Spider-Man: Homecoming After Credits Scenes Explained

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Spider-Man is now part of the MCU, which means he’s getting after credits scenes, and unlike the after credits scenes in The Amazing Spider-Man movies, these actually make sense. If you haven’t seen Spider-Man: Homecoming yet, you may want to stop reading until you see the film (Go see it! It’s really fun!).

Spoilers ahead.

spider-man-homecoming-image — Image via Sony

Vulture Doesn’t Want to Be in Your Boy Band

spider-man-homecoming-michael-keaton-hi-res — Image via Sony Pictures

The first of two post-credits scenes features an incarcerated Adrian Toomes aka Vulture (Michael Keaton) walking through a cellblock when he comes across former associate Mac Gargan aka Scorpion (Michael Mando).

For those who are unfamiliar with Scorpion, he's been bothering the wall-crawler in the comics since 1964. He's been a member of the Sinister Six, and his powers include super strength, agility, and a precognitive "scorpion sense" (similar to "spider-sense). He also was the second Venom after Eddie Brock. All that being said, we have no idea if the movies plan to carry forward the Scorpion's history from the comics or if his presence is just a fun Easter egg for fans.

Gargan says he’s heard that Toomes knows Spider-Man’s true identity, and that he and some friends are getting together to take on the wall-crawler. However, Toomes declines, saying that if he knew who Spider-Man was, he’d already be dead. A suspicious Gargan walks away disappointed.

It’s not a flashy scene, but it’s an important one because it provides crucial information. The scene pretty much cuts Vulture out of the future of the MCU. It shows that he’s grateful to Peter for saving his life, that he’s not going to hold Peter’s identity as a bargaining chip, and he’s not going to be joining a nascent Sinister Six (if that’s what Scorpion could be building to). While Marvel could try to woo Keaton back for another reappearance (and the look on Toomes’ face at the end of the scene is just cryptic enough to warrant it), for the time being Vulture’s fight with Spider-Man has come to a close.

Captain America’s PSA on Patience

Steve Rogers a.k.a Captain America breaks the fourth wall in Spider-man-homecoming — Image via Marvel Studios

This is arguably the funniest post-credits scene Marvel has ever done. There have been funny stingers before that didn’t provide any new information, but this one is the first time that Marvel has really burned their audience, and for what it’s worth, the audience I saw it with loved being the butt of the joke.

At the very end of the credits, we get another Captain America (Chris Evans) PSA, similar to the ones we’ve seen earlier in the film about physical fitness and detention. In the PSA, Cap preaches the value of patience even when you’re not going to get what you want. He finishes by asking how many more of these PSAs he has to do.

It’s a nice joke at the expense of an audience that has been trained to patiently wait for stingers that will tease upcoming Marvel movies. Spider-Man: Homecoming doesn’t have those. Instead, it lets us all have a laugh at how meaningful these brief little scenes have become.

And for more of our continuing coverage of all things Spider-Man, be sure to get caught up with our recent write-ups provided at the links below: