Much like its MCU predecessors, Spider-Man: Far From Home was chock-full of Easter eggs and references to the wider Marvel universe. Here’s our list of all the ones we managed to spot.
While this list may not be entirely comprehensive of every Easter egg and reference found in Far From Home — there’s only so many times we can see it in the theater, after all — we’ve done our best to compile them all in one place, so you can use it as a handy guide for the next time you watch the movie. From the obvious, to the subtler nods, there’s plenty of hidden details in Peter Parker’s latest outing to appreciate, for any fan — casual to super, and everything in between.
Warning: Significant spoilers for Spider-Man: Far From Home below.
- Far From Home opens with an equally hilarious and heartbreaking “in memoriam” video. The video itself, of course, references all of the fallen heroes from the battle against Thanos — like Black Widow, Vision, Iron Man, and Captain America. Just in case we all needed reminding of the devastation from Endgame.
- There were several nods throughout the movie to classic Spider-Man comics. The license plate of Nick Fury and Maria Hill’s car in Mexico — 463 — is a reference to Amazing Spider-Man #4 published in 1963, and was the first appearance of the villain Sandman. A second license plate on May’s car, AMF1562, directly calls out Amazing Fantasy #15, from 1962, and Spider-Man’s debut. Another license plate in Prague, ASM28965, is for 1965’s Amazing Spider-Man #28 and the first appearance of Molten Man. Meanwhile, Ned and Betty’s gondola in Venice bears the mark ASM 212, which is referencing Amazing Spider-Man #212, and the first appearance of Hydro Man, and another license plate (TASM143) references Spider-Man’s first battle with Cyclone.
- A second nod to Amazing Fantasy #15 can be found on Peter’s passport. His date of birth is August 10, the same day that Spider-Man’s introduction was published in 1962.
- In the background of May’s charity event for people who had been displaced post-Blip, there is a poster for a wrestling match between Crusher Creel and Bonesaw McGraw. Creel is otherwise known as Absorbing Man, and McGraw played a minor role in the first Spider-Man movie in 2002. The poster also serves as a nod to Peter’s short-lived wrestling career.
- When Peter is packing for Europe, his suitcase has the initials B.F.P. on it. Though the MCU has been taking care to avoid Peter’s origin story, and Ben Parker’s death, the initials suggest that this was previously a case belonging to Uncle Ben. They stand for Benjamin Franklin Parker.
- On the plane to Europe, several of the in-flight movies hold references to other characters and locations in the MCU. Namely, a Tony Stark biopic called “Heart of Iron,” a documentary called “Discovering Wakanda,” and a science series called “Nova,” hosted by none other than Erik Selvig.
- Several writers for the Spider-Man comics also had homage paid to them in specific street and building names throughout the movie. These include: Calle Slotto (Dan Slott), Calle Bendiso (Brian Michael Bendis), Calle Sterno (Roger Stern), Calle Michelinio (David Michelinie) and Calle G. Convayo (Gerry Conway).
- Ned and Betty’s whirlwind European romance was a sweet and often-amusing plot point. But, in the Marvel comics, Betty and Ned Leeds — a future Hobgoblin — end up getting married. Though Ned is more closely based on Miles Morales’ best friend, Ganke, the romance is almost certainly a reference to Ned’s namesake.
- After the water Elemental attacks in Venice, Peter’s classmates reference an in-universe Buzzfeed conspiracy article, which refers to a sailor called “Morris Bench,” who was given hydro powers. Morris Bench, in the Marvel comics, is the real name of Hydro-Man, who was introduced in 1981.
- Mysterio made up a lot of details about the multi-verse which were outright lies, but his designations for the Earths were ones that Marvel fans will be familiar with. Earth-616 is a reference to the main continuity of the Marvel comics, while Mysterio’s Earth, 833, is home to Spider-UK, the British Spider-Man. Conversely, Marvel themselves have given the designation Earth-19999 for the MCU.
- Throughout the movie, MJ wears a shirt that sports a tiger on it. This is likely a nod to Mary Jane’s “tiger” nickname for Peter in the comics.
- The AI given to Peter by Tony, E.D.I.T.H., is voiced by Dawn Michelle King. King was an assistant editor on several MCU movies, including the original Iron Man and also Spider-Man: Homecoming.
- There are several callbacks to Captain Marvel and the introduction of the Kree/Skrull war. Notably, Fury gets his back up when Peter mentions Captain Marvel, and also mentions that they are trying to track down some hidden Kree sleeper cells — suggesting we also haven’t seen the last of the Kree. One of the post-credits scenes also reveals that Fury and Maria Hill are, in fact, Captain Marvel’s Skrull allies, Talos and Soren.
- The reveal that Fury is not on Earth, having left Talos in his place, but is instead in space suggests that S.H.I.E.L.D. might be evolving into S.W.O.R.D., an organization that protects Earth from extraterrestrial threats — a larger concern, now that the scope of what is out there, in the universe, is better known post-Thanos. It could also help with S.H.I.E.L.D.’s damaged reputation following… several massive security breaches. We’re looking at you, HYDRA.
- The Fury reveal also had a nod to the S.H.I.E.L.D. television series, and the use of Project TAHITI. After resurrecting Phil Coulson, memories were implanted to cover up the trauma of what he went through, manifesting in a retreat to Tahiti. Fury being in an (artificial) tropical location on the beach is almost certainly a reference to that.
- Fury having a decoy in his place isn’t anything unusual. Though this might be the first time it has happened in the MCU, in the comics he has previously used LMDs — Life Model Decoys — to disguise his true location. He has never used the Skrulls before, but it is still a nice nod to Fury’s continued secrecy.
- A S.H.I.E.L.D. agent by the name of Dmitri appears in Far From Home, which could be a reference to the classic Spider-Man villain The Chameleon, a.k.a. Dmitri Smerdyakov.
- One of the illusions that Mysterio uses on Peter has a zombie-like Iron Man rising from the dead. This is not only a devastating visual for a still-grieving Peter, but also serves as a nod to the Marvel comic series, Marvel Zombies. The series was written by The Walking Dead’s Robert Kirkman. Oh, and the spiders crawling all over Iron Man’s body? They were black widow spiders.
- Peter has a plan to woo MJ by getting her a black dahlia necklace, because she is morbidly fascinated with the Black Dahlia murder. That murder was real, and happened in Hollywood in the ’40s. The murder itself remains unsolved, and was covered widely by the media due to its gruesome nature.
- When Happy collects Peter and tends to his wounds, there are several parallels to his taking care of Tony in the Iron Man movies. But, equally, there’s another call out when he starts playing some AC/DC as Peter works on his new Spidey suit. Of course, Peter misidentifies the band as Led Zeppelin, who were featured in epic fashion in Thor: Ragnarok.
- As Peter is putting together his new suit, you can spot many of his different suits from across the Marvel comics in the options he has to choose from. All of the suits from the previous Spider-Man and Avengers movies feature as well, as part of Mysterio’s illusions, including the first outfit Peter made for himself.
- The stealth suit that S.H.I.E.L.D. provide Peter with is very reminiscent of the Spider-Man Noir look, most recently seen in Into the Spider-Verse. Well, minus the trench coat and some of the dramatics, of course.
- Another of Mysterio’s illusions involves MJ being thrown from a bridge. This might cause some heartbreaking flashbacks for Spidey fans, as this is exactly how Gwen Stacey, Peter’s first love, died in the comics.
- When Happy is helping out and trying to protect Peter’s friends from Mysterio’s drones, he throws a shield at them, reminiscent of Captain America’s signature move. Cap makes it look so easy…
- Two references were made to giant robots in Far From Home after Mysterio’s drones are revealed to the public: Power Rangers and Voltron
- As Peter is swinging through New York to meet MJ for their date, he passes by a billboard that could be referencing several things. The ad for a Manhattan construction project says, ” “1 —> 2 —> 3 —> ? And we can’t wait to show you what comes next!” This could be a hint that a fourth Spider-Man movie is officially planned, or that the MCU is finally entering Phase Four. Or, as the four on the billboard was circled, it could be a reference to the Fantastic Four, who are now owned by Disney following their acquisition of 20th Century Fox.
- Peter also takes a selfie while he is swinging, which is both a nod to his taking and supplying photographs of Spidey to The Daily Bugle, but also to the Playstation 4 game, where you can do the same as you are web-slinging as Spider-Man.
- As Peter passes by Grand Central Station, you can see the Battle of New York memorial statue!
- Another callback to the original Spider-Man movies is Peter taking MJ through the air, which was something of an iconic image from the 2002 movie. Far From Home’s MJ is not a fan, however, putting its own twist on the now-classic trope of Spidey movies.
- Speaking of, one of the biggest surprises of Far From Home was the return of J.K. Simmons’ J. Jonah Jameson. Simmons played the same role in the 2002 Spider-Man movie and its sequels. The Daily Bugle has also been updated for the modern day, now appearing as an InfoWars-style website, similarly to its role in the Spider-Man game for the Playstation 4. The website that appears on the Bugle’s logo, TheDailyBugle.net does not currently lead anywhere, but is owned by Sony Pictures!
