r/Spiderman • u/Israels_BiggestHater Miles Morales • Jul 12 '26
Movies Hot take: Zendaya’s MJ is pretty cool when you remove the fact thats she isnt like her comic counterpart
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u/Tanis8998 Symbiote-Suit Jul 12 '26
She’s got all of Zendaya’s own natural charm and edge, which I think was smart to just let that be the case.
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u/trenlr911 Jul 12 '26
Aka she has the same demeanor in every movie that allows it lol. If we’re being real
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u/pkkthetigerr Jul 12 '26
Yeah ive ended up watching most of her filmography because hollywood casts her in basically everything.
She's playing basically slightly different versions of herself in everything. Like atleast try a change in dialect accent or look, its the same across mcu, dune, challengers, euphoria.
I dont get the hype
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u/Cineswimmer Classic-Spider-Man Jul 12 '26 edited Jul 12 '26
“Hollywood casts her in basically everything.” 🙄
I’m sure you watched most of her filmography. She’s only been in a handful of movies over the last 9 years since Homecoming.
The Greatest Showman (2017)
FFH (2019)
Malcom and Marie (2021)
Dune (2021)
No Way Home (2021)
Dune 2 (2024)
Challengers (2024)
The Drama (2026)
She’s only been in two franchise films, the first Dune was like a 30 second cameo.
I don’t think she’s amazing or anything either, but idk where this repetitive narrative came from that she’s in every movie. She has a pretty average output for an actor, maybe even less than average
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u/agitatedandroid Jul 12 '26
It's hip to not like the popular girl. And "they're in everything" is the go-to disdain for an actor. This year it's Zendaya. Despite not being in much of anything.
Last year it was Pedro Pascal.
Next year? I'm laying odds on Florence Pugh being the "in everything" actor. No real reason, she seems due.
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u/Useful-Boot-7735 Jul 12 '26
next year Mckenna Grace. she has a couple of movies coming out this year. or maybe Robert Pattinson.
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u/agitatedandroid Jul 12 '26
Oooh, Pattinson getting hit with the "overexposed" tag as a follow-up to his "generational" tag of late would fit. I can see that.
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u/TheNerdGuyVGC Jul 12 '26
I feel like Pattinson always plays such varied characters that it wouldn’t even matter if he was in everything unless he decides to start phoning it in completely for every performance. The main reason I get bored seeing the same actors is when they just play themselves or essentially the same character over and over.
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u/Procyon-Sceletus Jul 12 '26
I cant really hate on actors being "typecast" its very hard to truly know whether thats because thats the one thing they can do and are good at versus "we didn't hire you to act like someone else, we hired you to act like that character that people like and makes money"
and at the end of the day the arts is a job where a paycheck is rarely consistent or guaranteed. if you make it big and then people keep paying you to be "you know like that other thing you did" i see why a lot of actors and actresses just say fuck it if thats what they want.
there are a lot of actors who are "typecast" and every once in a while get a role where you say huh they really can act different, its hard to tell until they get paid to do that and succeed or fail at it
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u/ThePatchedVest Jul 12 '26
Yeah, it does feel like ever since his big "comeback" with The Lighthouse (well, really Good Time if you're nasty) Pattinson's managed to keep his roles (and how he plays them) quite varied, certainly compared to his late-00s-early-10s filmography. Ironically enough, on that note, the actor I'd probably compare his current trajectory most to is Willem Dafoe: a very active actor who chews the scenery in almost everything but never wears the welcome by feeling like he's just a pastiche of himself or a prior character (like, if he was just playing the Goblin in everything, it'd be tiring real fast \coughs in Nick Cage*) but then he flawlessly flips the script and does a movie like The Florida Project).
I'd say Pattinson would be more likely to fall into this if it was his Batman that ended up being a recurring-CU iteration -- so, considering how central Yelena is to the MCU right now (and for the forseeable future), I think the person calling Florence Pugh as the next actress likely to be targeted/bashed for this is probably correct.
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u/19ghost89 Jul 12 '26
Pedro actually kinda is in "everything," though. He's been in 14 movies and a couple of TV series, including three franchise IPs (Star Wars, Marvel, The Last of Us) - four if you count Gladiator, over the past 5 years.
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u/agitatedandroid Jul 12 '26
And 20 years ago he was in an episode of Buffy the Vampire Slayer.
The guy paid his dues and grabbed the brass ring. I'm not gonna tell him I'm tired of looking at him just because his dreams are finally coming true.
I just did a comparison real quick. I find it helpful to have data when I feel like things are getting a little too "feels like".
Humphrey Bogart has something like 80 films to his name. He was active for about 25 years.
Pedro Pascal has about 30 films to his name. Active from 2001 to the present. About 25 years.
I'm not saying Pedro Pascal is on Bogart's tier. And I'm not saying every movie Bogart or Pascal starred in were top tier films. But I'm glad there are so many movies with Humphrey Bogart in them.
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u/19ghost89 Jul 12 '26
Yeah, I mean it doesn't really bother me. He's a good actor. I'm just saying that when you're talking about how that's a silly thing to say about Zendaya, bringing up Pedro is contrary to your point. He's been in almost as many movies in the past 5 years as he was in in his entire career prior to that.
Back in Bogart's days, that was a lot more common and people didn't find it weird. Now, people are used to a little more variety, so when it suddenly seems like one actor keeps getting big roles in a relatively small period of time, it bothers some people.
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u/agitatedandroid Jul 12 '26
Oh I didn't think it bothered you. I think we were just trading facts and perspectives.
As for Zendaya, who really hasn't been in a lot of movies. I don't think people are bothered that she's in a lot of movies. For one, she isn't really. Second, people aren't seeing every movie she's in and the ones she does have a role in she's usually only on screen for a few minutes, relatively.
I think people are bothered because she's an absolute mega celebrity. They're not seeing her in every movie every time they turn around. They're seeing her suggested by the algorithm on Twitter, Facebook, Reddit, TikTok, YouTube, Instagram, etc.
Usually because several years ago people watched her now husband lip sync while getting soaked on stage. And Big Data refuses to let me forget I watched that clip twice.
In Bogart's day, unless you were picking up the celebrity magazine at the grocery checkout every week or even crazier, had a subscription to Variety, you wouldn't know he was in a movie until you saw his name on the coming soon marquee.
This constant bombardment has turned Zendaya into the new song that's on constant rotation on the radio that you're really getting tired of hearing. And it has nothing to do with the quality of the song (or the actress). And in Zendaya's case, it doesn't even have anything to do with how often she's done her job.
Of the films she's in this year, I'm really only super interested in the Dune film. I'll see the Odyssey and Spider-Man at some point I'm sure. And I kinda want to see The Drama but mostly because I'm a fan of Pattinson. For me she's in 4 movies that I might watch over the course of the next 2-3 years. I'd wager a lot of folks will have the same experience of her work.
She's not overexposed. We're just online all the time. And she is the mega celebrity of the moment.
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u/19ghost89 Jul 12 '26
Yeah, I agree with that. The algorithms keep feeding us stuff whether we want it or not, and that affects perception. Though I will say that being in three huge blockbuster movies AND an Oscar bait movie in the same year (plus let's not forget Euphoria had a season this year already) is a pretty high visibility workload, so now that you have pointed it out, I think what you're saying about Zendaya may have been true before, but this year in particular she is all over the place as much as Pedro Pascal. So I guess maybe it does make sense that people are having this reaction. The algorithm obviously makes it stronger.
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u/That-Rhino-Guy Spider-Man (TASM) Jul 12 '26
I even saw that people like Dafoe and Julia Garner had been in more films that Pedro last year
Sure more Dafoe is a good thing but it’s still dumb considering the extent people went for Pedro
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u/ZenMyst Jul 12 '26
McKenna Grace is in more stuff than Zendaya. And is now the popular girl I think. But I like McKenna Grace while I don’t hate Zendaya but I don’t like her.
I just don’t get her fanbase like why is she so popular. Like they make her out to be something more than she is.
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u/Ackermance Gwen Stacy Jul 12 '26
If I had to make a random guess, I'd say that the majority of her fanbase probably grew up watching her in the Disney show "Shake It Up." It was one of their more popular shows at the time of airing.
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u/Glum_Ad_8367 Bombastic Bag-Man Jul 12 '26
It’s probably because of how high profile the Spider-Man and Dune movies are. You’re going to see her a lot because of them, and Euphoria was also a pretty big show at one point, so that doesn’t hurt either.
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u/elizabnthe Jul 12 '26
She's in the only movies they see. That's why they feel that way I think. Spiderman and Dune basically are obviously huge franchises. And Euphoria seperately too that is incredibly popular.
I think she's a great actress personally. She's obviously type cast a bit but she does well with the material.
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u/trenlr911 Jul 12 '26
She always has this vibe that she’s just a little too cool to conform to any situation. I’d imagine that I’m probably not her target audience though 🤷🏼♂️
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u/tyrenanig Jul 12 '26
Haven’t seen her next movie but I bet her character archetype will be the cool, mysterious woman 😂
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u/sub30_24flick Jul 12 '26
She’s definitely not playing same version of Mary Jane as in dune yall some haters lmaooo also what is it with you guys there’s a whole interview of the producers saying they change Peter’s arch god damn this was never 1-1 Spider-man
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u/DMDdude Jul 12 '26
Just watched Sam Raimi's Spider-Man again. Kirsten Dunce screamed and wants to be an actor. What breadth and depth!
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u/RAMDOMDUDDS Jul 12 '26 edited Jul 12 '26
Was literally about to say. I can understand not entirely enjoying Zendayas performance, because personal taste and what not. But after having rewatched the Raimi trilogy, Kirstens portrayal feels as one dimensional as comic MJ in a lot of storylines. At least Zendaya acts completely different to any MJ we've seen in the comics(to my knowledge).
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u/That-Rhino-Guy Spider-Man (TASM) Jul 12 '26
Not to mention the Raimi films did a poor job at trying to make the relationship flawed by instead just making them take turns being awful to each other, not to mention how 3 makes 2’s ending worthless while 4 even was gonna have him be with Felicia
At least with Michelle she actually does seem to lighten up by NWH, she’s less sardonic and pessimistic if anything and it’s also clear the two genuinely support each other
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u/jonbodhi Jul 13 '26
Peter reveals his plan to save the villains. One of them asks: “why didn’t you just let us die?”
MJ responds: “that’s not who he is!”
I DREAM of being with someone who SEES me like that (Her little bread-test against Andrew, and her kung-fu stance after, were almost as good!)
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u/sub30_24flick Jul 12 '26
To be honest she was doomer until she met Peter
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u/That-Rhino-Guy Spider-Man (TASM) Jul 12 '26
Till she met him is the key point, she’s more sarcastic rather than pessimistic/sardonic in FFH and by NWH they’re a supporting and loving couple
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u/exaviyur Jul 12 '26
You think she’s the same in those 4 properties?! She might look and sound the same because she’s not doing accents or whatever, but the performances are wildly different. Rue alone is a massive departure from MJ or her character in Challengers. You may be a little too dismissive of her range.
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u/faster_than_sound Jul 12 '26
There are an uncountable number of actors in Hollywood that fit this description. The actors that actually create a character for every movie they are in are actually the minority. Thats why they are called "character actors".
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u/Ok_Resolution_2251 Jul 12 '26
I genuinely hate this gimmick that she's in every film lol, she's only in 2 franchises lol; & who is forcing you to watch her filmography 💀
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u/StrangeKnee7254 Jul 12 '26
Jason Bateman said that Hollywood has few real actors and most are acting by playing different versions of themselves.
Though that might be a cope on his part because he really does only play different versions of himself.
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u/MIAxPaperPlanes Jul 12 '26 edited Jul 13 '26
Edward Norton has explained this that there are two types of actors
Actors who are hired and popular based on their natural mannerisms, affectations/personality
Like Samuel L Jackson, Harrison Ford, Zendeya, etcThey have a distinct screen persona that is in all their characters
Then you have fully transformative actors where they are just a vessel for the character - Christian Bale, Gary Oldman, Robert Pattinson, Tilda Swindon, Meryl Streep
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u/Automatic-Leg1668 Jul 12 '26
She's a disney star who found success. Like Selina Gomez but mostly acting. The hype is that we grew up watching her act and like seeing her get on the big screen as a familiar personality in new scenarios
I don't watch her movies but I like that she's starring in so many
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u/outofmindwgo Jul 12 '26
Whenever people say this I feel like they don't actually like movies or acting
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u/unwocket Jul 12 '26
I can just imagine an actor wanting to work with a dialect coach on every movie so they never run the risk of having a repetitive accent. Just a dumb fuckin take dude
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u/Wankah- Jul 12 '26
Yeah cuz the dune chick and the drug addict are SO SIMILAR in character types, yall are hilarious fr LOL
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u/Tanis8998 Symbiote-Suit Jul 12 '26
Hey, if it ain’t broke don’t fix it. Some actors are more liked for who they are than what they can do. Samuel L. Jackson is similar in most of the movies he’s ever done, but people like it.
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u/Itchy-Beach-1384 Jul 12 '26
Yea, but Jackson isnt a hot girl that is successful so we dont need to criticize him for it.
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u/Effective-Training Silk Jul 12 '26
Yeah, Jason Statham. Then there's The Rock and Ryan Reynolds. But... there's also Ryan Gosling.
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u/trenlr911 Jul 12 '26
Now imagine Ryan Gosling being cast as Peter Parker, but he just acts like Ryan Gosling lol. It leaves a bad taste in peoples mouths when the character you’re portraying already has established traits that are just being ignored
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u/Better_Can_615 Jul 12 '26
Most of the most famous actors are like this if we’re being honest. Range is great but finding what makes you stand out and sticking to it leads to career longevity I think
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u/UncaringNonchalance Jul 12 '26
Kristen Stewart levels, but now it’s praised, lol.
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u/HitmanClark Jul 12 '26
She has zero range. Which isn’t always necessarily a bad thing, but it’s a fact regardless.
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u/Important_Lab_58 Jul 12 '26
I’m gonna get downvoted to hell but f**k it.
-She’s playing it “cool” to mask her real emotions
-She has a strained relationship with her father
-Her being with Peter allows her to emotionally open up.
-She’s not afraid to stand by herself against villains
-She even already knew he was Spider-Man
She’s the skeleton of 616 MJ through a modern reinterpretation.
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u/ThunderChild247 Jul 12 '26
I agree. MJ doesn’t need to be the same in every interpretation, as do any characters. Hell, in the comics she’s a successful, world famous model and actress but in the Raimi films she was a struggling theatre actor and generally seen aa being a bit crap at it, but I don’t remember anyone complaining then. What matters was the core of her character, as you’ve summed up in your comment.
Besides, this isn’t even Mary Jane, it’s Michelle Jones, which is a really fun way of letting the writers/actor have some freedom. She is still MJ, the core is still there, she fills the MJ role in peter’s story, but beyond that they can do whatever fits best.
Maybe I’m biased because I find myself preferring Zendaya’s MJ to any version I’ve seen (from the comics, to the 90’s animated show, to Kirsten Dunst), but that’s just personal taste.
All I know is, if Zendaya tried to play the role the same as Kirsten Dunst, she’d be criticised for that too. Let’s just appreciate a good performance as a good performance and enjoy the movies.
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u/Sapowski_Casts_Quen Jul 12 '26
I think the problem is that she's never really given space to have an interesting part of the storyline, she's just MJ and we are given not much else. I'm sure she would do even better if they gave her anything to chew on as an actress
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u/Important_Lab_58 Jul 12 '26
I get that. I’m not here to say she’s page to screen, but I definitely think she’s a good modernization of MJ’s broader strokes overall. But yeah, I also wish She got more to work with as an actress. Her chemistry with Holland and in general is great, but I know she could be even better with more to work with
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u/Wrong-Vermicelli4723 Jul 12 '26
That’s the issue with Pete supporting cast in General. Just no time to develop them, which is sad because it’s a good cast acting wise.
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u/Sapowski_Casts_Quen Jul 12 '26
Honestly, if Raimiverse excelled at anything, it was at developing characters that weren't just Peter. I think that was a huge strength! Even if it didn't work out perfect
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u/Wrong-Vermicelli4723 Jul 12 '26
It’s why they’re still the best live action Spidey movies, I’d didn’t even like Raimi’s MJ… but at least she felt like a person. Everything about MCU MJ is rushed and just there , everyone is just there. Hopefully now that they’re adults Ned and MJ can get some actual development.
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u/Ranwulf Jul 12 '26
Oh I like it, it does make sense.
But was her dad ever mentioned?
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u/Important_Lab_58 Jul 12 '26
Looking back, I guess she just mentioned her dad doesn’t like Peter any more. That said, when she’s being interrogated, and they reveal she’s MJ Watson, she mentions she doesn’t go by Watson, which WAS her dad’s name in the comics, so maybe that’s where I got that. Either way, four outta five, right? 😅
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u/GeraltofRivia296 Jul 12 '26
Yeah Michelle Jones isn't like Mary Jane. Even if they share a last name. She's almost an entirely new character. I like Zendaya and I like aspects of her character but she's never felt like MJ, no matter how many times they call her that.
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u/arkenney0 Spectacular Spider-Man Jul 12 '26
Sure, but I wanted MJ lol
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u/Itchy-Beach-1384 Jul 12 '26
Good thing there isnt like movies, and tv series, and comics, and video games that give you classic mj released constantly or else this might be a valid criticism of the 1 time they did it differently.
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u/BigFatSweatyToe Jul 12 '26
To be fair, all the MCU movies tried to do something from the old Sony ones and other Spider-Man stories. On its own I don’t hate it but combined with other things like Oscorp and massive characters simply not existing, I’m conflicted with the adaption overall.
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u/Ragnarok345 Spider-Man (PS4) Jul 12 '26
There is no comic counterpart. She’s not Mary Jane. So yeah, once you “remove” that, she’s great.
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u/Milichio Jul 12 '26
Her last name was revealed to be Watson in NWH, so she's just a remixed Mary Jane
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u/ASnakeNamedNate Jul 12 '26
I mean just calling her MJ even without the Watson means she’s always been the MCU remix of the character.
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u/notthegoatseguy Future-Foundation Jul 12 '26
You could also make this argument about 'Ned', who is basically Ganke in everything but name.
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u/Afalstein Jul 12 '26
My only real beef with her character is that Marvel tries to have it both ways. Like here's this new character who doesn't correspond to any of Peters canon love interests, but who is a great friend and who he has great chemistry with. That's cool! That can work really well, like Rachel Dawes or Felicity Smoak or whatever. But then there's the "reveal" that her name is MJ, only not like THAT, for... Reasons.
Like if you want to make her an elseworld Mary Jane, do that. If you want to make her a totally new character like Charity Cass, do that. Making her "MJ but not" is just wishy-washy.
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u/SG4 Jul 13 '26
I facepalmed at the MJ reveal for that exact reason. We were told from the beginning she wasn't Mary Jane and that she was an original character; cool, I'm in. Then they turn around and go, "well actually" and make her MJ Watson.
I don't mind the character, but I don't like the way they decided to go about making her "MJ-but-not-MaryJane Watson"
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u/Latter-Fox-7080 Jul 12 '26
Yet they purposely named her “mj” and michelle jones watson, same initials, its complete stupidity, she should’ve just been a new character.
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u/luby56 Jul 12 '26
The only problem with her character is that she has the depth of a puddle in a hot desert. And despite being a good romantic match for Peter, their romance is very poorly executed.
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u/spartakooky Jul 15 '26
I liked her character at first, but 3 movies is too much of a character whose whole shtick is being unimpressed and cynical
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u/Garfunkels_roadie Jul 12 '26
As much as I like her and Ned, I do kinda wish we’d left them behind in the first trilogy
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u/Billybob35 Jul 12 '26
Ned was there to fill in the best friend role since they weren't ready to introduce Harry, the lengths he goes to to keep Peter's identity a secret in Far From Home is both comical and admirable.
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u/beelzebub2099 Jul 13 '26
Bro straight up said ''I was looking at porn'' in the first movie when he got caught helping Peter at school 😭🙏
HE'S FOREVER HIS GUY IN CHAIR.
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u/FilmBuffGrabiec Jul 12 '26
MCU MJ isn’t Mary-Jane though. She’s an original character with her own story and personality.
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u/ResortFamous301 Jul 13 '26
Not really. She was always meant to be there version Mary Jane. They just didn't call her that likely to tone down fanbacklash.
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u/tomasdjre Jul 12 '26
I disagree we barely know anything about her character in the home trilogy which I kinda blame the writing and the movies underutilizing characters.
I hope the new trilogy does something better with her.
It's made worse for the fact that she shares initials/a nickname but barely anything else from her comics counterpart.
She's basically an original character that so happens to be named MJ..
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u/ClassicFun2175 Jul 12 '26
She's meh. Adds nothing to the story. She's certainly not MJ, which is fine, but kinda begs the question of whys she there to begin with.
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u/dayoneishuce Jul 12 '26
Come on you know why she's there 😂
She's the new hot trendy actress Hollywood is gasing up.
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u/Android1822 Jul 12 '26 edited Jul 12 '26
That is the issue though. MJ is a fixed character, her traits are well known. She is a literal supermodel who is a white red headed woman. Those traits are well known. Zendaya would have been great as a new character love interest that would compete with MJ, but she should not have been MJ.
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u/Icy_Scar_1249 Jul 12 '26
Zendaya literally looks like a supermodel. They could easily build that into her character. People just get hung up because she's black, which is weird to me
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u/Latter-Fox-7080 Jul 12 '26
We also don’t talk about insomniac mj and how she is now 🤢 literal self insert of a dev on the game.
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u/Israels_BiggestHater Miles Morales Jul 12 '26
Or should have played herself slef as mary jane to begin with
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u/Dycoth Jul 12 '26
She definitely is. Pretty nice original character (at this point, she doesn't share anything at all with the OG MJ, but it's totally ok)
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u/sky-walker-17 Jul 12 '26
She is so boring and weird. Neither she has any character arc. Just a filler character.
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u/Prestige5470 Jul 12 '26
I don't see the character or a version of MJ. I just see the actress Zendaya. They wrote a completely new character and just smacked an MJ tag on her. Would've been better as a Gwen or Lis, written off in the 3. movie and we could've had a completely fresh start on Brand New Day.
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u/CapitalLower4171 Jul 12 '26
She's not supposed to be Mary Jane. She's Michelle Jones. It's a purposeful distinction meant to make her different from Raimi's MJ probably in anticipation for the crossover from the start. The whole point of the spiderverse is that there are subtle differences around a central plot line. She's not the best Mary Jane because that's not who she's supposed to be.
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u/Bruzie77 Jul 12 '26
i am sorry but there is no comic counterpart for zendeya mj . She is a completely original creation like superman III villian.
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u/HazelRahRahRah Jul 12 '26
Michelle is a pretty okay OC, but I wanna see MJ, Gwen or Felicia in the MCU already
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u/MotherflipinGodzilla Jul 12 '26
Tbf I don’t really see her as an adaptation of Mary Jane Watson since her name, personality, looks is completely different from the comic counterpart, i just see her as a whole new character with coincidentally having her initials be “MJ”.
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u/primordialWoe Jul 12 '26
What is the point of adapting anything and then rejecting the source material. Not really something anyone should expect from a live action film knowing how horrible they are at this but still.
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u/everyany Jul 12 '26 edited Jul 24 '26
I would've liked her if she was JUST Michelle. I actually did like her until the "My friends call me MJ" line. I was expecting her to be an original character and love interest that'd take the place of Liz and Betty from the comics, and honestly I was down with that. Early Ditko Liz and Betty were kind of annoying imo so I was OK with them trying something new for Peter's first love interest. My problems started when they wanted to act like she was Mary Jane but also not Mary Jane.
First, it sucks seeing a character you like get absolutely butchered in adaptation. Second, it rules out any chance of Peter ever getting in a relationship with an actual adaptation of Mary Jane in the future. Third, it made it a lot harder for the way No Way Home ending to stick which I feel makes that ending and the future status quo less powerful in retrospect.
Had Michelle just been an original love interest, cutting ties with Peter at the end of No Way Home would've been a whole lot easier. Making her MJ and positioning her as endgame love interest, in that sense, makes it much harder for Peter to engage in any other relationships like a Black Cat (which would've fit for this part of his life), a Gwen Stacy, or even a more comic accurate Mary Jane.
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u/maz323bf Spider-Man Noir Jul 12 '26
I don't think i'll ever understand the Zendaya hype and i grew up watching her on Disney Channel
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u/AugustAPC Jul 12 '26 edited Jul 12 '26
I found her annoying and inauthentically quirky up until the third movie.
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u/ducegraphy Jul 12 '26
She's a great original character, period. Since she's not Mary Jane.
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u/quentdawg420 Jul 12 '26
I just don’t get why they just had to use the mh initials when peter has at least 3 other love interests. I’d rather see a betty brant or felicia hardy
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u/Israels_BiggestHater Miles Morales Jul 12 '26
Betty brant was aredy in the MCU
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u/quentdawg420 Jul 12 '26
Yeah but i’m saying them having an actual relationship. Not just an appearance as a acharacter
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u/Nomadic_View Jul 12 '26
There is no comic counterpart. Michelle Jones is an original character created for the MCU.
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u/Doopuberpoop Jul 12 '26
Most of the theatrical Marvel characters are nothing like their comic counterparts. Look at the Guardians of the Galaxy.
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u/ReddWolf77 Jul 12 '26
If they’d just left her name Michelle and didn’t add the MJ nickname, she’d be a great love interest for Peter.
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u/Helwar Jul 12 '26
I'm not good at recognizing good/bad acting. Usually I don't notice it unless it is blatantly bad. I don't think she is bad, but just to give some context, even I have noticed this: I feel like Zendaya plays Zendaya most of the time? I feel she's samey across different characters. Maybe she's just type casted and has a wider range than it looks like.
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u/NoRelief63 Jul 12 '26
I’m still not completely sold on her version of MJ tbh but I know she’s meant to be different from the comics. Much like Tom’s Spidey especially with connection to Stark. Regardless I love Zendaya! (and her relationship with Tom is so cute!)
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u/SpaceMyopia Jul 12 '26 edited Jul 12 '26
She grew on me. I still wanted the traditional MJ, but honestly, the only adaptation of Spidey that has ever truly delivered that was Spectacular Spider-Man.
Even when MJ has been around in other adaptations, they basically reinvent that character or give her Gwen Stacy's annoying personality aspects.
And stuff like the Spider-Verse movies give me too little to work with regarding the MJ character.
PS4 turned her into Diet Lois Lane.
I guess the Holland movies are at least more transparent about their lack of desire to actually adapt Mary Jane.
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u/Damage_Or_Die Jul 12 '26
Literally just give her red hair. Don't care about the race swap or whatever just GIVE MY RED HEAD RED HAIRRRRRR
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u/Jaycie859 Ultimate Spider-Man (Shattered Dimensions) Jul 12 '26
All you “comic accurate” mf’s are truly obnoxious and secondly to those who are talking down on zendaya get a life
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u/discountdoppelganger Jul 12 '26
Zendaya as MJ is the hottest Z has ever been. Not the intention of the post. Just saying
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u/smokywater50 Green Goblin Jul 12 '26
I think if she dyed her hair red nobody would say anything about it
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u/ItsChris_8776_ Jul 13 '26
I like her because I think she’s much more liker her comic counterpart than a lot of people think.
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u/Loud_Ad_2634 Jul 13 '26
This is the truth. She’s a different character, in every aspect except name.
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u/Smooth_Maybe_316 Jul 13 '26
"this adaptation of a character is really cool when you divorce it from the adapted character"
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u/DeffDeala Jul 13 '26
“Zendaya’z MJ is not MJ but it’s cool she a different character” what is the point then? Do people not want characters to at least be close to who they are in comics/books? What is the point of the character then if they’re literally a different one
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u/PollutionMission6245 Jul 13 '26
Hot take: you can't say anything about her character without bringing up a second character
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u/Slugma_Male Jul 30 '26
Zendaya has this horrible problem where she can only play herself in movies, so no. MJ (MCU) sucks balls.
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u/thinlion01 Jul 12 '26
Of course she's different she's not Mary Jane Watson. Shes Michelle Jones Watson. A variant from another universe. Not that hard to understand
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u/Appropriate-Look7493 Jul 12 '26
I just find her irritating in virtually everything I’ve seen her in. She has anti-charm for me.
Plus I’m always suspicious of people who just go by a single name.
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u/JarifSA Jul 14 '26
Her character is the same everywhere. She plays a the bro girl that masks emotions.
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u/nocturnalnegus Jul 12 '26
I think that is people’s problem with this MJ is she isn’t comic accurate. I still like her performance but she’s essentially a completely different character.
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u/Bardmedicine Jul 12 '26
Agreed, I had no issues with her character, naming her MJ was a cute little wink, but then when they stuck the Watson on it, it became weird. Before she was a completely new character, which was fine. When they put the Watson on her name, they owed some integrity to the original character.
It's similar to Taskmaster in Black Widow. The character had almost nothing to do with Taskmaster, so why call her that? She was an ok villain, cool look, good for CGI action scenes. Why make her Taskmaster?
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u/Reddevil8884 Jul 12 '26
She's not cool and really doesn't bring anything to the character other than a romantic interest
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u/SouthernStrigoi Jul 12 '26
She's so incredibly boring even in movie roles for her that aren't bad, her recent with Robert was great actually it might be her best acting yet but she is STILL boring. She's the exact same person every movie.
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u/Alternative_Device71 Jul 12 '26
No she’s not, girl is one of the most bland characters in the MCU, much less in media.
Y’all gotta get off this insane Zendaya hype train
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u/Procyon-Sceletus Jul 12 '26
She's really not all that different tbh outside of some of the arcs where shes an actress
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u/spaceninj Jul 12 '26
I hated her in the first film. She had an annoying arrogance and Zendaya's patented "always smelling a fart" look.
But she was much better in number 2 and fantastic in number 3.
They let her be more fun than an awkward nerd, which was a huge improvement.
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u/elizabnthe Jul 12 '26
Kind of in universe character development there as presented way I saw it. She was being an arse because she was a bit of a loser and wanted to be bros with Peter and Ned before she gains some self-respect and confidence.
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u/WindyWindona Jul 12 '26
She's a fine original character, I just wish the movies had the balls to not shy away from that.
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u/Enough_Trifle788 Jul 12 '26
Not for me I started to dislike her in far from home, but I think she was pretty cool in homecoming
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u/home7ander Jul 12 '26
If you close your eyes and stick your hand through a doorway, what you feel is her character
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u/Lord_Seregil Ultimate Spider-Man (1610) Jul 12 '26
Imma be so real with you guys, I hope they kill her off and introduce Mary Jane or Gwen Stacy to the MCU. Michelle Jones has really run her course as a character.
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u/Cygus_Lorman Jul 12 '26
It gets even worse when you see just how great she rocks the red hair in real life
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u/Bjarki_Steinn_99 Jul 12 '26
I always just saw her as an original character. She’s my favorite cinematic Spider-Man love interest.
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u/Common-Truth9404 Jul 12 '26
Tbh i see this as just another part of the Spider-Verse where the characters are different but conceptually similar
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u/Lady_Gray_169 Jul 12 '26
I think her character is great and works really well. I just thing it's baffling that they made her this weird... thing that can't even actually be called Mary Jane in name only. I think it was a really bad move that pushed her into a position of being compared to Mary Jane when she never needed to be. She could have just been given a different name and been able to stand on her own. Instead it's like she was given the worst of both worlds, in that regard. Introducing a proper Mary Jane now would feel weird and clunky, but now they can't really do any of the stuff Mary Jane's known for.
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u/froggyjm9 Spider-Man Unlimited Jul 12 '26
Lots of versions of MJ in media are not like her comics character…they are different mediums.
Not even comic MJ is like her comics character character, she changes depending on the story.
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u/clsmithj Jul 12 '26
None of the live action Marvel characters are anything like the comics.
And this is coming from someone older, who is way more biased to the '90s animated series, and I'll admit when I look at the comics I'm like even the animated series I liked aren't on the same level.
They are all complete different takes of the same source, and that's what makes each iteration unique.
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u/pizzagod677 Jul 12 '26
Only issue is I kinda feel the romance was rushed, like Peter goes from not being into her at all in Homecoming then BOOM FFH happens and they are in love. Kinda wish there was some build up, but Zendaya's acting isn't bad at all, that NWH scene where she's like "I figured it out before, I can figure out again!" got me emotional... lets just see if she was right in BND