The Amazing Spider-Man 2 recently confirmed some interesting names, with Jamie Foxx set to give us a first look at Electro, Shailene Woodley as Mary-Jane Watson 2.0 and Dane DeHaan as Peter Parker’s longtime rival Harry ‘not James Franco‘ Osborn. Martin Sheen is now also set to appear, as none other than Spidey’s beloved uncle Ben.

Given that the gentle old chap went down in a shower of lead in The Amazing Spider-Man, we’re going to presume that his role in the forthcoming sequel will be limited to a flashback. Speaking about his return, Sheen said: “They’ve called me back. I don’t know what the part is gonna be, but I’m going to be Uncle Ben once again in Spider-Man next year. We shoot it in February.”

The Amazing Spider-Man played down the bright-coloured nature of Sam Raimi‘s trilogy, with Andrew Garfield‘s skateboarding Peter Parker more of a troubled emo than an old-fashioned nerd. The return of Martin Sheen could signal some tortured memories for the webslinger, having played an unwitting part in his uncle’s demise. Whatever’s in store for The Amazing Spider-Man 2, we hope it’s an improvement on the déjà vu that characterised this summer’s reboot. With the addition of a new Mary-Jane and Harry Osborn, we’re not holding our breath, but there’s time yet for director Marc Webb to re-assert the franchise as something new, we hope.