Summary

• The MCU chose not to show Spider-Man's origins, diving directly into Peter's hero story for a fresh take.
• Fans can piece together Spider-Man's backstory despite a lack of explicit explanation in the MCU timeline.
• The theory that the Winter Soldier killed Peter's parents fits well within the MCU, but the franchise may never reveal if this is the true story.

Spider-Man’s story has been told in the past, the MCU’s Peter Parker debut had to do something different. By choosing not to show his origins, the MCU was able to jump directly into Peter’s character and his struggles with being Spider-Man. Dynamics that usually would’ve had to wait for a second movie were able to be explored right off the bat, making this version of Spider-Man feel fresh.

Even without Spider-Man’s origins being explicitly explained in every Spider-Man movie, so it was safe for Marvel to assume that fans wouldn’t need to be told it again - though it has left the door open for theories and interpretation, raising a fascinating possibility for the hero's unseen origin.

The MCU Never Answered What Happened To Spider-Man's Parents

Peter Parker's Full MCU Backstory Is Still A Mystery

Perhaps it’s for the best that MCU fans didn’t have to see the Parkers’ deaths on-screen yet again, especially with how tragic Peter’s MCU arc inevitably becomes by the time of Spider-Man: No Way Home's ending. With how much loss Peter ends up facing, the loss of his parents is a topic often put on the backburner in the MCU. However, the exact fate of Peter's parents is ultimately still a looming question that some fans would like answered.

Although the MCU’s choice not to show what happened to Peter’s parents in real time was one that paid off, that doesn’t mean that fans want to be left completely in the dark about what happened. With Aunt May’s death in No Way Home, the absence of Peter’s parents will likely be felt stronger than before. The hero is essentially starting his personal life over from square one, so there’s really no better time to theorize about what happened to his parents.

The Winter Soldier Killing Peter's Parents Works Incredibly Well

Bucky Barnes Killing The Parkers Would Fit Right Into The MCU's Story

One of the best theories about Peter’s parents is that they were killed at the hands of the Winter Soldier. Richard and Mary Parker are often portrayed as working professionals, whether it be under S.H.I.E.L.D. or Oscorp. They are usually killed while seeking out confidential information that a third party doesn’t want them to get their hands on. If this is how their MCU story presumably went as well, then it’d make complete sense that they were killed by the Winter Soldier.

Before Bucky Barnes reunited with Steve Rogers in present-day, he was brainwashed to become the Winter Soldier and assassinate targets on HYDRA’s behalf. Two of those targets notoriously include Howard and Maria Stark, who possessed intel that HYDRA wanted. With Richard and Mary’s prolific body of work, it wouldn’t be far off to assume that HYDRA wanted to silence them as well. Bucky would’ve been active as the Winter Soldier around the time that the Parkers died, making it fully plausible that he was sent to kill them.

Why The MCU Has Never Addressed The Parkers' Death

The MCU's Approach To Spider-Man Has Made Avoiding Explaining One Mystery A Logical Choice

The MCU never addressed the Parkers’ death because it wasn’t part of the story that Marvel wanted to tell this time around. Whereas the past iterations of Spider-Man were standalone films, the MCU’s Spider-Man films have to connect to the overarching MCU plot. Peter doesn’t lack in MCU relationships. Some may even argue that he has too many and it crowds his personal story. Having to come up with a logical explanation as to why Peter’s parents died would just mean connecting Peter to even more MCU characters, which ultimately wasn’t necessary.

The death of Peter's parents has always been an important moment in his history, but the MCU’s interpretation of the character aimed to put the focus elsewhere. While the Winter Soldier theory makes complete sense and very likely could have happened, it’s probably for the best that the MCU didn’t overcomplicate Peter’s origins with different subplots. The majority of people who are familiar with Spider-Man already know what happened to his parents, so Marvel simply allowed the specifics to be open to interpretation - though this plot point may have more light shed on it further down the line.