The Character The Falcon And The Winter Soldier Wasn't Allowed To Use In Its Finale
When the first slate of Marvel shows were announced for Disney+, there were plenty of reasons to be excited. Unlike previous series like "Daredevil" and "Jessica Jones," these were going to be shows that directly utilized characters and plot points from the MCU films. With the MCU's latest offering — "The Falcon and the Winter Soldier" — we finally got a better look at how the world has been adapting in the aftermath of the events of "Avengers: Endgame," which saw half the population Snap back into existence.
The series directly picks up where "Endgame" left off, with Sam Wilson (Anthony Mackie) initially turning down Cap's shield to disastrous consequences. We also get to see War Machine (Don Cheadle) stop by in the first episode to give Sam a bit of a pep talk. It's a great moment of worldbuilding that helps set the stage for "Captain America 4."
Still, one can't help but wonder if the show was prepared to go even deeper into the MCU bench. While it sounds like nothing too grand ever made it beyond the initial planning stages, there was one key character fans almost got see in the finale — and he's definitely not a back-bencher.
There were talks of having Peter Parker come into play for The Falcon and the Winter Soldier
The final battle on "The Falcon and the Winter Soldier" takes place after the Flag-Smashers attack the Global Repatriation Council in New York City. It's quite the display, complete with helicopters and hostages locked away in vans. With all that commotion, you have to wonder where all of the New York-based superheroes like Spider-Man (Tom Holland) are. It seems like the kind of thing they would want to lend a hand with, and that's precisely what head writer Malcolm Spellman discussed in an interview with Inverse.
The interviewer asks whether there were ever any plans to use Spider-Man or other heroes throughout the first season, to which Spellman responded, "Of course! Then Kevin Feige tells you, 'No. Stop it.'" He went on to talk about the process of determining which characters were actually available for the Disney+ series: "Listen, when you first show up to these projects, in your mind you think you're gonna get to use everybody in the MCU. But Marvel always asks, 'Does this person belong in this story? You cannot just geek out and put all of our characters in your project because you like them. They have to occur organically.' So Spider-Man did not make it."
While fans would've undoubtedly cheered to see Spider-Man swing into action alongside the new Captain America, it ultimately wouldn't make sense for the story. "The Falcon and the Winter Soldier" depicts the emotional and spiritual journeys of Sam and Bucky (Sebastian Stan), and the finale needed to reflect that. Besides, audiences will get to see Spidey again soon enough when he swings back to theaters in "Spider-Man: No Way Home" in December 2021.