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Rumors have been swirling for months that Alfred Molina would reprise his role as Doctor Octopus for Spider-Man: No Way Home, and treated as all but confirmed. Now, though, we have word straight from Doc Ock himself thanks to a new interview with Variety about his role in the recent thriller Promising Young Woman.
“When we were shooting [Spider-Man: No Way Home], we were all under orders not to talk about it, because it was supposed to be some great big secret,” Molina told Variety. “But, you know, it’s all over the internet. I actually described myself as the worst-kept secret in Hollywood!”
Going back to the role of Otto Octavius, Molina said, “was wonderful.”
“It was very interesting going back after 17 years to play the same role, given that in the intervening years, I now have two chins, a wattle, crow’s feet and a slightly dodgy lower back,” Molina continued.
Molina appeared as Spidey’s classic foe in the 2004 film Spider-Man 2. At the end of the film, Spider-Man talks Octavius into doing the right thing, neutralizing his critical fusion reactor and himself in the process. Molina said that his story picks up from “that moment.”
Molina was rightfully concerned about playing a supervillain at his age. Molina is currently 67 years old, two years older than Michael Keaton was when he appeared as Adrian Toomes/Vulture in Spider-Man: Homecoming.
“[Director Jon Watts] just looked at me and said, ‘Did you see what we did to Bob Downey Jr. and Sam Jackson?'” Molina explained, referencing the de-aging technology used on the two actors in Captain America: Civil War and Captain Marvel respectively. Even so, a 67-year-old man moves differently from a 50-year-old one, but then Molina said he had an epiphany.
“It’s the tentacles that do all the work!” he said. Variety described what Molina called his basic physical move as Doc Ock, in which Molina “glared intensely at the Zoom camera and made a menacing noise.”
“I just do that a lot, and the arms are doing all the killing and smashing and breaking,” Molina said. “I’m just going (glares again) with a kind of mean look on my face. It was fantastic.”
It also probably helps that Sam Raimi is off directing another Marvel film, since the Spider-Man 2 director is infamous for beating the snot out of his actors.
Marvel still has not commented on Molina’s casting, or that of Jamie Foxx’s rumored return as Electro from The Amazing Spider-Man 2.
