The new villain is in for the sequel to Spider-Man: Homecoming, and although it's one of the more B list villains in Spidey's rogue's gallery, it's one that has never hit the big screen- Mysterio! Jake Gyllenhaal, who almost played Spider-Man when Toby Maguire was though to be unable to continue the role due to a back injury sustained before Spider-Man 2 could film (others reported that the real reason he was being replaced was because of a contract dispute, but it was never officially confirmed). Gyllenhaal was also rumored to have been a front-runner for Nolan's Batman trilogy before losing out to Christain Bale and his amazing, gravelly voice. Oh, what could have been...
For the uninitiated, Mysterio, whose real name is Quentin Beck, is a stuntman and pyrotechnics/special effects whiz who uses fantastic illusions on movie sets to create silver screen magic. When he decides he can do more than just effects, he promptly fails as both an actor and a director, and then decides to use his movie quality effects to become a criminal, choosing to use his "powers" to take down the then inexperienced Spider-Man, which goes about as well as you would expect. Mysterio persists despite his failures, however, and becomes one of the wall crawler's frequent villains, using myriad effects, hypnotism and gadgets to harass Spider-Man both one-on-one and as a member of the Sinister Six.
Now that Mysterio has been confirmed as the villain, what about Michael Keaton, who we last saw talking to Mac Gargan at the end of Homecoming while he was being admitted to prison? Variety reports that Keaton will return for the sequel, although we don't know if he will be suiting back up as the Vulture, or if he'll be in it in more of a "Silence of the Lambs" prison visit capacity. All we know is that he is confirmed for the film.
Spider-Man 2 is set for theatrical release on July 5th, 2018.
