Stories have a way of working in trilogies. There's The Dark Knight, Hunger Games, and even the obscure tale of M. Night Shyamalan's Unbreakable trilogy. Each movie or book in a trilogy works the same as any individual story works: with a beginning, middle, and end.
In the 21st century alone, there have been two Spider-Man trilogies: Sam Raimi's from the early 2000s starring Tobey Maguire, and Jon Watts' Home trilogy with Tom Holland that's part of the MCU. While there may be room for a fourth Raimi Spider-Man, a fourth film in the Home trilogy is inevitable.
However, now that the Home trilogy has concluded, it may be a perfect opportunity to treat the fourth film as a new beginning, possibly the start of another trilogy. Not only does this make sense in the broader aspect of a story, but the Home series is set up perfectly for a clean slate and has the advantage to tell a new story of the friendly neighborhood Spider-Man based on how the third film, No Way Home, ended.
Spider-Man 4 Will Continue From the Home Trilogy's Origin Story
The Home trilogy is unique because it's the first live-action Spider-Man film series that's part of a greater universe (since it was always intended to be a part of the MCU). Both Raimi's and Marc Webb's (the Andrew Garfield movies) took place in universes where Spider-Man was the only Marvel superhero.
Not only was the Home trilogy part of a greater universe, though, but Spider-Man himself was an Avenger, as appointed by Tony Stark in Infinity War. So, whereas Raimi and Webb's Spider-Man films worked as origin stories — with the radioactive spider and trying out different costumes and such — Spider-Man is already an established character in the Home series, and he's known to the city of New York as a vigilante hero.
However, by the end of No Way Home, everyone's memory of Peter Parker has been wiped by Doctor Strange. And so, the fourth film is set up to simultaneously start fresh, and to have the origin story already out of the way. It's a particularly unique setup. The fourth film will be able to tell the classic story of Peter Parker hiding his identity as Spider-Man, while building on the story that already has so much depth and history.
Spider-Man 4 Should Feel Less Like a Sequel
Although this history is already built for Spider-Man in the Home trilogy, the fourth film should still feel like the first Tom Holland Spider-Man movie. In other words, the only information new viewers need to know to watch Spider-Man 4 is that no one knows who Peter Parker is, Aunt May has passed away, and the Blip happened. Other than that, the film should feel more like a stand-alone Spider-Man project. Any viewer should be able to watch and follow it.
Likewise, Spider-Man 4 should have few, if any, references to the Avengers. Viewers should be encapsulated in the world of Spider-Man and Peter Parker in New York City alone. Because of the memory wipe, the fourth film will serve as a new era of Spider-Man, both for the viewers and Peter Parker, that is solely about Spider-Man and not what's going on in the rest of the MCU.
With that said, references to the MCU canon will be inevitable. After all, both Doctor Strange and Happy live in New York. Not to mention, the entire first Avengers movie took place in the city and everyone will remember the alien invasion happening. But the references should be minimal. This will allow the story to focus Spider-Man, and be easily understandable by viewers to the point that it's not necessary to go back and watch the previous films.
Spider-Man 4 Can Establish a New Status Quo for the MCU's Spidey
What made the Home trilogy so great was its fresh take on Spider-Man, based on what non-comic-book-reading fans were accustomed to in the Spider-Man universe. For example, not only were there Avengers and other heroes, but Spider-Man was Iron Man's apprentice and grew up in a world where high school P.E. Classes watched educational videos with Captain America as the spokesperson.
Ironically, what will act as the fresh take for the remainder of the series is if they bring the classic tale of Spider-Man back, similar to what was seen in the Tobey and Andrew films. Tom Holland's Peter Parker can be a college student who works as a freelance photographer for the Daily Bugle, trying to pay rent for his studio apartment. Maybe he even starts working with Dr. Octavius or at OsCorp, where he could meet Harry Osborn. Essentially, Spider-Man should no longer compare himself to the other Avengers. Rather, he can be his own hero, just as Tobey and Andrew were.
In other words, the new status quo for the MCU's Spider-Man films can be a more streamlined Spider-Man story. His identity is hidden, he's the only hero in New York, and he's trying to win the heart of MJ (or perhaps Gwen Stacy, if she is introduced). Not to mention, he's got the classic suit, with the fluorescent blue and different spider emblem. It's exciting to see where the story goes, and older fans of the franchise should be looking forward to the future of Spider-Man in the MCU.