Lin-Manuel Miranda reveals why he rejected offer to join MCU as Spider-Man villain

Broadway superstar Lin-Manuel Miranda was nearly set to enter the MCU as the iconic Spider-Man villain Vulture in the 2017 film Homecoming.

Best known for creating Hamilton and In the Heights as well as composing music for Disney hits like Moana and Encanto, Miranda recently reflected on an unexpected opportunity to play the web-slinger's oldest and most iconic supervillain in the MCU, a role eventually played by Academy Award-nominated actor Michael Keaton in Homecoming.

On his recent appearance on the Happy Sad Confused podcast, Miranda revealed that he was offered the role of the Spider-Man villain but rejected it to prioritize his family. Since the actor was wrapping his run in Hamilton at the time, he was in dire need of a break and wanted to spend some time with his family, which is why he made this difficult decision.

This is why Lin-Manuel Miranda rejected Vulture's role in Spider-Man: Homecoming

Playing the titular web-slinger's most celebrated adversary in Spider-Man: Homecoming would be a dream come true for any actor. But Lin-Manuel Miranda rejected the role because the intense filming schedule conflicted with his family life as he was finishing his run in Hamilton.

On his recent appearance on the Happy Sad Confused podcast with Josh Horowitz, the Broadway star revealed that he was approached to play Vulture in the MCU. Reflecting on the role, Lin-Manuel Miranda revealed:

''It was Vulture and Kevin Feige told me the entire plot over the phone.''

While Miranda was naturally excited about the opportunity, he was wrapping up the Broadway production of Hamilton and wanted to learn more details about the filming process. Despite it being a dream role for any actor, the Broadway star decided to step down to prioritize his family life and marriage.

Miranda explained his decision to reject the Spider-Man role as:

''I said, "When does it shoot?" And he goes, "Basically, the moment you step off stage in Hamilton." And I went, 'Well, I would really like to I love these movies, but I would really like to stay married. So, I cannot do this.'''

Eventually, Michael Keaton was cast as Vulture and the rest is history. Reflecting on this missed opportunity, Lin-Manuel Miranda praised Michael Keaton's portrayal of Vulture and admitted that he would have been completely wrong for the part. The actor concluded that he badly needed a vacation at the time and would have been a 'miscast' as Vulture.

A lookback at the Spider-Man: Homecoming cast

Homecoming was Tom Holland's first solo Spider-Man movie, which follows the titular web-slinger as he tries to balance high school life with being the hero while facing the Vulture, who is determined to sell weapons made with advanced Chitauri technology. While Holland took inspiration from actors Tobey Maguire and Andrew Garfield, who have previously portrayed the titular superhero, he aimed for a fresh perspective by deep-diving into Peter Parker's everyday life.

The actor is all set to return in the upcoming Brand New Day, set to be released in theatres on July 30.

As mentioned above, Michael Keaton took on the role of Adrian Toomes / Vulture, the arms trafficker who used a suit with mechanical wings forged from Chitauri technology.

Rounding out the Spider-Man: Homecoming cast are stars Jon Favreau as Happy Hogan, Zendaya as Michelle, Gwyneth Paltrow as Pepper Potts, Donald Glover as Aaron Davis, Jacob Batalon as Ned, Laura Harrier as Liz, Tony Revolori as Flash, Marisa Tomei as May Parker and Robert Downey Jr. as Tony Stark / Iron Man.