The cast of Spider-Man: Homecoming simply refuses to stop growing. Now, a Marvel Cinematic Universe favorite is making his return to the big screen, as Jon Favreau is set to reprise the role he played for the first time in Iron Man back in 2008. Yes, Tony Stark's right-hand-man Happy Hogan is now set to appear in the movie.
Variety broke the news on Thursday, but the report didn't say anything about how large of a role Happy will play in the movie. Our best guess is, not a very big one, given the staggering size of the cast at this point. Marvel and Sony have also yet to comment on the news, but fans will likely welcome the appearance of Favreau in the movie, given that he hasn't appeared in an MCU movie since Iron Man 3 in 2013, making it four years since his last appearance by the time Spider-Man: Homecoming hits theaters.
Outside of playing Happy Hogan, Marvel fans owe quite the debt of gratitude to Favreau. Long before Disney purchased Marvel Studios seven years ago and long before The Avengers got together, Favreau directed Iron Man, the very first MCU movie, and championed Robert Downey Jr. for the lead role in the movie. By almost all accounts, that seems to be working out pretty well. Favreau also directed Iron Man 2, which brought Scarlett Johannson into the MCU as Black Widow, and was the introduction of Don Cheadle as James 'Rhodey' Rhodes/War Machine.
We don't know a ton about Spider-Man: Homecoming as of yet, at least in terms of specific plot details, but we do know that it is taking place mostly in a high school setting with Tom Holland returning as Peter Parker, and that the supporting cast is absolutely massive. Michael Keaton will be playing the Vulture, and he will be joined by Marisa Tomei as Aunt May, Martin Starr, Angourie Rice, Logan Marshall-Green, Donald Glover, Hannibal Buress, who is playing Peter's gym teacher, Tony Revolori, who will be playing Flash Thompson, Michael Chernus as the Tinkerer, and Zendaya, who is all but confirmed to be playing Mary Jane Watson. Robert Downey Jr. is also set to appear as Tony Stark, but maybe not Iron Man, as he is reportedly taking on more of a mentor's role in the movie. That is also likely how Favreau's Happy will fit into the picture. Bokeem Woodbine is also set to play Shocker, and there are rumors that Scarlett Johansson will appear. So yeah, totally stacked.
Cop Car director Jon Watts is currently busy filming the movie in Atlanta from a script by Jonathan Goldstein and John Francis Daley. Tom Holland made his debut as Spider-Man in the MCU in this summer's Captain America: Civil War, which is currently the highest grossing movie of 2016 and received a lot of praise, in large part thanks to Holland's performance as Peter Parker/Spider-Man. Spider-Man: Homecoming is set to hit theaters on July 7, 2017.