Even though we didn’t see Willem Dafoe’s face in the latest Spider-Man: No Way Home trailer, the cavalcade of Green Goblin goodness more than makes up for Sony’s marketing department deciding that sticking a teeny tiny version of the iconic villain in the background of both posters was the way to hype up his involvement.
Dafoe chewing on the scenery was one of the highlights from Sam Raimi’s Spider-Man two decades ago, and you’d be hard-pressed to find any actor in the business who can do bug-eyed mania any better. Rumors continue to abound that Norman Osborn will be revealed as the one pulling the strings behind the multiverse’s big bads bandying together to take over the Marvel Cinematic Universe’s Sacred Timeline, but fans are hyped to see him back regardless.
Even though his costume isn’t all that different from the one he sported 20 years ago, which came in for heavy criticism from comic book fans at the time, absence always makes the heart grow fonder. No longer is this Green Goblin a Power Rangers reject; he’s a welcome presence in what’s shaping up to be one of the biggest comic book movies ever.
There might even be a final trailer to come before Spider-Man: No Way Home comes to theaters next month, so perhaps this isn’t the last we’ll see of the cackling glider enthusiast in the promo materials.