Our friendly neighborhood Spider-Man is making his Marvel Cinematic Universe film debut in a little over a week, arriving in the accurately-titled Spider-Man: Homecoming. Ever since Sony Pictures and Marvel Studios concluded their Spidey-sharing deal, it’s always been assumed that the webhead’s first appearance with the Avengers was in last year’s superhero clash bash Captain America: Civil War. But now, according to the arachnid actor himself Tom Holland, Spider-Man’s alter ego of Peter Parker has actually been a part of the MCU for quite some time, his introduction being in 2010’s Iron Man 2.

In the second Iron Man adventure’s closing act, the Stark Expo is attacked by the villainous Ivan Vanko and his Hammer Drones. As Tony Stark begins to fly around and save attendees from danger, the heroic billionaire spots a small boy wearing an Iron Man mask standing up to the imposing machines. Just before the boy is attacked by a Hammertech mech, the armored Avenger swoops in to save him. Before heading off, Iron Man thanks the kid for his heroic help in stopping the bad guys.

According to Tom Holland, the boy in the scene is meant to be none other than Peter Parker, a younger version of the same webhead from Spider-Man: Homecoming. This amazing revelation was confirmed by Holland only minutes after hearing the news from Marvel boss Kevin Feige:

I can confirm that as of today. I literally had a conversation with Kevin Feige only 20 minutes ago. Maybe I’ve just done a big, old spoiler, but it’s out there now. It’s cool. I like the idea that Peter Parker has been in the universe since the beginning.”

The news that Peter Parker made his MCU debut in Iron Man 2 is undoubtedly incredible. This appearance would not only predate his first solo film, but the Marvel-Sony deal entirely, calling into question whether or not Spidey’s younger self was secretly intended from the start or was retconned into the film later on. Though it’s likely the latter scenario, more information could be revealed in Spider-Man: Homecoming when it releases on July 7.

What do you think? Is Peter’s inclusion in Iron Man 2 a clever way to integrate the wall-crawler into the MCU, or is it just another lame way for Marvel to put Tony Stark in the middle of everything? Let us know in the comments below and be sure to follow DFTG on Twitter to learn of the latest gaming and news stories 24 hours a day! For more on the topic of Spider-Man, check out these next few links below:

• New Marvel Museum Exhibit Features Movie Props From ‘Iron Man’ to ‘Thor: Ragnarok’ (GALLERY)
• Get Ready to Spider-Suit Up in the Spider-Man: Homecoming VR Experience (VIDEO)
• And the Final Verdict is in for Venom’s Fate in the Marvel Cinematic Universe
• Devs Confirm That Spidey Will Have Suit Options in Insomniac’s Spider-Man Game