‘Spider-Man: No Way Home’ First Reactions Are In

If you’re even tangentially connected with the ebbs and flows of pop culture, then you shouldn’t need a reminder that Spider-Man: No Way Home, in all its multiverse glory, hits theaters later this week. And following the film’s premiere at the Regency Village Theatre in Los Angeles on Monday, we now have a range of initial reactions that should add a healthy amount of additional fuel to the hype fire.

Variety calls it a “satisfying meta-adventure,” while the Daily Beast has deemed Jon Watts’ Far From Home sequel the Marvel Cinematic Universe’s “best Spidey movie by a mile.” Other recently published reviews, including from the Chicago Sun-Times (an “innovative new adventure”) and Deadline (“This movie is a holiday gift”), strike a similarly glowing tone, while the Hollywood Reporter took a more measured—though ultimately still positive—stance.

Of course, the proliferation of fan theories dominated chatter ahead of No Way Home’s premiere, a topic cast members—including Tom Holland, Zendaya, Benedict Cumberbatch, and Jacob Batalon—got into during a Monday night appearance on Jimmy Kimmel Live.

“We’re huge fans of these movies,” Holland said at one point when addressing multiverse possibilities. “This film, in particular, is a celebration of three generations of cinema. So to bring these characters back, to see them bring them back to life [and] embody these people they said goodbye to nearly 20 years before, was amazing.”

For fans, exactly what all of that ends up meaning remains to be seen. In the meantime, catch an assortment of first reactions to the latest web-slinging entry below, including a quick one from Kid Cudi. Spider-Man: No Way Home hits theaters on Dec. 17.