The latest Spider-Man movie hits theaters this week with Spider-Man: Brand New Day releasing on July 31. This time around, Peter Parker (Tom Holland) must figure out how to navigate a world that has forgotten him. So, how did we get to this point in the story?
For that answer, we have to go back a couple movies to really set things up. After defeating the untrustworthy Quentin Beck -- who went by the superhero name of Mysterio -- in Far From Home, Parker's identity as Spider-Man was revealed. This set up the drama in No Way Home as Parker tried to help his friends Ned (Jacob Batalon) and girlfriend MJ (Zendaya) distance themselves from him and help them get their lives back on track.
Things fall apart when Peter goes to Doctor Strange (Benedict
Cumberbatch) for a spell that will make everyone forget his secret identity, but the spell goes awry. This leads to a rift between universes, pulling in both villains and Peter Parkers -- played by Tobey Maguire and Andrew Garfield -- from other timelines.
Instead of just sending the villains -- Doc Ock, Green Goblin, Electro, the Lizard and Sandman -- back to their universes to meet an untimely fate, Spider-Man attempts to cure them and hopefully save their lives. His plans are disrupted when Norman Osborn (Willem Dafoe) gives into the calls of the Green Goblin and blows everything up. Peter loses his Aunt May (Marisa Tomei) in the process, but gains the help of the other Peter Parkers.
The trio of Spider-Men manage to cure all five villains and send them back to their own universes, but our Peter Parker realizes the only way to put things right is if Doctor Strange makes it so that everyone -- including his best friends -- forget him.
No Way Home ends with Peter kicking off his new, quiet life as he works to keep his city safe as the friendly neighborhood Spider-Man.
This article originally appeared on For The Win: Catch up on the 'Spider-Man' events that led to 'Brand New Day'
