Spider-Man: No Way Home: Will Doc Ock Be An Enemy Or Ally To Peter Parker?

Marvel fans everywhere have been left extremely excited by the release of the latest trailer for Spider-Man: No Way Home, due to hit theatres in December. After months of speculation, the new trailer explicitly confirmed that the film would dive into the Spider-Man multiverse in a way not seen before, including villains from Sony's earlier Spider-Man and Amazing Spider-Man films, such as Willem Dafoe as the Green Goblin, and Jaime Foxx as Electro.

Of course, actor Alfred Molina, reprising his role as Doctor Otto Octavius/Doc Ock, gave the game away over a year ago when he revealed that his character's appearance in No Way Home directly follows Spider-Man 2. However, following the latest trailer, some fans are questioning what Doc Ock's role in No Way Home actually is. Mostly, whether he will appear as an enemy or an ally to the MCU's Peter Parker.

Where we left Otto Octavius in 'Spider-Man 2', and where we find him in 'No Way Home'.

In Spider-Man 2, Peter Parker is invited by Harry Osborn to look at some research he is funding into fusion reactors. The research is headed up by Dr. Otto Octavius, who befriends Peter, briefly serving as a mentor to him. He shows Peter his work, including the robotic A.I controlled tentacles he uses to handle dangerous material. Unfortunately, a public demonstration of Octavius's fusion reactor goes tragically wrong when the reactor becomes unstable, killing Octavius's wife, Rosalie, and causing the robot tentacles to fuse to his nervous system.

Octavius is influenced by the tentacles' A.I to resume his experiments. His quest to obtain the materials needed to do so brings him into conflict with Spider-Man, and leads the media to rename him Doctor Octopus. Soon after completing his new reactor, he begins to lose control of it, with the Nuclear Power threatening New York City. After eventually subduing Octavius in battle, Spider-Man reveals his identity, and convinces his former mentor that the reactor needs to be destroyed. Octavius wrestles control back from the tentacles, and uses them to drag the reactor into the river, giving his life to save the city.

Doc Ock's appearance in No Way Home is said to directly follow Spider-Man 2. He is first seen battling Spider-Man, and seems shaken when he unmasks him to uncover a Peter Parker who is not the one he expected to find. Later, he is seen in what appears to be some sort of underground base with Peter, MJ, and Ned. Fans have noted that in this second scene, he is behaving quite civilly towards the teens.

Could Doctor Octavius be an ally to Peter?

If Doc Ock's appearance in No Way Home genuinely takes place after Spider-Man 2, then it is set after, or at least sometime close to, his heroic sacrifice in that film. His attacking MCU Peter can be put down to confusion over suddenly finding himself displaced from his own universe, or the fact that it takes significant effort on Octavius's part to keep the A.I of his tentacles from taking control. Once he does secure control, Octavius may be willing to work with MCU Peter to help resolve the multiverse spillage that has occurred. This would explain why he appears to be on at least civil terms with Peter and his friends later in the trailer.

A major plot point in each MCU Spider-Man film so far has included a sub-plot of Peter being mentored by another character. In Homecoming, this role went to Iron Man, while in Far From Home, it was Nick Fury/Talos. It was initially assumed that Doctor Strange would be the mentor figure in No Way Home, but now, some fans speculate that Doctor Octavius may mentor MCU Peter as he mentored Tobey Maguire's Peter in the early part of Spider-Man 2. If this is the case, and Peter bonds with Dr. Octavius, it may explain why he is upset when Doctor Strange informs him that all the villains he has been tasked with returning home are destined to die in battle against Spider-Man.

There’s also precedent for a more heroic Doc Ock in the comics, most notably when he spends a period inhabiting Peter Parker’s body in the Superior Spider-Man series, and finds himself becoming influenced by Peter’s ideals.

For now, Doc Ock's allegiance remains a mystery, as with many other aspects of the film. We'll just have to wait until Spider-Man: No Way Home hits theatres in December.