Watch out, Peter Parker!
There is a new romantic interest for Michelle aka “MJ” (Zendaya) in Spider-Man: Far From Home.
His name is Brad Davis and he is played by Australian actor, Remy Hii.
Best known for his work in Crazy Rich Asians and Netflix’s Marco Polo, Hii’s casting was announced last August with his character finally being revealed this past May as the All-American jock in Peter’s high school who has a thing for MJ. Producer Eric Carroll described Hii’s character to ScreenRant as ‘the kind of guy [that] guys like me and Peter hated in high school. His hair is always looking right, the clothes always fit the way they’re supposed to, he always would have something funny to say, and he’s read all the same books as MJ — or at least he lies and says he’s read all the same books as MJ.”
“Brad Davis is this super likeable guy,” Hii explained during a Spider-Man screening. “He’s one of the high school kids who goes to Peter’s high school. He’s a guy that everyone really loves.”
Well, maybe not everyone. It’s clear that there is a rivalry between Brad and Peter for MJ’s affections throughout the movie as they attempt to ‘one-up’ each other. Hii laughed, “Yeah. It’s a really classic take on a love triangle but it plays out in a really fun way and because you see Peter struggling with his jealousy and his powers as Spider-Man. I mean, if he wanted to, he could really take Brad out. There is an amazing scene in the film — I don’t want to spoil it — but things could go really, really bad where Peter oversteps his boundaries.”
When pressed further regarding the scene and if Peter and Brad hated each other, Hii smiled and said, “No comment. You’ll have to see.”
Of course, if you know comic book history, Brad Davis was one of MJ’s ex-boyfriends. He was also a blond, blue-eyed white guy. Hii was actually pretty excited to see the race-bending of the character to fit how America is today.
“That’s really cool,” said Hii. “I don’t really see it as changing the face. I just think of it as playing what is there. I think that the face of America — the face of an American — has always been there. Have we seen it on our screens? Not necessarily up until now. So I think that it’s really cool in a film like this where you get to see a real high school and what that make up is. It’s an incredibly diverse film.”
Diverse is an understatement. The film features its first openly transgender student [Zach Barack], a student in a hijab [Zoha Rahman], and many students of color. “It just felt normal,” Hii explained. “It felt like life. It felt real. I suppose, yeah, when you think about it, I felt an incredible sense of pride in what we’re doing. The fact that we have this film that I feel is going to be relatable to so many people and give so many people a chance to see that they too can wear the mask.”
As a huge Marvel fan himself, Hii feels pretty it has been a dream come true being part of the film. He is interested in expanding his role in the MCU.
“They’re kind of making a film called Shang-Chi at the moment which I think is awesome,” Hii beamed. “Let’s just keep breaking down the walls. Let’s just keep pushing. I think it’s time, you know. It’s our time. I think it’s an incredible time for Asian Americans in the industry at the moment… I don’t want to say too much because maybe I’m in the mix for something. I don’t know. I don’t want to ruin my chances, man.”
Spider-Man: Far From Home opens in theaters on July 2.
