SPIDER-MAN: FAR FROM HOME Star Jake Gyllenhaal Opens Up On His Role As Mysterio

Following the release of the first Spider-Man: Far From Home trailer, Jake Gyllenhaal has talked more about playing the heroic (?) Mysterio in the sequel and what exactly he hopes to bring to the role...

By JoshWilding - Jan 17, 2019 10:01 AM EST

Filed Under: Far From Home

Once upon a time, Jake Gyllenhaal was slated to replace Tobey Maguire as the new Spider-Man. That obviously didn't pan out but he'll now enter the wall-crawler's world in Spider-Man: Far From Home as Mysterio; a character that comic book fans will know as a villain, but who will seemingly be introduced as a hero.

During an appearance on The Late Show with Stephen Colbert, the actor was asked if he's playing a bad guy and he refused to confirm or deny anything regarding Mysterio's status. He did, however, shed some light on why he's chosen now to make the leap from Indie movies to the blockbuster Marvel Cinematic Universe.

"I guess the movies I make are a little weird. It is different and it’s really fun, I was looking for a role in a space that felt like I could do something with it – and I did something with it. I don’t know how good I did with it but I did something with it. It’s very exciting."

Just like Michael Keaton's Vulture, we'll presumably see more of Mysterio somewhere down the line, especially if Marvel Studios is planning to build to the Sinister Six.

The full interview is well worth a watch so make sure to check it out below.

For a recap of all the villain and MCU character cameos
in this trailer, hit the "View List" button below!

Happy Hogan

The trailer kicks off with Peter's Aunt May clearly enjoying her nephew's fame but things take an unexpected turn when Happy Hogan arrives and, well, the two of them seem to be getting on a little too well for the wall-crawler's liking!

Happy played a small but pivotal role in Spider-Man: Homecoming and with Tony Stark's status unclear following the events of Avengers: Endgame, it makes sense for him to step up here (it also wouldn't have really added up for Tony to be romantically involved with May now he's rekindled things with Pepper Potts).

The question is, when did Happy and May get the chance to grow close? Presumably, it has something to do with the charitable work Peter appears to be doing as his superhero alter-ego.

Yes, Uncle Ben Exists In The MCU

There was no mention of Uncle Ben in the last movie and that's led to some speculation he may not exist in the Marvel Cinematic Universe despite Peter hinting at his death in Captain America: Civil War.

Well, look closely at the youngster's weathered suitcase and you'll see that it says "BFP" across the side. That has to be an indication that it once belonged to Benjamin (Frankin?) Parker and even if that's the only reference we get here, comic book fans will no doubt appreciate that Uncle Ben is being acknowledged in some way here.

Unfortunately, I highly doubt we'll ever see a physical appearance from Uncle Ben in the MCU.

Nick Fury

There's no sign of Maria Hill in the Spider-Man: Far From Home trailer (well, not from the front, at least) but we know that she'll make an appearance thanks to set photos which started doing the rounds online last year.

Nick Fury has a large role to play here, though, and it seems as if he's been keeping tabs on Spider-Man for a while now, hence why he knows his secret identity and hijacks his school trip. There's no indication of S.H.I.E.L.D. having any sort of involvement but Fury certainly seems to have resources so it could be that the agency has reformed at this point in time.

No explanation is given for Spider-Man's new costumes but I'm betting he has Fury to thank!

Sandman?

At CCXP in Brazil last year, we learned that Spidey will be squaring off with the Elementals but this monster doesn't bear much of a resemblance to any of the members from either comic book group with that name.

It does, however, share some similarities with Sandman but the presence of rocks (and the apparent lack of personality) definitely leads me to think that this is simply a reimagined version of an Elemental rather than Flint Marko because it would be a waste to turn him into a rampaging pawn.

Molten Man?

We heard months ago that Molten Man would appear in this movie and...uh...here he is?

Once again, I'm not convinced. This creature looks far too monstrous to be that fire-based villain and I would definitely argue that of all the monsters shown, this one looks the most "elemental."

Still, in terms of powers, there are definitely some similarities between this and Mark Raxton.

Hydro-Man?

Yes, another question mark but this definitely looks like Hydro-Man and it's hard to imagine the character being portrayed any differently to this. So, while the door could still be open to comic book accurate versions of Sandman and Molten Man appearing somewhere down the line, I definitely think this is the closest we'll see to Morrie Bench showing up in the Marvel Cinematic Universe.

Mysterio

This trailer finally pulls back the curtain on Mysterio and I think it's fair to say that none of us expected him to be portrayed in such a comic accurate way. From the green mist that flows out of his hands to that familiar fishbowl helmet, it appears as if Marvel Studios went to great lengths to bring this villain to the big screen in the way we all hoped.

We heard at CCXP that Quentin Beck may actually be on the side of the angels and that he and Spider-Man will be working together. There's no mention of that in this trailer but it certainly seems as if Mysterio is saving the day in this battle against Hydro-Man.

But What's The Deal With His Powers?

Here's something we didn't read in the descriptions of the trailer that popped up online last month.

Mysterio's powers definitely appear to be magic based as symbols are being conjured in front of his hands which don't look at that different to what we see from Doctor Strange during his adventures. Rather than Beck making his suit from salvaged Chitauri tech, is it possible that he's a failed sorcerer who is now using his limited abilities for nefarious means?

That would definitely be a more interesting route to take things down that recycling a plot point from Spider-Man: Homecoming and basically making him Vulture 2.0 as a result.

For a recap of everything you need to know about the Elementals
which we first shared last month, continue reading below!

Are They Classic Spider-Man Villains?

For months now, we've been hearing that characters like Hydro-Man and Molten Man will be making an appearance in Far From Home but is that who these "Elementals" are supposed to be?

In the trailer description which started doing the rounds after it premiered at CCXP, we heard that one of these villains is made of sand so speculation immediately started running rampant (and understandably so) that Sandman might be returning to the big screen.

While it's possible that the Elementals will resemble these familiar comic book villains, it's important to note that there are actually two comic book teams who share this name that will more than likely end up being used in the sequel...

Elementals

Introduced in the pages of Supernatural Thrillers #8 way back in 1974, the Elementals crossed paths with Ms. Marvel way back when but they've never met up with Spider-Man.

They're an ancient group that was supposedly cast out of their own universe long before event Atlantis was built and their attempt to take over ancient Egypt once again led to them being banished, this time from the one that would one day be home to Earth's Mightiest Heroes.

They later showed up in the present day alongside the Living Mummy and they each have elemental powers which are obvious from their names: Hellfire, Hydron, Magnum, Zephyr.

Elementals Of Doom

This group of villains arrived in 1981's Fantastic Four #232 and have battled both that team and Valkyrie over the years. The living embodiment of the four elements (air, water, fire, and earth), the monstrous looking group were led by Diablo and their origin stories are something of a mystery beyond them having something to do with "Talismans of Power."

After repeated battles with the Fantastic Four, they returned - once again under Diablo's control - as a single being, the Elematrix.

The question now is, which of the two teams are going to make their way to the Marvel Cinematic Universe? There are certainly elements of both that would work given what we know...

Who Is Spider-Man Fighting?

Based on this intel, I believe that we're going to see a very loose adaptation on the Elementals of Doom in Far From Home. It doesn't make much sense for the Elementals to be used given their ancient history and based on the monstrous appearance of the creatures shown in the trailer, that sounds a lot more like the group that once battled the Fantastic Four.

I appreciate that some fans are disappointed that this obscure group is being used in the sequel but would you prefer to get watered down versions of characters like Sandman and Molten Man similar to the way Rhino was used in The Amazing Spider-Man 2?

The Truth Behind These Villains

If you've read the comic books, you'll no doubt have already figured out that these bad guys are going to either be illusions created by Mysterio or somehow brought to life by his "special effects."

He clearly wants to present himself as a superhero based on what we've heard about this take on Quentin Beck and that fits right in with many of his earliest appearances. Creating monsters all over Europe he can defeat would accomplish that and the Elementals of Doom are a much better choice than just a random group of creatures with no roots in the source material.

"Brothers In Arms"

During their appearance at the Brazil Comic-Con, Tom Holland and Jake Gyllenhaal revealed that Spider-Man and Mysterio will be like brothers in Far From Home as Nick Fury gets them to work together to stop these Elementals from causing any more chaos.

That's certainly a pretty unexpected approach to their dynamic but one which could be really interesting, especially when Beck is finally outed as a supervillain and the two come to blows. Still, that's unlikely to stop many fans from complaining about this.

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75 Comments

1 2

HeavyMetal4Life - 1/17/2019, 8:01 AM

Mysterio you say??? ;-)

CurlyBill - 1/17/2019, 10:26 AM

@HeavyMetal4Life - Those triangles in the green force feild he is generating makes me think he is a sorcerer/ or failed one.

HeavyMetal4Life - 1/17/2019, 10:32 AM

@CurlyBill - or a wannabe sorcerer. Those triangle eyes are from the comics.

KWilly - 1/17/2019, 10:32 AM

@CurlyBill -

HeavyMetal4Life - 1/17/2019, 8:53 AM

Can't wait to see Jake make his debut in the MCU, one of the best actors out there.

MotherGooseUPus - 1/17/2019, 10:12 AM

@HeavyMetal4Life - seriously. guy is wicked talented and criminally underrated. love almost anything he is in these days

HeavyMetal4Life - 1/17/2019, 10:16 AM

@MotherGooseUPus - I'm looking forward to his upcoming Electric Buzzsaw film

MotherGooseUPus - 1/17/2019, 10:18 AM

@HeavyMetal4Life - **Velvet
and yes, i agree.. movies looks intense as f*ck with so solid talent including Jake

HeavyMetal4Life - 1/17/2019, 10:23 AM

@MotherGooseUPus - hahaha Velvet, wonder where I got electric from. Was Electeic Buzzsaw the name of one of the villains from The Running Man??

MotherGooseUPus - 1/17/2019, 11:59 AM

@HeavyMetal4Life -

Solarkalel85 - 1/17/2019, 3:22 PM

@MotherGooseUPus - never really thought about it before but he is very underrated.

MotherGooseUPus - 1/17/2019, 10:14 AM

Such a great actor. Just hope they bring him back for more movies cuz i have a feeling his Mysterio is guna be a scene stealer and i can't wait to see what happens. Lets go

FireandBlood - 1/17/2019, 10:19 AM

They’ve really been knocking it out of the park when it comes to casting MCU Spidey’s villains. Can’t wait to see who’ll they will get to eventually play Norman.

Bokis - 1/17/2019, 10:49 AM

@PlusUltra - Michael Keaton killed it as the Vulture but I always thought he’d make a good Norman Osborne!

FireandBlood - 1/17/2019, 10:50 AM

@Bokis - You know who would make a good Norman?

HeavyMetal4Life - 1/17/2019, 10:55 AM

@PlusUltra -

BIGBMH - 1/17/2019, 10:58 AM

@PlusUltra - I can't see him doing it, but I do think he'd be good

ArthurFleck - 1/17/2019, 12:07 PM

@PlusUltra - Bale could play Barney the purple dinosaur and win an Oscar. Mans got more talent in his pinky finger than my entire family history.

ThouBear8 - 1/17/2019, 12:49 PM

@PlusUltra - that's actually a brilliant choice that I haven't heard before. He'd be fantastic as Norman

barisax - 1/17/2019, 10:19 AM

I'm still wondering if the Elementals are special effects constructs that Mysterio dreamed up to make himself a hero.

Bokis - 1/17/2019, 10:51 AM

@barisax - My biggest gripe with Mysterio is that his illusions don’t make sense. The Elementals are obviously not holograms and they can’t be robots, right?

CapnMurphy2021 - 1/17/2019, 11:14 AM

@Bokis - in the comics it’s like that...

DalekCraigWasson - 1/17/2019, 11:22 AM

@Bokis - My guess is Mysterio is literally manipulating the elements like puppets on strings, but with alien tech, not magic, and that is how Keaton factors into it.

ArthurFleck - 1/17/2019, 12:22 PM

@DalekCraigWasson - I dont think they are actually the Elementals. I think they are taking the idea of the Elementals and replacing them with similar yet more well known villians.

My proof, you ask?

In the trailer, the shot with Ned on the boat getting his picture taken, behind him is a boat in the WATER and written on it is "ASM 212" and what's on the cover of Amazing Spider Man issue 212.... Hydroman.

Later in the shot when Ned, MJ and people are running away at night on a bridge as crazy stuff is happening all around them, these a car with a license plate that reads "2865 SEP" and issue 28 of Amazing Spiderman came out in September of 1965 and featured Molten Man as the villain.

So signs are pointing towards them not necessarily being the Elementals, but its probably more likely they aren't even people but constructs or something created by Mysterio.