nothing was ever substantiated. He also finds out about Scorpion's identity as Mac Gargan, and through Happy learns of Gargan's "death" in prison while in the custody of one Dr. Kristin Farley, who was recently fired from Oscorp. Peter resolves to keep his nose to the ground while he waits for Scorpion or Kraven to make the next move in whatever their respective Games might be. Elsewhere, Dr. Farley is frustrated by the fact that Norman Osborn has ignored her appeals for reinstatement. She visits the Scorpion in the lab where he is holed up, itching for a fight. She starts to direct him to attack Osborn's facilities on Staten Island, but Gargan has other concerns. He points out slight physical changes in himself, such as more of a greenish skin tone and the sharpened incisors from before. Farley dismisses these as "pointless" and directs him to attack the facility as revenge on Osborn. During the course of their conversation though, the camera focuses on the corner of the room, where we see a hidden security monitor recording their conversation. We cut to Norman Osborn's office, where he reaches for his cell and dials a number, telling the person on the other line to tell Sergei "the plan has changed."
Elsewhere Peter and Gwen are coming out of a movie theater after a fairly normal date and are trying to engage in small talk about current events. Gwen asks Peter if he's heard from the "other Spider-guy" on the west coast, and Peter says it was kind of awkward talking with him, seeing as how he "grew up idolizing me" or something like that. The two share a brief laugh and there's more tension between them as Peter leans in for a kiss, when cop cars go speeding by suddenly, their lights and sirens blaring. Peter looks back at them and Gwen tells him to go, that she can find her own way home. Peter starts to go and turns back around at Gwen, almost stopping himself from following the police, before frustratingly groaning and heading off into an alleyway to activate his suit. Quickly he is slinging his webs high above the city, following the speeding patrol cars as they approach a chemical plant owned and operated by Oscorp, where the Scorpion has begun to attack workers. Peter sits back and watches briefly, to see if the police can handle things, but Scorpion attacks them with impunity. From a distance, Peter spots Captain Stacy trying to coordinate the SWAT team's movements, and also tracks Scorpion as he launches a metal container in his general direction. With as much quickness as he can muster, Peter swoops in and saves Stacy just before the empty barrel goes careening through the space he once occupied. Stacy appears somewhat shaken up by the ordeal, and Peter doesn't linger to check on him, instead turning his attention to Scorpion. More banter ensues between Scorpion and Spider-Man, and their battle this time is similar to their previous encounter, with Peter having more of an edge against Scorpion, but still forced into delicate situations by Scorpion's disregard for civilians around them. Scorpion looks to corner Peter again with his acid spray, but he is intercepted and stopped by the arrival of Kraven, who engages him to Peter's surprise.
Scorpion asks who the hell this guy is, but Kraven says he's merely been hired to hunt the both of them. Arrogant to a fault, Kraven attacks both Spider-Man and Scorpion in an effort to isolate the two of them. Through the course of their battle, there is an explosion and all three splash into the water below. Scorpion manages to swim to shore across to Brooklyn and slink off, but not before catching sight of himself in a reflective surface and noting further changes in his visage. Further up the shoreline Peter also manages to pull himself out of the water, when he is greeted by Kraven once more. The two rekindle their fight, with it being more of a match given the lack of injuries, but Kraven is still able to get the best of him, knocking him for a loop with a hard blow and then doping him with a similar dart to the one that was used on the animals before. Peter tries to fight off the effects but he falls to his knees. Kraven unmasks him, surprised to see that Spider-Man is in fact Peter Parker, the kid he had confronted just a few nights earlier. He removes the rest of the suit, throwing it in a barrel and burning it and leaving the unconscious Peter in just an undershirt and boxers underneath the nearby pier, keeping the mask as a trophy of his prey. Elsewhere, both Aunt May and Gwen see the explosion at the pier and assume the worst when they don't see Spider-Man emerge from the wreckage.
Inside Oscorp tower, Norman is receiving an update from a laboratory in San Francisco concerning some sort of biological weaponry they've recently discovered in an abandoned warehouse that once housed high tech gear. His call is interrupted however by the arrival of Dr. Farley, who storms in complaining about her research all being deleted from her files at home. Norman calmly yet firmly reminds her that all of her work is the intellectual property of Oscorp. Farley says that she had hoped Osborn would come to his senses when he realized how useful her work could be, but now she sees that he's not interested in real power. Norman stops himself and quietly stands, approaching Farley in an intimidating fashion. He says he knows all about real power, and real power doesn't come from a circus freak in a costume (especially bought from someone he doesn't know). It comes in the form of pulling all the strings when no one even knows you're a player in the game. Farley tries to threaten him with Scorpion, but Osborn chuckles, saying that Farley should worry more about herself, as he looked at her equations for Neogenics and it seems she might have miscalculated. At that moment Farley gets a call on her cellphone from a lab assistant, saying that Gargan is looking for her as they speak, and he doesn't seem happy.
Back at the beach, underneath the pier, Peter comes too and is seemingly unaware of his surroundings. He stumbles out onto the beach and sees a police presence nearby seemingly searching for someone. Wary, he avoids them, walking away. He fumbles around looking for some kind of idea as to what is going on, eventually getting the attention of a couple of passer bys. They give him busfare and he gets on board with no particular destination in mind, his brain filled with flashes of images from battles in the past (specifically those surrounding the Infinity War) that he can't make heads or tails of. As the bus becomes more crowded and he becomes more confused, the imagery begins to overwhelm him and he becomes hyper aware of his surroundings, his already heightened senses affected by the drug that Kraven used on him. Someone approaches Peter, thinking he is tripping out, when Peter lashes out and throws the man against the back of the bus, seemingly ready to fight. He snaps out of the effects momentarily and flees the bus, only to run into Captain George Stacy, who instantly tells that something isn't right. Stacy says his Aunt called looking for him, and Gwen seems upset, but Peter doesn't indicate a response outside of a few curious words, seemingly having forgotten his identity. He does instinctually trust Stacy enough to go with him back to his home where his Aunt awaits. Elsewhere, Kraven places the mask of Spider-Man in a trophy case in his upscale Manhattan apartment, which contains trophies of many of his other big hunts. He however remembers the unconscious child he defeated, and grimaces at the thought.
At the Parker residence, May is obviously overjoyed at the safe return of her nephew, but is somewhat distraught at his apparent lack of memory of himself and his surroundings. He claims to remember May and that his Uncle is dead, but aside from that his mind is an apparent blank. Stacy cautions May, claiming that it appears Peter might be on drugs, before departing, running into Gwen as he does so. He tells Gwen to come with him, and she reluctantly follows as he says they need to have a serious talk about her boyfriend. Inside, Peter moves around the apartment cautiously, as May tries to ask him what he remembers about being Spider-Man. Peter doesn't seem to have a clue what she's talking about. May half-heartedly tries to jog his memory, tempted by the idea that Peter might forget all this hero business (and encouraged when his first concern is whether or not he has homework due the following week.) But she eventually relents when she sees Happy Hogan on the Caller ID, and she answers the phone to call him for assistance. Outside, Gwen and Captain Stacy have an argument with Stacy saying that he doesn't want Gwen associating with someone like that. Gwen, thinking the wrong idea, talks about Peter as if he had saved the city dozens of times, inadvertently letting slip that Peter is Spider-Man. Captain Stacy is stunned by this revelation (and Gwen is equally mortified), and flashes back to Spider-Man saving his life that very night. He then changes his tune, asking how he can help, and Gwen says that they just need to let Peter work things out, as his memory will come back to him. More than that he needs his friends, and she tells him to let her call Ned Leeds to the apartment. Peter however lashes out again as they try to jog his memory, flashbacks of his fights occuring in his mind and overwhelming his subconscious as he eventually collapses just as Happy Hogan arrives.
Elsewhere, Dr. Farley confronts Scorpion in her lab, with Gargan demanding that she undo whatever it is she did to him. Scorpion says he is transforming more and more into a "freak of nature," with Farley off-handedly commenting that this shouldn't be possible and that she had worked out all the kinks from her experience with the Lizard. Gargan threatens her, saying that maybe he should just do to her what she did to him, but Farley tries to distract him with platitudes, before attempting the fail safes in his suit to stop him. However, the electrodes have been deactivated, something Gargan points out before deciding on a different course of action. If she can't fix him, then the man in charge can, and he knows just how to motivate him. Gargan tosses Farley against the wall and knocks her unconscious.
Back at Gwen's residence, Peter lies in a coma as Happy explains it is merely a side effect of the drug that is in his system. He explains who this Kraven guy is, calling him a big game hunter from Africa, and that Happy has put in a call to their friends in Wakanda to see if they know of any kind of antidote that they can synthesize. Gwen, May and Ned stand around Peter's bedside, each praying for his return. Outside, Kraven stands watching from a rooftop, a stoic look on his face as if he is stalking his prey. However he suddenly gets an urgent call from his employer, Norman Osborn, who tells him to finish hunting Scorpion at any cost. Kraven asks what has changed suddenly, and Norman desperately says that the madman has captured his son, Harry, and is holding him hostage. Kraven leaves the scene as we cut back inside the residence and focus on Peter's mind, where he is attempting to sort out his memories of being Spider-Man, guided through the process by a memory of his Uncle Ben.
Scorpion finishes locking Harry in a chair back at the Neogenics lab, and he has physically changed more since he was last seen, having grown larger and more hunched over as a result of his transformation. Harry tells Gargan that his father will pay any price to save him, and Gargan smirks at this, saying the only price he wants is his old life back. Dr. Farley, from her position chained to the floor, remarks that his old life was staring at a death sentence in jail. Gargan tells her to keep her mouth shut, before telling her that if Osborn doesn't pay up within 12 hours, then he'll use this Recombinator "doohickey" on the Golden Boy over there. This rant is interrupted by the arrival of Kraven, who demands Scorpion's surrender. Gargan, mentally unhinged, doesn't take kindly to this intrusion and begins fighting Kraven with reckless abandon. The normally disciplined hunter is forced to go on the defensive, unable to use any of his martial arts abilities to fight off the larger more dangerous foe and is eventually forced to retreat. As Kraven leaves, Gargan tells Farley there's a change of plans, as he'll give Osborn to the end of the hour to help him find a cure, or Harry gets a dose of his medicine.
Back inside Peter's mind, Uncle Ben guides him through more of his memories, helping him come to grips both with Ben's own death and Peter's own near demise during the Infinity War. As Peter slowly awakens, his memory restored, he thanks everyone for still believing in him even if he's doubted himself for a while. They all give him reassurances, but are quickly on the defensive when Kraven arrives at their home unannounced. The Hunter says he is their under a flag of truce, offering Spider-Man back his mask (which Hogan comments is unnecessary, as he brought a new suit with him). After some tense conversation about honor, Kraven and Spider-Man agree to team up to take out Scorpion, especially after Kraven tells them of Harry's predicament. The two launch an attack on the Neogenics lab, Captain Stacy arranging for NYPD to cordon off the area as well. Both the Hunter and Peter are nearly overmatched by Scorpion, who's intelligence has seemingly devolved into animalistic instinct. Kraven is able to save both Dr. Farley and Harry while Peter distracts Gargan, though Dr. Farley decides to try and end this all by causing the Neogenic Recombinator to overload. As they all clear the building, Farley goes back in to recover some of her data, still in an attempt to make the process safe. At the last second after knocking out Scorpion, Peter and Kraven are barely able to save her and escape before the laboratory explodes.
Outside in the police melee, Kraven and Spider-Man stare down at one another atop a roof away from prying eyes. Peter tells him that he should be brought in for everything he had done, and Kraven replies that might be true, but that he's going to leave the "New York Jungle" to it's real king. Peter asks what about his employer, but Kraven says he got his son back, that should be payment enough, before departing. On the ground, Dr. Farley is arrested as she is loaded into an ambulance, and Norman makes a big show of coming to rescue his son and thank Spider-Man (and Peter is forced to take the praise, despite knowing Norman's true nature). Scorpion is not found in the wreckage, but Captain Stacy says that they'll keep looking for him. We get a coda of Peter narrating that when he started off as Spider-Man, everything seemed like a big game to him. But as time has gone on, he's learned the true nature of his responsibility to others, and that trying to balance his responsibilities with his own life is a game unto itself. A potentially Dangerous Game at that. We see snippets of Kraven returning to Africa, Happy seemingly starting a relationship with Aunt May, and Peter simply hanging out with Harry and Ned. We end on Peter swinging through the streets of New York again, before stopping at Gwen's home and offering her a ride. The two go off swinging into the sunset as we close.
Post-Credits Scene
[We open in a laboratory setting, and we see Mac Gargan loosely strapped to a table. He comes to, having been transformed into the earlier state we had seen him in before he began to descend into a feral being.]
Gargan: "Hey...somebody let me outta here!"
Voice: Rest easy...you've been through a lot. We've managed to stabilize your condition and restore some of your human DNA. Unfortunately the Neogenic process is to thoroughly ingrained for a full reversal.
Gargan: Whaddya mean? Who's we?
[The camera pans around to reveal Spencer Smythe sitting in a chair. Behind him, designs of various cybernetic devices including an airborne glider, a pneumatic suit of armor, enhanced shock gauntlets and a flight suit are in various blueprint stages.]
Smythe: My name is Spencer Smythe. You happen to be wearing one of my cybernetic designs. After the unfortunate incident at the lab, I saw fit to reclaim your suit for my own purposes. Fortunately for you, it seems to be bonded to you, so your life was saved as a result.
Gargan: Well thanks, I guess. Now you mind untying me?
Smythe: Certainly...though I think my employer has some better ideas for you.
[Gargan asks who his employer is before turning around. We get a close up view of the man in charge as the camera pans upward, revealing to his surprise, Wilson Fisk in front of him.]
Fisk: I have a proposition for you Mr. Gargan.
[End scene.]
Summary of Changes
Due to the differences between the Earth-11584 universe and the mainline MCU, this film is wholly different from Spider-Man: Far From Home, with the only real similarity being Peter dealing with the fallout of Infinity Gauntlet, though this time dealing with things more in terms of PTSD than in trying to take on the mantle of Tony Stark.
Cast List
- Tom Holland as Peter Parker/Spider-Man- A high school junior who tries to balance life as a super-hero after he gained powers similar to a spider due to a radioactive spider-bite.
- Kathryn Newton as Gwen Stacy- The girlfriend of Peter Parker who also knows of his secret identity as Spider-Man.
- Marisa Tomei as Aunt May Parker- The Aunt and Legal Guardian of Peter Parker, who has also learned of his identity.
- Viggo Mortensen as Sergei Kravinoff/Kraven the Hunter- A famed big game hunter who is hired by parties unknown to try and capture Spider-Man alive.
- Jackie Earle Haley as MacDonald Gargan/Scorpion- A down on his luck petty crook who is dying of cancer and is offered a cure through NeoGenics.
- Eleanor Tomlinson as Dr. Kristen Farley- A scientist working for Oscorp to perfect the Neogenics process, following the failures with Dr. Curt Connors.
- J.K. Simmons as J. Jonah Jameson- The publisher and editor of the Daily Bugle newspaper who views Spider-Man as a menace to society. Also occasionally buys pictures of the wall-crawler from Peter Parker, not knowing of his true identity.
- Jacob Batalon as Ned Leeds- The best friend and confidant of Peter Parker.
- Chandler Riggs as Harry Osborn- The son of industrialist Norman Osborn who is being tutored by Peter in science at the start of the film.
- Jon Favreau as Happy Hogan- The former liaison between Peter Parker and Tony Stark, now acting as a pseudo-mentor for Peter while Tony is off caring for a pregnant Pepper Potts.
- Billy Miller as Herman Schultz/Shocker- A small-time hood whom Spider-Man fights in the beginning of the film, and later directs Gargan to Dr. Farley in prison.
In addition, Michael Keaton reprises his role as Norman Osborn. Scott Bakula also appears as Captain George Stacy, reprising his role from the Blade Netflix series. Donald Sutherland also appears in a post-credits scene as inventor Spencer Smythe, as does Vincent d'Onofrio, reprising his role as Wilson Fisk from Daredevil. Peter Gallagher reprises his role as Ben Parker in a flashback scene, the first time he has done so with dialogue in an MCU film. This is the first MCU film without a cameo from Marvel Comics legend Stan Lee, who died in November of 2018.
Reception
Critical Reception
The film received generally positive reviews upon its release, scoring a 77% aggregate score on the site Rotten Tomatoes, with an average rating of 6.9 based on over 220 reviews. The site's critical consensus reads "Though it fails to capture the breezy nature of its predecessor, Spider-Man: Dangerous Games manages to effectively capture the danger and pathos of a teenaged Spider-Man better than most of previous incarnations of the character." Critics praised Tom Holland's emotional performance, while also praising both Jackie Earle Haley and Viggo Mortensen in their respective roles. Critics did complain about the darker tone of the film at times, as well as stating that the film appeared to be more set-up than a worthwhile story on its own.
Box Office Reception
The film surpassed the box office takes of The Spectacular Spider-Man, grossing over a billion dollars worldwide to the originals 800 million dollar take.
