The third installment in Tom Holland’s Spider-Man trilogy, “Spider-Man: No Way Home,” was a smash-hit at the box office when it was released in December 2021.

It was recently rereleased in theaters, 11 minutes longer, with new, never-before-seen footage added in. Many people returned to the theaters to see the movie again with the new scenes added in – but was it worth it?

While the original cut of the movie kept fans on the edges of their seats with plot twists and action, it was also the comedic scenes and lovable fluff between characters that had us smiling in the theaters. The extended release adds to these scenes, with extra lines and deleted moments that showcase the cast’s talent for easygoing chemistry and witty remarks.

Extra banter between Andrew Garfield, Toby Maguire, and Tom Holland all playing their respective Spider-Man roles brought waves of nostalgia and giggles that definitely add to the charm, especially if you’re a long-time fan of the earlier Spider-Man movies. Everybody loved the dialogue between the three Spider-Men in the original cut, and Marvel took this to heart by adding in some deleted conversation in the extended edition.

The extended cut also features extra scenes of Tom Holland’s Peter Parker making his way through high school with his secret identity revealed, and the jokes keep rolling in with Peter’s reactions to his peers’ new perspectives of him. This included an interview on their school news channel between Betty Brant and Peter Parker, as well as interviews with a couple of teachers and Peter’s friends. The personalities of these minor characters are developed more than we’ve ever really seen them before, and it adds some extra humor to the first half of the film.

Additionally, the extended edition has replaced its second end-credit scene (the trailer for Dr. Strange: Multiverse of Madness) with an unseen clip of a news segment that Betty Brant has added to her broadcast. The light-hearted video features a recap of highlights for all of the graduating students, going so far as to include photos of the events of Spider-Man: Homecoming, and their trip to Europe in Spider-Man: Far From Home. Holland’s Parker is notably absent in all of them, helping to explain how Dr. Strange’s spell worked.

All in all, the clever comments, nostalgic references and added comedic relief definitely make viewing the extended release worth it for the long-time Marvel fans who want more of what they saw with the original release.

However, if you aren’t a huge fan of Marvel, or aren’t really interested in a few extra scenes of your possible favorite character, it isn’t really worth it to go back to the cinemas. The newly released scenes add more individual interactions between characters that we haven’t seen interact one-on-one before, such as the added scene with the characters Happy Hogan and Matthew Murdock.

The new scene is a follow-up to some dialogue from a previous scene, in which Matt Murdock, who is Peter Parker’s lawyer, mentions to Happy Hogan that he will need a lawyer. The new footage that was added is of Matt acting as Happy’s lawyer, and is intended to be a quick, fun scene for comedic relief, which is achieved – however, it really isn’t necessary to the plot.

It was not included in the original release of the movie, and it makes sense as to why it doesn’t change the plot at all. It has no purpose other than being included as just a light-hearted moment before the more sad parts of the movie.

If you went to see the movie previously, you really aren’t missing out on much, especially in perspective to the storyline and the movie overall. If you didn’t get to see the movie the first time it was released, take the opportunity to see it now in theaters if you want that experience. If not, you can always watch the original version at home.

The extra scenes are nice, but you can see why they were cut out – the plot of the movie is still the same as it was before, because they’re mostly just a few more interactions or conversations between characters.

After considering all the facets that the extended edition of Spider-Man: No Way Home has to offer, as well as what it didn’t offer, the final conclusion is that the movie is really only worth paying for in-theaters if you’re already a fan of the previous Spider-Man and Marvel movies.

The extra banter between fan-favorite characters make the film all the more endearing, and the occasional extra action scene adds to the tension, but if you’re looking for more plot development or an alternate ending, the price of seeing the same film again (just with added fluff) on the big screen just isn’t worth it.