Peter Parker hasn’t exactly been a ladies man, but that hasn’t stopped him from catching the eyes of many damsels over the years. We’ve known him to have several love interests, but how many of them did he actually wife up? The answer to that is a bit complex and with the way the multiverse is set up, there are endless paths his story can take. Cue the wedding bells as we dive into the times Spidey put a ring on it.
Mary Jane Watson
What was seen as more of an event rather than simply another comic book story was the release of “The Wedding” in The Amazing Spider-Man Annual #21 in 1987. Written by David Michelinie, we see Peter and Mary Jane struggling to decide if they want to go through with tying the knot as they both understand how their lives could change. On one end, MJ will be more of a target to Spider-Man enemies, while Parker himself has his own internal battles with the idea of putting her in harm’s way (surprisingly, it is J. Jonah Jameson who gives him a pep talk and explains how serious marriage really is). Between MJ repeatedly being asked by a man named Bruce to call off the wedding and Peter’s vivid dream and feelings about Gwen Stacy, there seemed to be a lot stacking up against the couple. Regardless, love prevailed and they ended up following through with the wedding.
Mary Jane is considered to be Peter’s one true marriage in Earth-616, but everything changed in 2007’s Spider-Man: One More Day. When Aunt May is accidentally shot by one of Kingpin’s goons, Peter desperately tries to find someone to help him. He calls on his superhero buddies like Doctor Strange and Tony Stark, but there is nothing they can do (Stark did offer funds to assist with paying for treatment). Desperate and down on his luck, he encounters Mephisto who offers to save May in exchange for Peter’s marriage to MJ. The couple discuss the offer and ultimately agree, sparing May’s life and erasing the world’s memory that Parker is Spider-Man. To further hurt the duo, Mephisto introduces the two to the daughter they will never have given that they accepted the deal. This was devastating for fans and many were extremely upset about it, but 17 years later, Marvel healed our souls by remarrying them in with Ultimate Spider-Man #1.
Felicia Hardy (Black Cat)
We’ve gotten our fair share of Spidey films, but we have yet to see a female villain rock his world. The storyline that sees Felicia Hardy, also known as Black Cat, marry Peter in Black Cat Annual #1 would be a perfect arc to introduce her. Rumors are currently swirling that Hollywood fave Sydney Sweeney has been tapped to play the role in next year’s Spider-Man: Brand New Day. Would be an interesting choice, seeing how she just played Spider-Woman in the bismol Madame Webb (it’s Sony, so it’s alright to ignore it). For starters, the two getting married wasn’t for love, but rather to throw off a crime family, the Maggia. Their tradition is to have a young man and woman from each side of the feuding families marry, then battle it out to the death. It turns out to be Felicia’s plan to get into the chamber to carry out her plan. So, technically, the two didn’t get married for real, but they did exchange vows with a priest present, so that has to count, right?
In an issue of What If…?, the duo is reunited again as Peter spends more time with Felicia after calling off his wedding to MJ. He finds himself able to relate to her more as the two fight crime side by side and rekindle their old fling. Parker loves how Black Cat can defend herself and ultimately ends up proposing to her, leading to a heartbreaking moment when Felicia reveals to Mary Jane that the two are getting married.
Gwen Stacy
Gwen Stacy is often regarded as being Parker’s true love, but they didn’t go as far as he and MJ did. Tony Isabella wrote What If…? #24 that explores what would have happened if Gwen lived. The story takes us through Peter choosing to jump off the bridge to save her instead of using his webline. He ends up revealing his identity as Spider-Man and proposing to her. This isn’t the first time she was married to Peter in an alternate universe. Spider-Man: House of M in 2005 created a timeline where Gwen was never killed and the two went on to get married and have a son named Richie. In a rather wild turn of events, this timeline sees Gwen get bitten by the radioactive spider instead of Peter, thus turning her into Spider-Gwen.
Seeing how much different Gwen is than Mary Jane, it would be a treat if we could get a version of her cast in the MCU. While Emma Stone was great opposite Andrew Garfield and Bryce Dallas Howard paired nicely with Tobey Maguire, I wonder who could play a version of Gwen in Tom Holland’s films. My top picks at the moment would be Kiernan Shipka, Anya Taylor-Joy, and Elle Fanning!