How DoesMadame WebFit Into theSpider-Manand Marvel Movie Universes? What to Know Before Seeing

Mar. 15, 2025

Dakota Johnson in Madame Web.Photo:Jessica Kourkounis/SONY PICTURES

Jessica Kourkounis/SONY PICTURES

Dakota Johnson’sMadame Webis touted asa “different” kind of superhero movie, and it’s one that stems from the world ofSpider-Man.

In it, Johnson, 34, plays a New York City paramedic named Cassandra Webb who gains clairvoyant abilities that allow her to see the future. Her newfound powers intertwine with three young women: Julia Cornwall (Sydney Sweeney), Mattie Franklin (Celeste O’Connor) and Anya Corazon (Isabela Merced).

“I wasn’t super into comic books before. This was a new world to me, so it was Cassie and this movie that brought me in,” Johnson told PEOPLE at the movie’s premiere in Los Angeles Monday.

“It’s about female empowerment and women supporting each other and protecting each other and stepping into their own power.”

Her powers are closely connected to Spider-Man and other spider-powered characters from the comic books. The characters Sweeney, O’Connor and Merced play in the movie are younger versions of characters who use the names Spider-Woman and Spider-Girl at various points in the comics.

The new movie falls into Sony’s larger universe ofSpider-Man-related projects that began with 2018’sVenom, starringTom Hardy.

The studio produced theTobey MaguireandAndrew Garfield–ledSpider-Manmovies plus the animatedSpider-Versefilms and co-producesTom Holland’sSpider-Manfilms with Marvel Studios. It’s releasingMadame Webalongside a thirdVenomfilm and the upcomingKraven the Hunterlater in 2024.

Madame Web poster.Marvel/Columbia Pictures/Courtesy Everett Collection

Marvel/Columbia Pictures/Courtesy Everett Collection

Those movies and 2022’sMorbiuseach build around Spider-Man adjacent characters for a universe Sony has developed.

While Spider-Man himself has yet to appear in any of these movies,Madame Webshares some familiar characters and references.

Adam Scottplays Ben Parker, whomSpider-Manfans will recognize as Peter’s uncle whose death serves as the hero’s origin story. Meanwhile,Emma Robertsplays Mary Parker, Peter’s soon-to-be mother.

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Dakota Johnson in Madame Web.Beth Dubber/SONY PICTURES

Beth Dubber/SONY PICTURES

A number of characters inMadame Webalso had appearances in Sony’s 2023 animated movieAcross the Spider-Verseas members of the larger interconnected world of Spider-powered heroes.

Despite all these connections, however, the new movie intends to tell a standalone story.

“She’s definitely in a standalone world,” director SJ Clarkson toldEntertainment Weekly. “I was able to just have free rein and let the movie be what it needed to be, as opposed to trying to force it into something else. That was a gift, in a way, to be able to take something and bring a fresh and I hope original take to it.”

“Madame Web”.Jessica Kourkounis/SONY PICTURES

Still, Jeff Gomez, a former Sony story consultant, recently toldVarietythat Sony could useMadame Webas a means of connecting the disparate storylines down the road.

“Madame Web, in the comics, tied together the multiverse forSpider-Mancharacters,” he said. “The purpose of doing that movie — I would think — would be to essentially set up a superhighway between universes.”

An official synopsis forMadame Webreiterates that the film is “the standalone origin story of one of Marvel publishing’s most enigmatic heroines.”

“The suspense-driven thriller stars Dakota Johnson as Cassandra Webb, a paramedic in Manhattan who develops the power to see the future and realizes she can use that insight to change it. Forced to confront revelations about her past, she forges a relationship with three young women bound for powerful destinies — if they can all survive a deadly present.”

Madame Webis in theaters now.

source: people.com