Liza Soberano was supposed to audition to play the role of Zendaya’s character in the Spider-Man: Homecoming movie, but it didn’t push through for this reason.
Jeffrey Oh, CEO of Liza’s management Careless, revealed this during his closing statement at panel discussion during the 2nd Philippine Creative Industries Summit, claiming that the actress failed to audition as she was locked in a contract with her then management.
“Liza was offered to audition for that role, they reached out for her to audition to be Mary Jane, one of the most iconic characters. And she was not allowed because she had to do the same thing she’s always been doing, right?
“I really shouldn’t have said that,” Oh said laughing.
“But it’s the truth, it’s the truth. Now, imagine this wasn’t like, as if she was being marketed, like they reached out. That was I mean by like, it’s self-evident in a lot of different ways when you go out there are people looking for Filipino talent.
“Imagine, a Filipina actress was a star of one of the biggest Marvel movies in history? Imagine she was Mary Jane? What would that do for Philippine entertainment? But then she was in a 10-year contract which is also unheard of anywhere else in the world.”
Oh’s statement, however, contradicted Liza’s remarks in 2016, where she denied being formally invited to audition for the role, saying it was only her fans’ idea.
“It’s not really an invitation. I think it was what the fans wanted lang, fans of Marvel. I think one of them is Pinay and parang she tweeted that, parang kung merong magiging Mary Jane Watson, she would want it to be me. All my fans started retweeting it and everything but wala naman po talagang invitation,” Liza was quoted saying in an ABS-CBN report.
Liza, nevertheless, said she would be honored if she did get invited to audition for the role. “I would love that. That would be a nice opportunity,” she said.
Liza officially signed up with Careless, a label co-founded by fellow actor James Reid, in June 2022.
The actress has been creating a buzz lately following her “rebranding” stance on social media.
