Spider-Man: Far From Home's Top 10 Easter Eggs, From A Christmas Story's Cameo to Uncle Ben's Hidden Initials

Spider-Man: Far From Home is filled to the brim with references, easter eggs and callbacks that link it to the wider Marvel Cinematic Universe and to decades of comic book history. I went through the film and pulled out my top 10 trivia tidbits and easter eggs, counting down from 10 to 1.

10. A Christmas Story's Peter Billingsley returns as an Iron Man extra, JK Simmons comes back as an updated J Jonah Jameson

The film brings back a stock scientist who worked for Obadiah Stane in the first Iron Man movie. The actor playing that engineer, Peter Billingsley, returns to reprise his role after appearing in the character over 11 years earlier. I had no idea going in that this was the kid from A Christmas Story, and apparently he shaved a horseshoe into his head for this role, which is real dedication.

On top of that, JK Simmons returns as J Jonah Jameson, but the film gives the character an update. Rather than being a newspaper editor, Jameson is now written as a reporter who breaks the news to the world that Spider-Man is none other than Peter Parker, which feeds directly into the next point.

9. Peter Parker's identity reveal echoes the Civil War comic, and it came with disastrous comic book consequences

The reveal that Peter Parker is Spider-Man feels like a huge moment in the MCU, but this exact reveal already happened in the Civil War comic book, where the character unmasked live on television to try to persuade other superheroes to sign up to the registration act. The film already ran its own Civil War arc separately, but this identity reveal carries real weight in the comics.

In the comics, that unmasking dealt out big consequences for the character, with villains of the Marvel universe going after Peter's friends and family. That included Aunt May, who was shot by a hitman hired by Kingpin.

8. A documentary called Finding Wakanda shows the country has opened its borders to the world

While searching for something to watch on the nine hour flight to Europe, Peter stumbles across a documentary called Finding Wakanda. This shows that the country has opened its borders to the United Nations and allowed access to the rest of the world, as had been promised earlier in the wider story.

7. A documentary called Heart of Iron is a play on Iron Heart, the character who takes over from Iron Man in the comics

There is also a play on the hero Iron Heart in a documentary that appears here called Heart of Iron. For those who do not know, Iron Heart took over the role of Iron Man when the character died in the comic books, and this is a nice little hint at what could be coming in the future.

6. Uncle Ben's full name, Benjamin Franklin Parker, is hidden on Peter's suitcase

Even though we have never seen Uncle Ben in the MCU, there is still a hint to him in this film. It comes in the form of the suitcase that Peter packs his clothes into for the trip. On top, next to the handle, you can see the initials BFP, which stand for Benjamin Franklin Parker, Peter's deceased uncle, the man who set him on the route to becoming a hero.

5. Happy Hogan's London Bridge line is likely a joke about Fergie's song of the same name

When flying to take on Mysterio in the final battle, Happy Hogan, who is piloting the plane, drops a line about Nick Fury telling him to go to London Bridge, which he then realizes is actually Tower Bridge. My guess, though I cannot say for certain, is that this is a joke about the song London Bridge by Fergie, in which the singer references the wrong bridge for the entire song despite it being a well known mistake to anyone who knows London. Whether that is the intention or not, we will never know for certain.

4. Peter's passport lists his birthday as August 10, matching Spider-Man's first comic appearance

In the film, Peter Parker's passport lists his birthday as August 10, which is two days after my own birthday. This date is significant because Spider-Man's first appearance was in Amazing Fantasy 15, which was released on August 10, 1962.

3. Jake Gyllenhaal was almost cast as Spider-Man after Tobey Maguire hurt his back on Seabiscuit

Jake Gyllenhaal is no stranger to Spider-Man films. After Tobey Maguire seriously injured his back during the filming of Seabiscuit, Gyllenhaal was almost recast as the central character because no one thought Maguire would be able to film the movie. Maguire's back did heal, and he was able to go on and shoot the sequel.

Far From Home has an in-joke about that injury, referencing Maguire's back being hurt when the character falls during a failed swing.

2. Ned and Betty's relationship nods to the comic marriage of Betty Brant and the Hobgoblin

In the film, Peter's guy in the chair Ned ends up getting close to Betty, and the two become boyfriend and girlfriend, though it is short-lived. This is a reference to the comics, in which Betty Brant and the Hobgoblin, Ned Leeds, got married. Ned is not a villain in the film, but this is a cool nod to when the two tied the knot in the comics, and the film hints that their future together would have had disastrous consequences if the relationship had continued.

1. The Elementals attack scenes hide license plates and signs referencing Sandman, Hydro-Man and Molten Man

When the Elementals appear, there are several references to Spider-Man's comic history. In the film's opening, a car license plate reads 463, an easter egg for the Earth Elemental, Sandman, who first appeared in Amazing Spider-Man 4, released in 1963.

During the water Elemental attack, a boat sign reads ASM, which refers to Amazing Spider-Man issue 212, the first appearance of the water villain Hydro-Man. During the fire Elemental attack, there is a license plate that reads 2865 SEP, a reference to the Spider-Man villain Molten Man, who made his debut in Amazing Spider-Man 28 back in 1965.

Did I miss any easter eggs from Spider-Man: Far From Home that deserve a spot on this list?