| MJ | |
|---|---|
| Marvel Cinematic Universe character | |
 MJ inSpider-Man: Far From Home (2019) | |
| First appearance | Spider-Man: Homecoming (2017) |
| Created by | |
| Based on | |
| Portrayed by | Zendaya |
| In-universe information | |
| Full name | Michelle Jones-Watson[1] |
| Occupation | Undergraduate Barista |
| Significantother | Peter Parker |
| Origin | Queens,New York,United States |
| Nationality | American |
Michelle Jones-Watson, most commonly known asMJ, is afictionalcharacter portrayed byZendaya in theMarvel Cinematic Universe (MCU)film franchise, an original character within the media franchise that pays homage toMary Jane "MJ" Watson, main love interest ofSpider-Man in comic books and various media.[2][3][4]
She is depicted as a smart, snarky classmate ofPeter Parker inSpider-Man: Homecoming (2017), and inSpider-Man: Far From Home (2019) becomes his love interest as well as correctly guessing Peter is Spider-Man.[5] She returns inSpider-Man: No Way Home (2021), helping Peter,Ned Leeds, andDoctor Strange to capture multiple villains that have entered their universe from the multiverse, due to a failed spell to make the world forget aboutMysterio revealing that Parker was Spider-Man. Her romantic involvement in Peter's personal life would eventually be undone due to Strange's casting of a spell that permanently erased the world's memory of Parker's civilian persona, including the loss of his previous bonds he forged with his friends, loved ones, and allies.[6]
The character has received positive reviews, and Zendaya has been praised as a strong female supporting cast member, receiving theSaturn Award for Best Supporting Actress for her acting inFar From Home. She will return inSpider-Man: Brand New Day (2026).
She has a really cool wardrobe, really funny, lots of literary nods. I like the idea that she's a real reader and bookish. She always has a big pile of books she's carrying around, which I picked and obsessed over.
According toSpider-Man: Homecoming co-screenwriterJohn Francis Daley, Michelle was intended as a reinvention of Mary Jane Watson.[8] While her nickname reveal was an homage to the supporting character within the comic books andother Spider-Man media, Marvel Studios presidentKevin Feige confirmed she is an original Marvel Cinematic Universe character.[9] Feige added: "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 justGwen Stacy; it wasn't justHarry Osborn. So we were very interested in the other characters, and that's whereLiz came from and that's where the version of the character Michelle came from."[10]Jon Watts, director ofSpider-Man: Homecoming,Spider-Man: Far From Home andSpider-Man: No Way Home, likened the character toAlly Sheedy's Allison Reynolds fromThe Breakfast Club (1985) andLinda Cardellini's Lindsay Weir fromFreaks and Geeks (1999–2000).[7]
The character's full name is Michelle Jones-Watson, which was first revealed inSpider-Man: No Way Home. Until that point, she had been referred to once as Michelle and primarily known by the nickname MJ; although the name "Michelle Jones" had been used in an article byVariety, quickly spreading among the press and fans throughcitogenesis, the name was not used in any official media untilNo Way Home.[1]
MJ is portrayed by actress Zendaya in the Marvel Cinematic Universe as a classmate of Peter Parker atMidtown School of Science and Technology and a teammate on the academic decathlon team. She is depicted as politically active with critical views, and a loner who claims to eschew friendship.[11][12] Zendaya described the character as "very dry, awkward, intellectual".[13] This sometimes manifests itself in the form ofdeadpan sarcasm,[14][15][16] as when she calls Peter and Ned "losers" for ogling his crush, Liz, from afar.[12] Among her unusual hobbies is attending detention simply to "sketch people in crisis."[11][12][17]
Unlike previous supporting female characters withinSpider-Man films, such asMary Jane Watson from theSam Raimi trilogy andGwen Stacy from theAmazing Spider-Man films, MJ is neither a romantic interest nor adamsel in distress at the beginning of hercharacter arc. Instead, the character Liz was created initially for the role of romantic interest in a way that tied into Parker's conflict with the Vulture.[18][5]
In the third film, she is rescued from a fall byAndrew Garfield'sincarnation of Spider-Man, prompting an emotional moment for that Spider-Man, in light of his failure to save Gwen Stacy from a similar fate inThe Amazing Spider-Man 2.[19]
In 2016, Michelle, commonly known as MJ, is introduced as a student atMidtown School of Science and Technology and enjoys mocking her classmates, includingPeter Parker. She is a member of theAcademic Decathlon team and attends a competition inWashington, D.C., during which they win, although she notices Parker's disappearance. At theWashington Monument, she witnesses Spider-Man's arrival. AfterLiz Allan leaves the school, she is offered Allan's role of Captain of the team byRoger Harrington. She begins to open up more with teammates, such asNed Leeds and Parker, secretly considering them as her friends.
In 2018, MJ is a victim ofthe Blip,[a] before being restored to life in 2023.[b] In 2024, MJ attends the school sponsored trip to Europe, where her affections are sought out by Parker andBrad Davis. When she deduces Parker's identity as Spider-Man, MJ helps discoverMysterio's hero fraud, as he was the one who staged theElemental invasion. InLondon, MJ, Leeds,Betty Brant, andFlash Thompson are met byHappy Hogan and take cover from Mysterio's drones after they get targeted. After Mysterio is defeated, MJ embraces Parker. Soon after returning home, MJ and Parker begin a relationship and have their first date by swinging in the city. Afterwards, they witnessTheDailyBugle.net'sJ. Jonah Jameson releasing adoctored video of Mysterio and Spider-Man, claiming that Spider-Man is responsible for the Battle of London (during which Mysterio was killed) and exposing his identity as Parker.
MJ is immediately surrounded by people asking her if she is Spider-Man's girlfriend, but is picked up by Parker and swung back to Parker's apartment where she meets Parker's auntMay. She is eventually interrogated and taken to custody by theDepartment of Damage Control along with May, Parker, and Leeds. MJ, Parker, and Leeds then become infamous, resulting in all their college applications being rejected.
She and Leeds are found byStephen Strange and brought to theNew York Sanctum to help Parker track down individuals fromalternate universes who were brought to theirs after a spell went wrong. She and Leeds are instructed by Parker to keep watch over Strange's mystical box as he tries to help the individuals be cured of their villainous traits. At Leeds' grandmother's house, MJ encourages Leeds to use Strange's sling ring to try and locate Parker but instead a portal is opened with analternate version of Parker (later code-named "Peter-Three") andanother one (later code-named "Peter-Two") coming through. MJ and Leeds go to Midtown's rooftop and comfort an emotional Parker. They then introduce him to his two variants, who provide advice, and join them in Midtown's laboratory.
MJ and Leeds are attacked byLizard after Leeds is unable to close the portal from Midtown to theStatue of Liberty, although Parker comes to their aid. MJ and Leeds escape onto the Statue and after Leeds opens another portal, witness Strange walking out. MJ falls off of the statue after a pumpkin bomb from Osborn detonates on the mystical box, destabilizing the spell once more and threatening the fabric of reality. Parker tries to save her but is whisked away by Osborn. She is then saved by Peter-Three. She and Leeds are told by Parker that Strange would recast the spell on his request to erase him from everyone's memory in order to send the universe-displaced back. MJ confesses her love for Parker and kiss passionately before the spell takes effect.
Weeks later, MJ greets Leeds at her shop, both having been accepted intoMIT, and meets Parker, who considers reintroducing himself, but ultimately decides against it.
After the announcement of Zendaya's casting, controversy and speculation centered upon the fact thatZendaya, anAfrican American actress, would be portraying Mary Jane Watson.[13][20] Media outlets defended Zendaya over the issue, along with theGuardians of the Galaxy film series directorJames Gunn and Mary Jane co-creatorStan Lee onsocial media.[21][20][22] Zendaya responded to the rumors of her character as Mary Jane byThe Hollywood Reporter in an interview saying:
"Whenever we were on set, one of us gets some random character name [on the call sheet]. [Bloggers were] like, "Oh they must be so and so." And we just crack up about it, because it's like, 'Whatever you want to think. You'll find out.' It's funny to watch the guessing game. But of course there's going to be outrage over that because for some reason some people just aren't ready. I'm like, "I don't know what America you live in, but from what I see when I walk outside my streets of New York right now, I see lots of diversity and I see the real world and it's beautiful, and that's what should be reflected and that's what is reflected so you're just going to have to get over it."[13]
Zendaya also confirmed that despite the confusion, she is "100% Michelle" and not Mary Jane as many had speculated.[23] However Michelle is revealed to be nicknamed "MJ" inHomecoming, by which she is known for the entirety ofFar From Home, while her full name is revealed to be Michelle Jones-Watson inNo Way Home, though she says she goes by Michelle Jones.
The character of MJ had a positive reception inHomecoming by film critics, with Zendaya referred to as a "scene stealer" in her first major film role, despite her limited screen-time.[24][25][26] Caitlin Busch ofInverse felt thankful that the character was not Mary Jane Watson and opined that the original character works better for the film.[27]
The character has also received positive feedback from afeminist perspective, especially inSpider-Man: Far From Home. Karen Han ofPolygon felt that the character was a positive representation of strong female characters while additionallyVanity Fair noted how MJ was not portrayed as a warrior likeHayley Atwell'sPeggy Carter,Lupita Nyong'o'sNakia orEvangeline Lilly'sHope van Dyne but also not a damsel and declared her as the "MJ we both need and deserve".[28][29] Her personality was reminiscent toDaria Morgendorffer inDaria to some reporters.[28][30] Rachel Leishman ofThe Mary Sue described the MCU version of MJ as extremely important in Peter Parker's life.[31]
MJ, alongside Parker andJacob Batalon's Ned Leeds were described as a "priceless trio" by Pete Hammond ofDeadline Hollywood with his review ofSpider-Man: No Way Home.[32] The relationship between the three characters in the films were noted as more matured by Brian Lowry ofCNN.[33] Sam Machkovech ofArs Technica also praised the trio's chemistry noting that in the second film both MJ and Ned had a rivalry with each other of Peter's relationship but in the third film they were ultimately more bonded together.[34] The chemistry inSpider-Man: No Way Home of MJ andTom Holland's Parker was praised byRogerEbert.com's Brian Tallerico. Brian opined that the film is the first of the films to let their relationship to shine. He also noted, "she nails the emotional final beats of her character in a way that adds weight to a film that can feel a bit airy in terms of performance."[35] Don Kaye ofDen of Geek also praised the chemistry of MJ with Parker and also noted that both she and Batalon "provide gentle comic relief".[36] Jennifer Bisset ofCNET described her role as much more to do in the third film and also noted of Zendaya's role being gifted of character growth.[37] Eli Glasner ofCBC News described "formerly mopey" MJ as having an stronger footing with Parker in the third film.[38]
Zendaya has received numerous nominations and awards for her portrayal of MJ.
| Year | Film | Award | Category | Result | Ref(s) |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2017 | Spider-Man: Homecoming | Teen Choice Awards | Choice Breakout Movie Star | Nominated | [39] |
| Choice Summer Movie Actress | Won | ||||
| 2018 | Kids' Choice Awards | Favorite Movie Actress | Won | [40] | |
| Saturn Awards | Best Performance by a Younger Actor in a Film | Nominated | [41] | ||
| 2019 | Spider-Man: Far From Home | Teen Choice Awards | Choice Summer Movie Actress | Won | [42] |
| Saturn Awards | Best Supporting Actress | Won | [43] | ||
| People's Choice Awards | Female Movie Star of 2019 | Won | [44] | ||
| 2020 | Kids' Choice Awards | Favorite Movie Actress | Nominated | [45] | |
| 2022 | Spider-Man: No Way Home | Critics' Choice Super Awards | Best Actress in a Superhero Movie | Nominated | [46] |
| Kids' Choice Awards | Favorite Movie Actress | Won | [47] | ||
| MTV Movie & TV Awards | Best Kiss[c] | Nominated | [48] | ||
| BET Awards | Best Actress | Won | [49] | ||
| Saturn Awards | Best Actress in a Film | Nominated | [50] |
A cosmetic outfit based on MJ was added toFortnite Battle Royale in December 2021 to coincide with the release ofSpider-Man: No Way Home, along with an outfit based on Tom Holland's portrayal of Spider-Man.[51]
Well, we never even looked at it as a big reveal necessarily but more of just a fun homage to his past adventures and his past love. She's not Mary Jane Watson. She never was Mary Jane Watson.
Spider-Man characters | |||||||||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Spider-Man family |
| ||||||||||||
| Supporting characters |
| ||||||||||||
| Antagonists | |||||||||||||
| Alternative versions |
| ||||||||||||
| In other media |
| ||||||||||||
| Other topics | |||||||||||||
| |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
