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

[Richard Grayson]

You're thinking of the Allison character. Molly Ringwald never had a total makeover in that film.

Yeah I edited the post. Mixed up the two characters

 

[Poppy]

Just a hunch I have. Some of the comments by James Gunn and Tom Holland along with the mystery around her character.


Ned Leeds and Flash Thompson also look and in many ways act different to their 616 counterparts so I don't think that matters that much in the case of MJ. Also Zendaya is very attractive so I fully expect scene at end where she has a total makeover like Ally Sheedy's character in Breakfast Club setting her up as the love interest in future movies

But Flash is going to be a bully and based on one picture at the party he has the look too. The only difference is that he doesn't have blond hair but that's not a big deal considering that he still acts like 616!Flash.

Zendaya though? She doesn't act like any version of MJ.

Except for Flash, all the main characters are unpopular (Ned, Betty, Liz, Vulture...). So why put MJ in the middle when they clearly having a fresh start.

"No friends" "Doesn't interact with people much" Even ultimate!MJ had a best friend.
A version where MJ doesn't like be around people? When we know being around people was a way of dealing with her homelife. That's just too big of a change.

I still see Zendaya's character as a version of Ultimate!Kate.

 

[harryoscop]

Yeah, Flash looks really good. Michelle would literally be Mary Jane in name only

 

[Spider-Ranger]

That description makes me believe even more, that she's some kind of undercover agent! I mean, she thinks she's above everyone else and has no friends. Feels like her secret agent duty wasn't quite voluntary Now she has to deal with those kids despite being older and wiser than them.

 

[Poppy]

Based on my 21 Jump Street experience (the movie ) if she had to discover the secret of the school, she should be more involved with the students and should try to connect but she's doing the opposite.

 

[Spider-Ranger]

Based on my 21 Jump Street experience (the movie ) if she had to discover the secret of the school, she should be more involved with the students and should try to connect but she's doing the opposite.

Well that's because she's reluctant to do so, she didn't want the job in the first place (in my theory)

 

[Richard Grayson]

But Flash is going to be a bully and based on one picture at the party he has the look too. The only difference is that he doesn't have blond hair but that's not a big deal considering that he still acts like 616!Flash.

Zendaya though? She doesn't act like any version of MJ.

Except for Flash, all the main characters are unpopular (Ned, Betty, Liz, Vulture...). So why put MJ in the middle when they clearly having a fresh start.

"No friends" "Doesn't interact with people much" Even ultimate!MJ had a best friend.
A version where MJ doesn't like be around people? When we know being around people was a way of dealing with her homelife. That's just too big of a change.

I still see Zendaya's character as a version of Ultimate!Kate.

I guess we'll see in about a month or so. I get what you're saying but some of Holland's comments do give me pause

 

[Dark Raven]

I don't think the description of Michelle means anything as far as whether she's MJ or not. Ned Leeds is completely different to his comic counterpart and is more like Ganke. I could see them completely changing MJ and giving us MJ in initials only.

 

[Poppy]

I don't think the description of Michelle means anything as far as whether she's MJ or not. Ned Leeds is completely different to his comic counterpart and is more like Ganke. I could see them completely changing MJ and giving us MJ in initials only.

Yes but Jacob actually acts like Ganke and looks like him. Michelle doesn't have the attitude or the red hair. So it wouldn't be a 'mix' but just a whole new character called 'MJ'.

 

[Richard Grayson]

I posted this in the general discussion but this quote by Holland:

"[Zendaya] is so powerful and so strong-willed that it’s not going to shake her at all," says Holland, of how the actress is handling the race controversy that broke out when the rumor that she was playing Mary Jane first started. "...I feel like our generation is moving past this whole [idea] that you can’t cast someone who’s not of the right race for a character, and I really think we’re breaking through and changing that, and Z is perfect for it."

To me, the way he answered and worded it, she doesn't seem to be playing some original character. And with all the rumors going around it, I don't think her being MJ can be discounted

 

[Poppy]

I posted this in the general discussion but this quote by Holland:

"[Zendaya] is so powerful and so strong-willed that it’s not going to shake her at all," says Holland, of how the actress is handling the race controversy that broke out when the rumor that she was playing Mary Jane first started. "...I feel like our generation is moving past this whole [idea] that you can’t cast someone who’s not of the right race for a character, and I really think we’re breaking through and changing that, and Z is perfect for it."

To me, the way he answered and worded it, she doesn't seem to be playing some original character. And with all the rumors going around it, I don't think her being MJ can be discounted

Tom also said this "Zendaya plays Michelle, Peter's bookish classmate and close-friend. "Michelle is a very interesting character," Holland says of his on-screen schoolmate. "She’s very quiet, always reading these crazy books like How To, I don’t know, like, How To Murder Someone Without No One Knowing." and that doesn't sound like MJ at all.

 

[Richard Grayson]

Tom also said this "Zendaya plays Michelle, Peter's bookish classmate and close-friend. "Michelle is a very interesting character," Holland says of his on-screen schoolmate. "She’s very quiet, always reading these crazy books like How To, I don’t know, like, How To Murder Someone Without No One Knowing." and that doesn't sound like MJ at all.

Possibly. All I'm saying is that quote def alludes to the fact that 'Michelle' is not an original character and even moreso, she's originally a White character. Might not necessarily be MJ but with all the rumors, I'm def not ruling it out till we see the movie

 

[Poppy]

Possibly. All I'm saying is that quote def alludes to the fact that 'Michelle' is not an original character and even moreso, she's originally a White character. Might not necessarily be MJ but with all the rumors, I'm def not ruling it out till we see the movie

Oh yeah I understand. I still think there's a slight possibility it can happen and I only will be reassured when someone will spoil it for me and confirm that she's not MJ. July 7 can't come soon enough t:.

 

[The Infernal]

I'll be honest. If there wasn't the MJ rumour controversy I wouldn't have thought her character is of any importance. From what has been advertised it seems Ned Leeds has the more important role. Michelle could have next to no screentime in the movie given how little emphasis on her there has been.

 

[Richard Grayson]

I'll be honest. If there wasn't the MJ rumour controversy I wouldn't have thought her character is of any importance. From what has been advertised it seems Ned Leeds has the more important role. Michelle could have next to no screentime in the movie given how little emphasis on her there has been.

This is so true which is why the advertising around her is so perplexing. She's getting billing over Harrier and Jacob and gets on the poster.. And the initial press release about her character was that she plays a small role but plays a major role in the sequels

 

[Havok83]

I havent been in this thread in months and its the same exact discussion since last time I left. Really nothing has changed

 

[Herofan]

Any particular reason(s) why?

She's getting above-title billing on a major poster, that could be mostly her own fame/prominence but it's probably also related to her character being prominent and major, in and/or out of the film.

 

[harryoscop]

She's getting above-title billing on a major poster, that could be mostly her own fame/prominence but it's probably also related to her character being prominent and major, in and/or out of the film.

Happy Hogan is also on the poster, as well as Marisa Tomei. Both of these characters will have smaller roles in the movie & less prominent than Ned Leeds or even Liz Allan. It's merely about billing & having the most recognizable actors on the posters.

 

[dkamphaus43]

I know I've mentioned this before, but does anybody else think MJ might end up being the cousin of Zendaya's character?

 

[X Knight]

But Flash is going to be a bully and based on one picture at the party he has the look too. The only difference is that he doesn't have blond hair but that's not a big deal considering that he still acts like 616!Flash.

Zendaya though? She doesn't act like any version of MJ.

Except for Flash, all the main characters are unpopular (Ned, Betty, Liz, Vulture...). So why put MJ in the middle when they clearly having a fresh start.

"No friends" "Doesn't interact with people much" Even ultimate!MJ had a best friend.
A version where MJ doesn't like be around people? When we know being around people was a way of dealing with her homelife. That's just too big of a change.

I still see Zendaya's character as a version of Ultimate!Kate.

is that an official description of the character? where did that come from?

cuz yeah. that description sounds absolutely nothing like how any version of MJ is supposed to be.

like, not even remotely close, both in appearance and personality.

if you are going to drastically change the character like that, then why bother using that character in the 1st place?

If they make a live action film of the game Persona 5, I'd expect ( nay, demand ) that Ann ( see my avatar ) is portrayed as a blonde, beautiful, bubbly, outgoing, somewhat airheaded part-time model who's also kind, compassionate, selfless, and empathetic. Someone who is initially shunned due to her foreign looks and false rumors, but becomes the social butterfly and heart of the group as the story progresses.

cuz, y'know, that's who the character is. and that's how I expect the character to be portrayed.

If they turn Ann into a frumpy, meh looking brunette or make her some stuck up bookworm ***** who's mean to everyone and doesn't like socializing at all, then that's a totally different character. That's not Ann from Persona 5.

just like Michelle is not MJ in any way, shape, or form.

 

[X Knight]

and speaking of Ann from Persona 5, she's actually a great example of how to do MJ. Heck, there's even a "Go Get 'Em Tiger" dialogue option you can say to her in her personal questline - which I think is an obvious reference to MJ.

While Ann and MJ have different circumstances, there are some overall similarities.

both are beautiful, stylish, social, kind, outgoing girls who are associated with modelling and fashion. For better or worse, a lot of people judge them based on their looks. And outward appearances would make it seem they don't have a care in the world.

But all that masks a lot of inner pain and turmoil caused by their personal lives. They finally open up when they meet someone they find they can confide to, someone who's not interested in them solely for their looks ( the player character in Persona for Ann and Peter for MJ ).

That dynamic, that angle, that story arc for MJ would be a hell of a lot more interesting, and truer to the character in the comics, than the ugly duckling introvert transformation angle they may be taking with Michelle if she's indeed MJ.

 

[Richard Grayson]

You're not wrong about all of that. I do think she is being set up to be Tom Holland's main love interest for the series though. I wouldn't be surprised if Marvel decided to forego Gwen and MJ to differentiate from the previous series

 

[guyisnotcool]

Persona 5 discussions on a Spider-Man board? The series has truly become mainstream. :P

 

[ironwez20]

I never knew what that series was about

 

[X Knight]

Persona 5 discussions on a Spider-Man board? The series has truly become mainstream. :P

I never knew what that series was about

Persona 5 is my 1st Persona game, so I had no idea what the series is about either.

but it's a great game, imo.

and I only bring it up because A) Ann is somewhat similar to MJ ( there's even an MJ Tiger quote reference ) and B) the characters are all distinct from each other. You can't simply mix and match and slap names on different characters like they seem to be doing with the Homecoming characters.

You can't have a character who looks like Makoto ( prim and proper short hair brunette ) who acts like Futaba ( reclusive genius hacker shut in ) with Haru's background ( rich girl ) and call her Ann.

uh.....no. you just can't do that. cuz that's getting all the characters mixed up and messed up.

and yet, that is what they are seemingly doing with the Homecoming HS crowd.