Willem Dafoe 'Scared' Tom Holland On The Set Of Spider-Man: No Way Home

Everyone is talking about "Spider-Man: No Way Home," and it's not hard to see why. After months on end of online speculation, leaks, rumors, and no shortage of wishful thinking, we're now two trailers deep, and neither has disappointed. Although, while this is supposed to be a movie about Spider-Man (Tom Holland) — or potentially multiple — one can't help but feel as though he's taking a backseat to a few other characters. Aside from Doctor Strange (Benedict Cumberbatch), the wall-crawler's plethora of rogues from across time and space have also taken the spotlight. 

Thanks to an allegedly botched spell, Doctor Strange and Spider-Man have torn the multiverse wide open. Numerous sinister villains are now entering the Marvel Cinematic Universe one after the other, which is certainly bad news for our heroes. However, from a fan perspective, this situation is the stuff of dreams, seeing as the actors behind the horde of bad guys are all reprising their roles from the two previous live-action "Spider-Man" continuities. That even includes the first-ever cinematic Spidey foe: Green Goblin.

Almost 20 years past his first performance as Norman Osborn in "Spider-Man," Willem Dafoe will once again don the jade armor and dish out pumpkin bombs. This time around though, the Spider-Man he's working alongside is Tom Holland, whom Dafoe once scared on the "No Way Home" set.

Willem Dafoe's take on the Green Goblin in director Sam Raimi's "Spider-Man" was truly deranged. Plagued by the effects of unstable Oscorp serum, Norman Osborn soon finds himself transformed into a dangerous supervillain — one that isn't afraid to kill to get what he wants. By all accounts, this very much comic book-inspired description is miles away from Dafoe's real-life personality. Still, that didn't stop the seasoned thespian from inadvertently channeling his inner-Goblin to provide a quick fright on the "No Way Home" set, as Tom Holland recalls (via ScreenRant).

According to the Spider-Man actor, secrecy was the name of the game during the "No Way Home" shoot. No one could know about the legacy villains' involvement, so their respective actors shuffled about under cloaks to hide their identities. Thus, Holland had no knowledge of Dafoe's presence before their first encounter. "I just sort of bumped into this guy in a cloak and was like, 'Watch out, mate.' And he took his hood off, and I almost, like, got really scared. I was like, 'Oh s***, the Goblin's here!'" Despite the mild scare, Holland referred to Dafoe as "really wonderful and a real joy to work with."

Marvel fans will get to see Dafoe's Green Goblin and Holland's Spider-Man finally square off when "Spider-Man: No Way Home" premieres on December 17, 2021.