Homecoming The Zendaya is possibly someone, maybe thread - Part 3

[spideyboy_1111]

I think it's going to vary from Mary Jane fan to Mary Jane fan. Because quite frankly, I'm digging the sound of certain key traits of Zendaya's take on the character that are being referred to in the reviews. And I know folks at NeoGAF that are pretty happy too.

I adore Mary Jane and I'm happy as hell to hear that she's finally got some wit and confidence in a movie. That's something we never got from the Raimi films, and I feel like that's resulted in the Dunst version of the character feeling more like a hollow shell of Mary Jane even if she's more "comic book accurate."

What drives me bonkers- and others I've talked to- is the Name Twist. That just feels completely unnecessary.

i personally cringe at the idea of peters social life being full of hyper intelligent people... MJ on a debate team? ick.. sorry, this is far removed from everything i have ever loved about MJ. She's a smart woman, but in ways peter never was. that's how they complimented each other.

i just hope i enjoy spidey and vulture in this film.. because peter's supporting cast is so far removed from what i still desperately want to see in a spider-man movie. The movie could still be great.. but it's going to just cause me to still want the characters from page brought to life accurately.

honestly.. just give spidey a damn hr long TV show... for 10 seasons.. that's what he needs and deserves.

 

[spideyboy_1111]

Honestly, I never once doubted that Zendaya was playing MJ. It was freaking obvious from the get-go, even with the Michelle cover story.

I mean, the two characters that were name dropped as examples of Marvel Studios wanting a say in being able to cast in those leaked e-mails between Feige and Sony back in 2015 were Aunt May and Mary Jane. Peter and Aunt May got cast later that year for Civil War.

And then out of nowhere in early Spring 2016, Zendaya gets cast in a "secret role" in the new Spider-Man series, with details being that "her role in the first film would be small and then become more prominent with future entries." And it was another three or four months until they started casting for the rest of the film.

Of course she was playing MJ.

~

Honestly, I feel like they only went with calling her Michelle in this film so that general audiences didn't immediately go into the film assuming that Peter's romance with Liz wouldn't work out because Mary Jane Watson is sitting right over on the other end of the lunchtable.

I mean, it's dumb either way, because quite frankly Liz Allen isn't one of Peter's big romances. She's just the starting off point in his love life.

My hope is that Marvel add in the full Mary Jane Watson name into Michelle's character moving forward. At least give the fans that.

that's just it... she's not playing MJ at all.. she's playing some new chick with her initials.. that's it. She's not mary jane watson, she's not a red head, she's not a model, she's nothing remotely like her even personality wise.

 

[TheVileOne]

It will vary.

But if this character was not in the movie at all, 1) the movie really loses nothing 2) people are not going to be asking "where's MJ."

Also she's not even MARY JANE. She's Michelle. Liz Allen isn't even "LIZ ALLEN."

 

[KalvinEllis]

yep.

pointless and COWARDLY, too.

It's like they wanted to be "bold" by casting a black/biracial actress and making such drastic changes ( both look wise and personality wise ) to such an iconic comic book character.

However, they weren't bold enough to be HONEST and UPFRONT about it.

They probably figured they would receive a ****load of backlash if they had officially announced Zendaya as the new Mary Jane Watson from the start.

So, they decided to be coy and secretive about it for over a year, constantly denying that Zendaya is MJ - no, she's just Michelle they kept saying.

And in the film itself, they wait literally until the final moments of the film before dropping the twist bomb on the audience.

So, it's a cowardly and sneaky approach on all fronts, and that actually ****** me off as much as the actual change itself. Most people, myself included, don't appreciate being lied to and deceived for over a year in trying to keep up the charade.

if you wanted to make such changes to the character, be BOLD and PROUD about it - especially casting a biracial actress for the part. If you felt you were bold enough to make that change, then you should be CELEBRATING that. not trying to hide it behind the veil of secrecy and coyness.

Can't be better said. All of this crap reeks of cowardice, not "boldness". I'm once again going to point out to Iris West. If people want to see a "progressive", yet still faithful and respectful adaptation of a beloved supporting character, look no further than Iris.

 

[Spider-man95]

It will vary.

But if this character was not in the movie at all, 1) the movie really loses nothing 2) people are not going to be asking "where's MJ."

Also she's not even MARY JANE. She's Michelle. Liz Allen isn't even "LIZ ALLEN."

Spoiler

Is it because her dad is Adrian Toomes?

 

[spideyboy_1111]

yep.

pointless and COWARDLY, too.

It's like they wanted to be "bold" by casting a black/biracial actress and making such drastic changes ( both look wise and personality wise ) to such an iconic comic book character.

However, they weren't bold enough to be HONEST and UPFRONT about it.

They probably figured they would receive a ****load of backlash if they had officially announced Zendaya as the new Mary Jane Watson from the start.

So, they decided to be coy and secretive about it for over a year, constantly denying that Zendaya is MJ - no, she's just Michelle they kept saying.

And in the film itself, they wait literally until the final moments of the film before dropping the twist bomb on the audience.

So, it's a cowardly and sneaky approach on all fronts, and that actually ****** me off as much as the actual change itself. Most people, myself included, don't appreciate being lied to and deceived for over a year in trying to keep up the charade.

if you wanted to make such changes to the character, be BOLD and PROUD about it - especially casting a biracial actress for the part. If you felt you were bold enough to make that change, then you should be CELEBRATING that. not trying to hide it behind the veil of secrecy and coyness.

it's quite insulting... if you want to be progressive, be progressive... be upfront about it.. don't give yourself a back-out

it honestly to me wreaks of pure sony. It's essentially ...

Marvel: "Lets cast Zenday as Mary Jane"
SONY: "ok that sounds great!"
-- internet leak ---
SONY: "Oh no we can't do that.. its creating controversy"
Marvel" "it's ok, people will accept it.. Zendaya is a perfect embodiment"
SONY: "What if we call her michelle and reval her to have the initials at the end? of MJ?"
Marvel: "But..."
SONY: "Hush... this way if its recieved poorly we can write it off as just initials and a tease.. and not actually Mary Jane!

 

[Limonade]

that's just it... she's not playing MJ at all.. she's playing some new chick with her initials.. that's it. She's not mary jane watson, she's not a red head, she's not a model, she's nothing remotely like her even personality wise.

Exactly.

Not saying things can't change... after all, actors do change their names.

Example: Charles Dennis Buchinsky = Charles Bronson.

But, it can also be that Sony/Marvel are taking the long approach. Mary Jane is just not a prerogative or important to Pete at this junction.

It may in the next couple of films though. Who knows?

 

[spideyboy_1111]

Exactly.

Not saying things can't change... after all, actors do change their names.

Example: Charles Dennis Buchinsky = Charles Bronson.

But, it can also be that Sony/Marvel are taking the long approach. Mary Jane is just not a prerogative or important to Pete at this junction.

It may in the next couple of films though. Who knows?

no one should be equating Michelle to Mary Jane Watson via "actors change their names" that's an extremely lame cop-out

 

[chaseter]

Who the hell is Michelle? No way they make her MJ. Michelle Jane? No.

 

[fionabinona]

ybe just maybe the whole MJ line was just some lame ass joke and it will never be mentioned again. She is just michelle and there will still be amary jane in future films and this michelle character will not be a love interest just some smart ass friend of Peter's who maybe finds out he is spider-man and helps him in some way.

The whole MJ line from what ive read was sort of said in a comedic way, my friends call me mj and then they you dont have any friends. It could be some stupid joke and the mj name will never be refferred to her again

 

[Venom 1988]

ybe just maybe the whole MJ line was just some lame ass joke and it will never be mentioned again. She is just michelle and there will still be amary jane in future films and this michelle character will not be a love interest just some smart ass friend of Peter's who maybe finds out he is spider-man and helps him in some way.

The whole MJ line from what ive read was sort of said in a comedic way, my friends call me mj and then they you dont have any friends. It could be some stupid joke and the mj name will never be refferred to her again

I really doubt they would go through all this trouble to cast Zendaya and keep hush hush about her role just for a small gag to tag at the end of the movie. Now whether or not they end up pivoting after this movie comes up...well that remains to be seen I guess.

 

[fionabinona]

I really doubt they would go through all this trouble to cast Zendaya and keep hush hush about her role just for a small gag to tag at the end of the movie. Now whether or not they end up pivoting after this movie comes up...well that remains to be seen I guess.

Your right it would be lame to go through the trouble of casting Zendaya in such a small seemingly insignificant role if they weren't going to make her Mj.
But this whole elaborate story they came up with that her name is Michelle and the amount of time Zendaya was interviewed and asked r u mary jane and her repeated denials, to just turn around and say hey im mj in the last line of the movie, seems so ridiculous! Why? just be straight wth people from the beginning, now we have even more bloody questions for the next two years till the sequel and first movie hasnt even been officially released yet!

 

[spideyboy_1111]

I really doubt they would go through all this trouble to cast Zendaya and keep hush hush about her role just for a small gag to tag at the end of the movie. Now whether or not they end up pivoting after this movie comes up...well that remains to be seen I guess.

there's alot of doubts on both ends...

they've been trolling us with MJ crap through the entire production... she may never even be refereed to as MJ again really... or continue to be "michelle" and occasionally refereed to as MJ outside of that i never expect her to become "mary jane watson" that way marvel has a scapegoat and can say "she was never mary jane"

and if they don't refer to her as MJ again.. you do have some people going "oh i thought she was mary jane" and will likely continue to call her that regardless of her actual name being michelle.

we won't know for a long while unfortunately. so this game continues

 

[Venom 1988]

Your right it would be lame to go through the trouble of casting Zendaya in such a small seemingly insignificant role if they weren't going to make her Mj.
But this whole elaborate story they came up with that her name is Michelle and the amount of time Zendaya was interviewed and asked r u mary jane and her repeated denials, to just turn around and say hey im mj in the last line of the movie, seems so ridiculous! Why? just be straight wth people from the beginning, now we have even more bloody questions for the next two years till the sequel and first movie hasnt even been officially released yet!

there's alot of doubts on both ends...

they've been trolling us with MJ crap through the entire production... she may never even be refereed to as MJ again really... or continue to be "michelle" and occasionally refereed to as MJ outside of that i never expect her to become "mary jane watson" that way marvel has a scapegoat and can say "she was never mary jane"

and if they don't refer to her as MJ again.. you do have some people going "oh i thought she was mary jane" and will likely continue to call her that regardless of her actual name being michelle.

we won't know for a long while unfortunately. so this game continues

Hey I agree about the mystery name nonsense lol. I honestly don't care if she is MJ (the changes I've seen and read don't bother me) but at least call her by her name.

 

[Surfer]

no one should be equating Michelle to Mary Jane Watson via "actors change their names" that's an extremely lame cop-out

It might seem like a cop out, but I think most fans would prefer that Michelle be called Mary Jane since it seems evident she is supposed to be that character. I agree most people would have preferred it to have started out that way, instead of them trying to create some sort of we fooled you! situation. However, they didn't call her Mary Jane from the beginning, they called her Michelle with the intention of having her be Mary Jane. So the question becomes do we want Michelle to continue with her name knowing she is playing the part of Mary Jane for the MCU, or do we want her to eventually go by the name of Mary Jane? I personally would rather she be called Mary Jane if that is who she is supposed to be. So, the question then becomes how do you have her change her name to Mary Jane and have it seem legitamate? I suggested she gets discovered by an Agent and they suggest she change her name as an Actress. However, I also said her full name could be Michelle Mary-Jane Watson, and she prefers her middle name. I am not saying my ideas are great, but I like to think that Michelle eventually being called Mary Jane is a possibility, and that while her introduction is bad it is not beyond repair.

Surfer

 

[PeterBenParker]

i just hope i enjoy spidey and vulture in this film.. because peter's supporting cast is so far removed from what i still desperately want to see in a spider-man movie. The movie could still be great.. but it's going to just cause me to still want the characters from page brought to life accurately.

I know this isn't really the thread for it but what did you think of Peter/Spider-Man in Civil War?

honestly.. just give spidey a damn hr long TV show... for 10 seasons.. that's what he needs and deserves.

Can't agree with you more. Hopefully one day we'll reach a point where having a Spider-Man TV series can actually be possible. Films are always going to be so limited.

 

[Surfer]

there's alot of doubts on both ends...

they've been trolling us with MJ crap through the entire production... she may never even be refereed to as MJ again really... or continue to be "michelle" and occasionally refereed to as MJ outside of that i never expect her to become "mary jane watson" that way marvel has a scapegoat and can say "she was never mary jane"

and if they don't refer to her as MJ again.. you do have some people going "oh i thought she was mary jane" and will likely continue to call her that regardless of her actual name being michelle.

we won't know for a long while unfortunately. so this game continues

To ignore it would be like. Peter meets the real Mary Jane in the Sequel and she says you can call me MJ, and he says no way that is such a coincidence my good friend Michelle Jones also likes going by MJ! Lol

Surfer

 

[X Knight]

that's just it... she's not playing MJ at all.. she's playing some new chick with her initials.. that's it. She's not mary jane watson, she's not a red head, she's not a model, she's nothing remotely like her even personality wise.

Michelle looks nothing like Mary Jane.
Michelle acts nothing like Mary Jane.
Michelle isn't even the same name as Mary Jane.

But somehow, Michelle is the new "MJ."

 

[Dark Raven]

Michelle looks nothing like Mary Jane.
Michelle acts nothing like Mary Jane.
Michelle isn't even the same name as Mary Jane.

But somehow, Michelle is the new "MJ."

As long as they get her core components correct that's all that matters.

 

[Rodrigo90]

Michelle looks nothing like Mary Jane.
Michelle acts nothing like Mary Jane.
Michelle isn't even the same name as Mary Jane.

But somehow, Michelle is the new "MJ."

It's genius.

 

[X Knight]

As long as they get her core components correct that's all that matters.

yep. it's that playful alpha female that defines the spirit of Mary Jane.

and that's exactly what we are getting with Michelle........

...............

...............

 

[AnneFan]

I don't like the concept behind this, but I've kinda made peace with it. Every version of Spider-Man has differences that set it apart from others.

 

[Mysteryman]

Spoiler

Is it because her dad is Adrian Toomes?

Could be wrong but it could be a spelling difference, Allan, instead of Allen.

 

[AlluAllu]

Michelle looks nothing like Mary Jane.
Michelle acts nothing like Mary Jane.
Michelle isn't even the same name as Mary Jane.

But somehow, Michelle is the new "MJ."

Michelle is Mary Jane's replacement. She takes her place.

I don't think that Marvel was in any shame with this name thing. They probably just thought that it would be fun tease for the sequels at the end of the movie.

 

[Spider-man95]

Michelle is Mary Jane's replacement. She takes her place.

I don't think that Marvel was in any shame with this name thing. They probably just thought that it would be fun tease for the sequels at the end of the movie.

Replacement?! She's the most iconic love interest in comic books next to Lois Lane! You don't replace Mary Jane Watson...

My goodness the mental gymnastics some are doing to convince themselves that this is ok...