When Madame Web hit theaters on Valentine’s Day, movie audiences met Cassandra Webb for the first time, and they were forever changed. On its surface, the film tells the story of a public servant drawn to the ultimate public service — clairvoyant superheroism. At heart, it’s a tale of failure, friendship, and ultimately redemption. 

Directed by S.J. Clarkson, Madame Web is the latest entry in Sony’s Spider-Man Universe, and it’s now streaming on Netflix. The Marvel multiverse continues to grow, and there’s no better time to catch up on the thriving world of characters who are peripherally related to Spider-Man. (Spoiler alert: Her web really does connect us all.) 

When will Madame Web be on Netflix?

Stream it right now.

Who’s in the cast of Madame Web?

• Dakota Johnson (The Lost Daughter) as Cassandra “Cassie” Webb/Madame Web, a New York City paramedic whose mysterious visions of the future upend her quiet life
• Sydney Sweeney (Anyone But You) as Julia Cornwall, a teenager whose status as a future Spider-Woman puts her in danger
• Isabela Merced (Sweet Girl) as Anya Corazón, a different teenager whose status as a future Spider-Woman puts her in danger
• Celeste O’Connor (Irreplaceable You) as Mattie Franklin, a third teenager whose status as a future Spider-Woman puts her in danger
• Tahar Rahim (The Serpent) as Ezekiel Sims, an explorer who gained powerful abilities from a rare spider (unrelated) and now haunts New York City in a spider-themed costume, searching for the three Spider-Women he’s dreamed will kill him in the future
• Mike Epps (The Upshaws) as O’Neil, Cassie’s paramedic co-worker
• Adam Scott (Little Evil) as Ben Parker, Cassie’s partner who’s very excited about being an uncle but a little nervous about the responsibility that comes with it
• Emma Roberts (Holidate) as Mary Parker, Ben’s pregnant sister-in-law. Can you guess her child’s name? We’ll give you three tries!
• Kerry Bishé (Super Pumped: The Battle for Uber) as Constance Webb, Cassie’s mother. Hope the spiders were worth it, Mom!
• Zosia Mamet (Girls) as Amaria, Ezekiel Sims’ hacker assistant
• José María Yazpik (Narcos) as Santiago, member of a mysterious spider tribe from the Amazon

What happens in Madame Web?

So much happens. The film kicks off deep in the Amazon, where pregnant scientist Constance Webb (Bishé) is searching for a spider with special abilities. But she’s not alone. As Cassie Webb (Johnson) famously notes of the film’s villain in Madame Web’s trailer: “He was in the Amazon with my mom when she was researching spiders right before she died.” When the explorers discover the spider, Ezekiel Sims (Rahim) betrays Constance and leaves her for dead in the rainforest. Discovered by a mysterious tribe, Constance gives birth to Cassie and dies in childbirth.

Thirty years later, Cassie is a New York City paramedic who begins having mysterious visions of her own death. After hopping on the Metro North to try to clear her head, she has a premonition that three young women in her train car (Sweeney, Merced, and O’Connor) are about to be murdered by Sims. Cassie promptly kidnaps them, steals a taxi cab, and the chase is on. Sims is on the warpath, convinced that his future death will be caused by these three future Spider-Women. It’s up to Cassie to 1) hide them in the woods, 2) teach them CPR, 3) fly to Peru on a largely unrelated mission, and 4) finally, save the day. 

How is Madame Web connected to Marvel?

While the film takes some liberties with its source material, nearly all of the characters in Madame Web have their roots in Marvel comic books. Created by Denny O’Neil and John Romita Jr., Madame Web first appeared in issue #210 of The Amazing Spider-Man, published in November 1980. The various Spider-Women and Ezekiel Sims have also appeared throughout the Spider-Man comics. And the film winks at the future of Spider-Man, depicting Peter Parker’s birth and even featuring Uncle Ben as a supporting character.

On the cinematic side, Madame Web is set in Sony’s Spider-Man Universe of Marvel characters, which kicked off with Venom in 2018. While the films are not directly connected to Tom Holland’s Spider-Man trilogy (set in Disney’s Marvel Cinematic Universe), they do share the same larger multiverse, as seen in last year’s Spider-Man: Across the Spider-Verse (which is also streaming now). 

When is Madame Web set?

Madame Web is set in 2003. There are a few subtle clues to this setting in the film, including a prominently placed Beyoncé billboard, an American Idol name drop, and one prominent moment where Julia references Martha Stewart’s legal difficulties.

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