Here’s Why Doctor Strange Still Remembers Spider-Man (But Not Peter Parker)
Peter Parker’s future in the MCU is unclear, especially after Tom Holland – the actor behind MCU’s Spidey – came out numerous times and said he would be happy to see a female Spidey or Miles Morales take over in the MCU. That being said, fans would absolutely love for Tom’s Peter to return – even if nobody remembers him, and he has to start fresh. One thing that led to some confusion among fans is how and why Doctor Strange seems to remember Peter Parker – or Spider-Man, at least – in ‘Doctor Strange and the Multiverse of Madness.’ The answer is actually quite simple, so let’s get down to it.
Does Doctor Strange still remember who Peter Parker was?
The confusion stems from a dialogue that Doctor Strange shared with America Chavez in ‘Doctor Strange and the Multiverse of Madness.’ After learning about America’s incredible power of jumping between universes effortlessly, Strange referred to an earlier ‘Multiverse incident involving Spider-Man’ – clearly referring to the events of ‘Spider-Man: No Way Home.’
In that movie, Peter Parker wanted his identity to be a secret again after Mysterio revealed it at the end of ‘Spider-Man: Far From Home.’ So, he reached out to Doctor Strange for the Sorcerer Supreme to do a spell where everyone would forget about Peter Parker and his secret identity.
The spell had already begun, but Peter figured out he would like to have some exceptions included – like his Aunt May, MJ, his best friend Ned, etc. He wanted everyone to forget except them. As Strange tried to work in the exceptions mid-spell, it caused him to botch the spell completely.
It resulted in the Multiverse starting to open up, and all the people who knew that Spider-Man was Peter Parker from different universes started to get pulled into the MCU – like Alfred Molina’s Doctor Octopus from Sam Raimi’s ‘early 2000s ‘Spider-Man’ trilogy, or Electro from the two Andrew Garfield-led ‘The Amazing Spider-Man’ films.
In the end, the situation got out of hand, and the multiversal boundaries started collapsing, so Strange had to do the spell rather quickly. Everyone said their goodbyes, and Peter Parker was forgotten for good. That included MJ, Ned, Happy, and even Doctor Strange himself. There were no added exceptions – Peter Parker was left all alone in the world, with no one remembering him.
It was kind of a somber moment for Peter Parker and his fans, but that dialogue with America from ‘Doctor Strange 2’ was a silver lining that many fans thought would mean that Stephen Strange actually still remembers who Peter was. After all, he was the spellcaster, so it would make sense that he was an exception to the rule, right?
Well, not quite. You see, Doctor Strange says he remembers an incident involving Spider-Man – not Peter Parker. That is because everyone remembers Spider-Man – they remember his good deeds, his fight against Mysterio, saving the world with the Avengers, etc. – but they do not remember Peter himself.
The spell didn’t call for everyone to forget Spider-Man, but rather the identity behind the mask. That’s why Strange still remembered Spidey was involved in the incident in some capacity, but he just didn’t remember Peter Parker.
That’s additionally confirmed in ‘No Way Home’ itself when we hear J. Jonah Jameson talk about Peter Parker needing to come out and tell the world who he is. Everyone – including Doctor Strange – remembers Spidey, but they have no idea Peter Parker is behind the mask.
Does anyone ever remember Peter Parker?
I doubt that Doctor Strange’s spell encapsulated the entire multiverse and that everyone ever in any universe whatsoever forgot who Peter Parker was. However, in the MCU’s main universe, nobody remembers Peter Parker. Not even Happy Hogan, MJ, Ned, or Strange himself.
The spell had to be done so quickly that Strange didn’t have time to put in nuances in the spell, like people who knew Peter still remembering him but not remembering anything about him being remotely related to Spider-Man. The spell had to be completely straightforward – forget Peter Parker, and that’s it.
That’s why, unfortunately, people didn’t just forget he was Spider-Man – they basically forgot they ever knew anyone named Peter Parker.
What could this mean for Peter Parker’s MCU future?
So, where are we sitting right now when it comes to MCU’s Peter Parker? What’s next for him, and will he even appear in the MCU again? Chances are, he will, given the character’s popularity. However, when, where, and how remains to be seen. We do have some theories, though.
Firstly, we’ve seen that Peter Parker continued living a down-low civilian life while also continuing his work as Spider-Man. Rumors about a potential new trilogy involving Peter have been around ever since ‘No Way Home’ premiered, and they still aren’t gone completely.
That being said, Tom Holland said numerous times that he’d love to see Miles Morales or a version of Spider-Woman take over in the MCU. Given all the multiversal craziness, it could very well happen sooner rather than later. Perhaps we get one more Peter Parker film where he passes on the torch to a new Spidey? It’s possible.
Another spot where we could see Spider-Man appear again is in ‘Doctor Strange 3.’ I mean, it was Strange who did the spell, and he still remembers parts of the events that came with the spell. I doubt he wouldn’t be bothered by what happened and what he couldn’t remember – especially now that we’ve seen him with a third eye.
Perhaps he may do a spell to reveal his memories or find another way to remember Peter Parker. It could also play into the theory that another Spidey from within the Multiverse could come and replace Peter – especially considering that America Chavez is connected to Doctor Strange’s storyline.
Whatever it may be, we won’t know for certain until the rumors become official announcements from Marvel Studios. I bet Peter Parker will return at least once again, but you just never know which direction the MCU showrunners will take next.
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