4 best villains for Michael Keaton to play in Spider-Man: Homecoming

If the latest rumors are true, Michael Keaton is in talks to play a villain in Spider-Man: Homecoming. The full measure of a Hollywood comeback story is being nominated for an Oscar and then starring in a comic book movie. Hey, it worked for Mickey Rourke with The Wrestler and Iron Man 2.

Keaton, of course, holds a special place in the hearts of longtime comic book fans thanks to his starring role in the first major comic book summer blockbuster – Batman. After a string of under the radar roles, Keaton made a triumphant mainstream comeback with his Oscar nominated performance in Birdman.

I’m excited about the prospect of Keaton working against Tom Holland’s Spider-Man and really hoping Variety’s report is legit. But which of Spidey’s tremendous rogue gallery would be the best fit for Keaton?

Let’s rule out The Green Goblin. The character has been overdone and while he’s like Dr. Doom in the Fantastic Four films in never being done properly, it’s probably best for him to stay on the sidelines — at least for the first film. Not to worry true believer, there’s still plenty of great options.

The Vulture

Ok, admittedly this one seems a bit on the nose. Keaton wouldn’t have to exactly change up his look to resemble Spidey’s winged villain and there’s some cool symmetry of the former Birdman playing Adrian Toomes’ Vulture.

The Hobgoblin

This is a character that offers a lot of potential depending on which version is used. Roderick Kingsley is a shady billionaire fashion designer whose fascination with Norman Osborn aka The Green Goblin becomes an obsession.

Discovering Osborn’s equipment and costume, Kingsley adopts the identity of The Hobgoblin and makes life crazy for Spider-Man. Hobgoblin allows the film to not ignore the presence of Green Goblin, but tosses in a new wrinkle.

The Chameleon

Chameleon is one of the underrated villains in Spidey’s Rogue Gallery, but holds the distinction of being Spider-Man’s first opponent. As a master of disguise, he doesn’t necessarily have any powers, but the thought of Keaton running around in various disguises while tormenting Spidey sounds like a lot of fun.

And while Chameleon wouldn’t be able to put up much of a physical fight with Spidey, MCU writers could get creative and have him lead some second string villains like Shocker, Speed Demon and Beetle as his muscle.

Mysterio

Special effects whiz/stunt man Quentin Beck wants to make it big in Hollywood, but his acting went unappreciated. Deciding he’d prove his critics wrong, Beck adopts the identity of Mysterio and puts his talents to use as a supervillain specializing in illusions. Casting Keaton as a Hollywood reject is somewhat meta and Mysterio’s powers could make him a terrific villain with a blockbuster budget.

Those are my picks. Agree? Disagree? Who’d you like to see Keaton play?

Pick up Keaton as Batman and Bruce Wayne in this Hot Toys double pack: DC Comics Batman and Bruce Wayne DC Comics Sixth Scale Figure Set

I’ve reviewed a decent amount of Keaton’s biggest films: Batman, Batman Returns, Birdman and Spotlight are some of my favorites.

On the Spider-Man front, here’s the reviews of the previous films I’ve done: The Amazing Spider-Man, The Amazing Spider-Man 2 and Spider-Man