[Warning: This post features Spider-Man: Homecoming spoilers!]
In August 2016, Vulture – the website, not Michael Keaton's supervillain – reported that Michelle (Zendaya) would ask Peter Parker (Tom Holland) to call her MJ toward the end of Spider-Man: Homecoming. In Marvel Comics, MJ is Mary Jane Watson’s nickname. As you know if you've seen the movie, the rumor is partially true. Michelle does tell Peter, "My friends call me MJ."
Marvel President Kevin Feige confirmed to Den of Geek that Zendaya's character is not Mary Jane Watson, the comics’ iconic Spider-Man love interest:
In setting up, this will be a very different thing. She's not Mary Jane Watson; that's not who the character is. But giving her the initials that remind you of that dynamic certainly is intriguing about what could go forward.
In Spider-Man: Homecoming, Michelle keeps her eye on Peter in a way that’s reminiscent of Mary Jane in Tom DeFalco's The Amazing Spider-Man comic books. Here's how the Marvel President addressed the parallel:
Clearly, she says she's not obsessed with him; she's just observant. But she's there. And to have fun with that while at the same time having it be different characters that can provide a different dynamic [is the point].
Feige explained that Marvel and Sony used Liz Allan (Laura Harrier) and Michelle rather than the supporting characters from the previous movies to take Tom Holland's character in new directions:
Peter's had a lot of friends over the years in the comics, and a lot of schoolmates and characters he's interacted with. It wasn't just Mary Jane Watson; it wasn't just Gwen Stacy; it wasn't just Harry Osborn. So we were very interested in the other characters, and that's where Liz came from, and that's where the version of the character Michelle came from.
Isabella Amara, who portrays Sally Avril in Spider-Man: Homecoming, recently told BlackFilm that she will reprise her role in Avengers: Infinity War. It remains to be seen whether Michelle, or any of Peter's other classmates, will also show up in that movie.
