Summary
- One theory suggests that Uncle Ben, a crucial figure in Spider-Man’s backstory, may have been killed during the Battle of New York in the MCU’s The Avengers in 2012.
- This theory would explain why Uncle Ben’s death is not shown on-screen and why it is not the catalyst for Peter Parker’s responsibility as a superhero in the MCU.
- Instead, Aunt May takes on the role of motivating Peter Parker after her death in Spider-Man: No Way Home, allowing for a more mature and experienced Spider-Man in future MCU films.
One MCU theory suggests that Marvel Studios’ The Avengers could have secretly contained one of the most crucial and tragic events in the backstory of Tom Holland’s version of Spider-Man in the MCU. Tom Holland debuted as the MCU’s Peter Parker in 2016’s Captain America: Civil War, with Marvel Studios choosing to avoid retelling Spider-Man’s typical origin story that had been seen in Marvel Comics and in Sony’s previous Spider-Man franchises. Instead, Parker already had his abilities during his first appearance in Civil War, and one of the key elements of Spider-Man’s timeline happened prior to his introduction in the MCU, and still hasn’t been seen on-screen.
In Marvel Comics and previous Sony Spider-Man projects, Peter Parker gained his abilities after being bitten by a radioactive spider, but it took him longer to understand the responsibility of being a superhero. After refusing to stop a thief, the same criminal later attacks Parker’s Uncle Ben, who delivers the iconic line, “With great power, there must also come great responsibility,” before dying. This is a pivotal moment in Spider-Man’s backstory, yet Uncle Ben wasn’t the one to deliver the MCU’s “great power” line, as he had died prior to the events of Captain America: Civil War and 2017’s Spider-Man: Homecoming, and one theory might explain exactly when this occurred.
Uncle Ben Died During The Avengers – Theory Explained
A theory shared by Reddit user Pietin11 suggests that Uncle Ben could have been killed during the MCU’s Battle of New York back in 2012. The Battle of New York featured the original Avengers team fighting Tom Hiddleston’s Loki and his army of Chitauri and Leviathan on the streets of New York City, detailed in Phase 1’s The Avengers. Even though the Avengers were fighting to protect New York and the Earth as a whole, the loss of life during the Battle of New York was significant, with Marvel Studios suggesting 74 innocent civilians lost their lives, though it has been routinely argued that this number must be much higher.
It’s very possible that Uncle Ben was one of The Avengers’ casualties in New York City. This would have placed his death four years before Captain America: Civil War, which would make it soon enough for his absence to still be felt but long enough that the more visceral grieving process has already passed. This would be a dramatic diversion from Spider-Man’s better-known origin story, as Uncle Ben usually dies after Parker becomes the wall-crawler. However, having Uncle Ben die as a victim of circumstance during the Battle of New York makes Tom Holland’s storylines as the MCU’s Spider-Man make much more sense.
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Uncle Ben’s 2012 Death Explains Spider-Man’s Irresponsible Decisions In The MCU
Not only does this theory make a solid connection between Tom Holland’s Peter Parker and the MCU’s history – just as Iron Man 2’s Spider-Man retcon did – but it also explains many of Parker’s subsequent decisions during his first trilogy. Usually, Uncle Ben’s death motivates Parker to be a force for good as the friendly neighborhood Spider-Man, as Uncle Ben’s death is indirectly Parker’s own fault. However, having Uncle Ben be killed circumstantially during the Battle of New York in the MCU means that this doesn’t weigh on Parker’s shoulders. Without this burden, Parker made several irresponsible choices throughout his first MCU trilogy, culminating in Spider-Man: No Way Home.
During 2017’s Spider-Man: Homecoming, Parker ignores Tony Stark’s warnings and hunts down the Vulture alone, causing catastrophe on the Staten Island Ferry and almost getting himself killed in the film’s final battle. 2019’s Spider-Man: Far From Home saw Parker re-gift Stark’s EDITH glasses to Mysterio despite hardly knowing the fraudulent newcomer, but 2021’s Spider-Man: No Way Home is the pinnacle. No Way Home saw Parker try to wipe the memories of everyone in the world after his identity was revealed, jeopardizing his and his friends’ positions at MIT. This recklessness almost devastated the stability of the multiverse, but was only one of many bad decisions made by Peter Parker’s Spider-Man.
Spider-Man’s MCU Origin Story Needed To End With Aunt May’s Death
Despite being shrouded in Peter Parker’s bad choices, No Way Home also concluded Tom Holland’s first MCU trilogy and his full origin story as Spider-Man, with Aunt May’s death replacing the role of Uncle Ben in the usual Spider-Man backstory. Instead of Uncle Ben, Marisa Tomei’s Aunt May delivered the “great power” line after an attack from the Green Goblin left her fatally wounded. Since Uncle Ben potentially died during the events of 2012’s The Avengers, Aunt May had to assume the role of Parker’s motivation, finally concluding his origin story and allowing the MCU’s Spider-Man 4 and beyond to feature a more mature and world-wise version of Spider-Man.
