There is a debate that has been going around ever since Spider-Man has been getting multiple live actions: which Spider-Man is the best? My answer is: all of them. But why?
In 2002, the first live action Spider-Man, casting Tobey Maguire as Peter Parker, came out, followed by two sequels, Spider-Man 2 and Spider-Man 3. Then, in 2012, a new movie duology starring Spider-Man was released: The Amazing Spider-Man, starring Andrew Garfield as Peter Parker. In 2016, the Marvel movie Civil War came out, and a new, third Spider-Man was presented to us: Tom Holland’s Spider-Man, which has been in seven movies so far.
Spider-Man has been starring in live-actions for 24 years now, in twelve movies, starring three different Spider-Man. Yet no-one seems to fully agree on which Spider-Man can be undeniably qualified as the best. Why is that?
Of course, everyone can have different tastes and opinions regarding movies. However, I believe that it is undeniable that all three actors have delivered brilliant and emotional performances, which is one of the reasons why no one can fully agree.
What I believe makes it even harder to find “the best” Spider-Man live action adaptation is that each performance is so different in the way they present and characterize Peter Parker and Spider-Man, that one argument for one as to why it is bad or good cannot be fully applied to the other.
Tobey Maguire’s Spider-Man
Tobey Maguire’s performance puts emphasis on the morality of Peter Parker and how it impacts his life. In the movies, it’s as if the entire weight of the world is on Parker’s shoulders. Being Spider-Man weighs on him and pretty much actively destroys his life: his uncle Ben dies, he loses Mary Jane, he is failing school, he can barely pay his rent, he loses his friends and his job… His life only gets “better” once he stops being Spider-Man. However, this happiness does not last. Even if he was happier in a sense, he could not escape the sense of duty he felt when he saw someone in need, especially when Doctor Octopus enters the game. He has to be Spider-Man. He needs to help others.
Parker’s morality is the purest in these adaptations: he does good because he can. He is noble. He becomes Spider-Man again because even if it destroys him, people need him. He cannot shy away from it without feeling the weight on him too. That’s who Spider-Man is as a hero. He does not put on the mask day after day because of his need to enact justice on every criminal he comes across, even if revenge was what drove him in the first place. Spider-Man just wants to do good with what he has. His super powers simply give him the excuse and push to do so. His costume is simply a way for him to conceal his identity and be more confident while saving others. In his simplest form, there are no complicated ideals or morals that he follows; he helps because he can.
What helps us believe this purity of character is Maguire himself. He always commits to the emotion that Peter Parker feels, like when he talks about his uncle Ben, or when he loses his closest friend, Harry Osborn. Maguire makes Parker feel genuine and sincere. His Peter Parker might be awkward and clumsy, but he is genuine. In short, Tobey Maguire shows the gravity of Peter Parker and the influence of Spider-Man on him.
The main criticism that people have over Maguire’s performance is that his Spider-Man is missing some of the humor and lightness from the comics, making him a great Peter Parker, but less compelling Spider-Man. However, Maguire’s performance is still the one who best shows the pure morality and sincerity of the character.
Andrew Garfield’s The Amazing Spider-Man
Andrew Garfield’s performance, according to critics, has the opposite problem of Maguire’s performance; Garfield makes a great Spider-Man, but a less great Peter Parker. Garfield’s adaptation focuses on Spider-Man’s charisma and : he’s expressive, humoristic, sarcastic, and cocky at times. He taunts villains and plays with them. He makes Spider-Man a fun and compelling character to watch. The costume simply allows him to remove the “Peter Parker” filter and “let loose.” Garfield is what we call a body actor, meaning that he uses a lot of body movements to act. In short, he is always on the move, which works amazingly for Spider-Man. It allows him to explore and really understand the humor and cockiness of the hero in the comics, something that was missing from Maguire’s performance.
His Spider-Man definitely still has this noble characteristic of helping others because he can. The “friendly neighborhood Spider-Man” is not there to bring justice to criminals like Batman is. He just wants to use his powers to help those who need it. What is important to distinguish between Maguire’s Spider-Man and Garfield’s, is that the latter understands why Spider-Man uses humor while fighting criminals: it’s not because he feels relaxed, it’s because he is scared. Being Spider-Man is dangerous and he understands that. However, just because Garfield portrays Spider-Man, and Peter Parker by proxy, as this comedic and light hero. It does not mean that he is unserious or emotionally detached from his responsibility. We see it in the way he builds his relationships and tries to protect them, only to fail. We feel it in the chemistry he has with Gwen Stacy and the sheer devastation he feels when she dies. We remember it when in Spider-Man: No Way Home, he manages to catch MJ when she is falling and we cannot help but compare it with how he could not catch Gwen Stacy.
In The Amazing Spider-Man, Parker is more like Spider-Man than Spider-Man is like Parker, if that makes sense. Parker is more rebellious and sarcastic than geeky and sweet. He is still, undeniably, a genius, but he seems to care more about his own projects than school itself. It makes his character and decision to become Spider-Man feel more like a way for him to finally be himself without restraint all the while helping others. As I have mentioned earlier, the critics’ problem with such characterization is that Garfield’s Peter Parker lacks the studiousness and sweetness that made Maguire’s Parker “better” and somewhat more accurate. However, Garfield’s Spider-Man stays the funniest and most charismatic of all three Spider-Man franchises.
Tom Holland’s MCU Spider-Man
Tom Holland’s Spider-Man is different. We have had time to see Peter Parker and Spider-Man grow. As of now, Holland has been in seven movies as Parker/Spider-Man, compared to the three of Maguire and the two of Garfield. Time is an important part as to why people tend to like Holland’s interpretation of the classic character. On top of that, Holland’s characterization of the hero is, in theory and according to the previous points of critic, perfect. His Peter Parker is studious and sweet while still keeping some humor. His Spider-Man is funny and cocky, but still holds a genuine quality of actions. Unlike Maguire and Garfield, Holland’s performance really shows the two sides of Peter Parker/Spider-Man.
In Civil War, we meet Peter as this teenager trying to do good with what he has, trying to impress the heroes he looks up to, and trying to feel valued. Even if he tries to impress the Avengers, he still holds close to his heart that if he can help, he should, no matter what. He is an idealist, in a way, but that is who Spider-Man is. Yet through the mask, the hero still feels young even if he tries to come off as more mature. He makes mistakes; it makes him feel real to us. Holland presents Parker’s ingenuity and sincerity while still showing his present lack of maturity. What makes Holland’s story line interesting is that we see Parker grow into becoming Spider-Man; he becomes more sure of himself and the power he holds, but responsibility weighs on him more and more.
Critics’ main issue with the MCU’s Spider-Man was, simply put, his support system. Holland’s character had Tony Stark, extremely well-developed technology, the Avengers, Happy, his friends and basically the whole of the MCU if he messed-up; he had a safety blanket, unlike Maguire and Garfield’s Spider-Men who were almost alone in dealing with being a super hero. However, fast-fowarding to Spider-Man: No Way Home, this “safety-blanket” gets removed and Peter Parker ceases to exist. He is alone: no friends, no family and no support system. It is in Spider-Man: Brand New Day that we finally see what Peter Parker and Spider-Man would become if he had started his “heroing” like the other two: alone, relationship being put to the ultimate test, trying to balance between being Peter Parker and being Spider-Man. Holland’s Spider-Man/Peter Parker is not a “perfect” adaptation of the comic, especially given his origin story that follows him through the MCU movies, but is still a great adaptation of the classic hero.
Spider-Man/Peter Parker is such a multifaceted character that there is not one perfect adaptation that is better than all the others. All three live adaptations present a different perspective of Peter Parker and Spider-Man that is relevant to his character. Tobey Maguire’s adaptation shows Peter Parker’s sincerity and the weight that being Spider-Man put onto himself and his relationships in his civilian life. Andrew Garfield presents Spider-Man as this sarcastic and mischievous hero, as well as the loss and grief that Spider-Man experiences. Tom Holland’s interpretation allows us to see Peter Parker grow into being Spider-Man and find the balance between being a hero and being himself; he yearns to be like his heroes, he makes mistakes that cost him almost everything and he almost lets Spider-Man consume him. He learns through his mistakes. A single live adaptation cannot show the full extent of the comics’ character in so little time.
That is why I believe that all the Spider-Man movies are the best: because when you watch all of them, you can truly see the full extent of Peter Parker and Spider-Man’s character.
Writer: Mia Bouchard; Editor: James Beaupré; Picture: Spider Man: No Way Home
Sources:
David Micheal Reardon, 2026. Actor Breaks Down Why Tom Holland Is THE BEST Spider Man. https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=GD9QlhA80Rc&list=LL&index=3&t=5s&pp=iAQBsAgC
TalkDExtra, 2026. How Each SPIDER-MAN Understood The Character. https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=8jjgTD-fgb4&pp=ygUfdG9tIGhvbGxhbmQgc3BpZGVyIG1hbiBhbmFseXNpcw%3D%3D
As well as all of the live action movies including Spider-Man/Peter Parker.
