(Image Credits: Marvel Studios)
Spider-Man 4 is set to release later this year, and in it, Tom Holland’s Spider-Man will have a new assistant who helps with tasks, and is sure to generate some buzz, even if the decision to include it is a smart and timely choice.
What is Spider-Man’s new assistant in Brand New Day?
Recently, EW published a story detailing some of the information it had gleaned after receiving three pages of Brand New Day’s script. One part of the report revealed that Holland‘s Peter Parker will have an AI assistant named E.V. that helps him out, a la Tony Stark’s J.A.R.V.I.S. or F.R.I.D.A.Y. systems.
Director Destin Daniel Cretton calls E.V. “the closest thing Peter has to a friend.” Peter also created a homemade fabricator, which is described as a “3D printer on steroids — something that could be made by a kid genius w/ limited funds,” which likely helps him make all of these gadgets. The news quickly made the waves on social media, with fans talking about both the pros and cons of E.V.’s inclusion, but its inclusion is a smart choice that will help underscore one of the biggest themes in the upcoming movie.
What makes his AI assistant the right choice?
The inclusion of an AI assistant for Peter makes sense for a number of reasons. In terms of actual commentary, the inclusion of AI and its effects on loneliness and how good it is is something that’s a big conversation now in the real world. Whether or not the movie explores these themes is unknown, but from a storytelling perspective, the inclusion also works on several levels in the new MCU film.
Following the events of Spider-Man: No Way Home, Parker is left largely alone in his life. After Aunt May’s death, Peter has no claim to family, and with MJ and Ned both having forgotten him due to having erased himself from the multiverse, he is now truly alone. Giving Parker a “friend,” even in the form of a chatbot or AI companion, will help drive home how alone Parker feels in the movie, especially as he begins to try and potentially connect with his former friends again.
Of course, there’s also the not-so-subtle nod to Tony Stark, who played a large influence on the MCU version of Parker. Parker and Stark had a father-son relationship of sorts, and the AI companion can also be seen as a nod to Stark from Parker, who has been shown to still miss the legendary figure following his death in Avengers: Endgame.
While it’s still unclear how the assistant will function in the movie, it can work on multiple levels. It remains to be seen if this is a permanent addition to the MCU’s Spider-Man, though, so we’ll have to wait and see.
