MCU's Original Vulture Casting Would Have Killed Tom Holland's Spider-Man Series Before It Began

Published Jul 18, 2026, 8:30 AM EDT

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When Homecoming was first being made, however, president of Marvel Studios Kevin Feige envisioned a different actor playing the role. In a recent interview, Hamilton creator and star Lin-Manuel Miranda revealed he was asked to play Vulture in Homecoming. Miranda also said that he turned down the role since Homecoming was filming very shortly after his Broadway production of Hamilton was ending, and he wanted to spend more time with his wife.

Lin-Manuel Miranda being cast as Vulture in Spider-Man: Homecoming would have been disastrous for the film. Miranda is an acquired taste, one that is usually associated with Disney musicals like Encanto and Moana. While he was at the peak of his fame in 2016 and 2017, Miranda isn't really the kind of actor who could play a major, threatening supervillain. Miranda himself even said as much in the same interview, when he noted that he would have been "terrible" and "horribly miscast," while Keaton was "perfect."

If Lin-Manuel Miranda had gotten the part in Homecoming instead of Keaton, the entire franchise may have been dead in the water. So much of Homecoming hinges on Vulture as a villain. He's the connective tissue between Peter and Spider-Man, he gives the relatively grounded movie real and impactful stakes, and he gave Tom Holland countless chances to shine. If Miranda had gotten the role, Homecoming wouldn't have been the hit it was, and Holland's Spider-Man series wouldn't have become the massive juggernaut it is today.

Michael Keaton's Vulture Had A Gravitas The MCU's Spider-Man Needed

Lin-Manuel Miranda actually explained why he would have been a bad fit for Vulture himself: Michael Keaton was simply perfect for the role. As previously mentioned, Spider-Man: Homecoming is a relatively grounded movie, especially among the other MCU films. Spider-Man is a street-level hero fighting a street-level villain to stop a relatively mundane weapons theft. The world isn't at stake, and Homecoming actually makes it clear several times that the stakes are relatively low for the MCU.

Homecoming, as a superhero movie, still needed big stakes and a way to create tension without threats to destroy the world. Luckily, Michael Keaton was playing the movie's villain. Keaton brought a gravitas and commanding screen presence to Vulture that made Homecoming work as a whole. Every time Keaton was on the screen, he felt like a very real and very dangerous threat to Peter.

Just look at the car interrogation scene in Homecoming as an example. It's a relatively simple moment, one where Vulture figures out Peter is Spider-Man and threatens him to stay away. Keaton, however, made that into a skin-crawling scene that was absolutely oozing with tension. Nine years later, it's still the standout moment in a movie filled with web-swinging acrobatics, massive midair explosions, and some great fight scenes.

If anyone other than Keaton had played Vulture, Spider-Man: Homecoming wouldn't have been the hit that it is. The movie would have been much less exciting, much less suspenseful, and much less successful. Tom Holland wouldn't have gotten the chance to show off his ability to portray Peter's courage in the face of a terrifying enemy, and there's a good chance his entire Spider-Man series wouldn't be the same, even though Vulture only appeared in Homecoming.

Other Marvel Characters Lin-Manuel Miranda Can Play In The MCU

Just because Lin-Manuel Miranda wouldn't have been the right choice to play Vulture in the Marvel Cinematic Universe doesn't, however, mean that there's no place for him in the franchise. Miranda said in the same interview that he would have been willing to join the MCU with a different character, and if there was less of a scheduling conflict. His reputation and style as an actor would also work for other Marvel characters.

One option for a character Lin-Manuel Miranda could play in the MCU was actually suggested by him years ago. In 2016, presumably after turning down Spider-Man: Homecoming, Miranda said he wanted to play Carnage, the red symbiote and offspring of Venom (via Vulture). Tom Hardy's Venom did appear at the end of No Way Home, but the MCU still doesn't have its own version of Carnage yet. Miranda could be the right choice, given his passion for the character.

Keeping with Spider-Man, Miranda could play a character connected to Miles Morales, given the newer Spider-Man's Puerto Rican heritage. Alternatively, he could be a good fit for an X-Man like Sunspot, albeit an older version of the character than the one in X-Men '97. He could also play a more musically-inclined character, like longtime Hulk sidekick Rick Jones. In short, while Vulture in Spider-Man: Homecoming may not have been a good fit for Lin-Manuel Miranda, the MCU could easily fit him in somewhere else.