Since 2002's Spider-Man, the friendly neighborhood hero has been on the big screen many times. Four different actors have been the arachnid hero: three Peter Parker and one Miles Morales. Who’s been the best Spidey? Let's take a look and decide.
Why Tobey Maguire Is the Best Spider-Man
You never forget your first. There might not have been today's superhero fever if Sam Raimi and Tobey Maguire had botched the 2002 film. Maguire’s rendition of Parker is the most similar to the comic character when it comes to being a lonely, nerdy kid, that has nothing going on for himself in high school. If that wasn’t enough, he’s also the character who shows the biggest connection to his Uncle Ben, so when tragedy happens, you really see that affecting the rest of his life, and changing his path so he can become the superhero we all love and respect.
Maguire’s other best qualities in the role are the fact that his version is the one that explores what means to have a double life, and how many times being Spider-Man makes Parker’s life worst, as he keeps missing moments with his family, friends, and Mary Jane, and how, sometimes being a hero can suck. His version of the character is also the one that takes the same care for the Peter Parker part of the double life, and not just the Spider-Man part of the character. Although he’s a superhero who fights crime, he still has to work two jobs so he can pay rent on time, and his mistakes have consequences, making the “With great power, comes great responsibility” a harder choice than it could be.
The greatest asset Maguire has is he knows how to show that angst: he’s a good kid, whose superhero life sabotages his real life all the time, and he’s bummed about it, even if he knows he’s doing the right thing, making his powers both a gift and a curse. This idea is explored well in the second movie; the best superhero sequel ever, as Peter stops being the hero for a bit, and his personal life gets spectacularly better.
Maguire's Spider-Man also has another important thing going for him. From all the versions of the character, he is the only one that has personal connections with the villains, making his fights double-edged. He knows Norman Osborn (Willem Dafoe) because Norman is his best friend's father, and he knows Dr. Otto Octavius (Alfred Molina) because he is one of Peter’s heroes and someone who has given him a chance, making the stakes much bigger, because even if he wins, he loses something. When the Green Goblin dies, Peter’s best friend, Harry (James Franco), becomes his worst enemy.
Why Andrew Garfield Is the Best Spider-Man
After the Maguire saga, Andrew Garfield had a tough act to follow. He didn’t look like a teenager (he was already 27 in the first movie), and yet he knew how to show his teenage angst. Garfield’s Parker wasn’t as nerdy as Maguire, as he was more of a cool outsider, but he was also quirky and awkward around Gwen, the girl he liked. The actor was best at showing how much fun a teenager would have with these powers, with his giddiness while slinging around New York City, and especially his humor while fighting bad guys. Marvel Comics' Spider-Man was a wise-cracking jester, able to throw punchlines as good and fast as his webs, and this version is the one that does that part of the character the best. His witty banter, comedic timing, and sense of humor make his battles something more than just physical battles.
Garfield is the best actor of the three real-life Spider-Man adaptations, and it shows. He was destroyed by the loss of his uncle while trying to hide it from the girl he likes; he was a bumbling hero, and you'll believe all those things are affecting one another, creating a tridimensional character. But what makes this Spider-Man the most unique, is his relationship with Gwen Stacy (Emma Stone). Maybe it's because the actors were dating in real life, but you believe every second of that relationship that shows that young love is as intense as it comes. Gwen is a great character on her own, and there’s nothing more lovely than the fact that she loves Peter more than Spider-Man. The actress makes the character resonate, and gives her autonomy. All those things make her end much more dramatic, in what might be the most gut-punching moment in any of the movies from any of the actors.
A third movie would’ve shown the consequences of that loss. About the possibility of that third movie, director Marc Webb told the Independent: “I really think Spider-Man belongs in that Marvel universe. I wasn’t upset about it at all. It would have been hard to make another movie without Emma [Stone], frankly. It’s in really good hands now, and it’s hard to feel bad about that. It’s pretty cool, I can’t wait to see this movie.” Although we didn’t have that third film, Garfield’s Spider-Man might be the one with the most rewarding arc in Spider-Man: No Way Home, when he’s able to save MJ (Zendaya) from having the same fate as his Gwen.
Why Tom Holland Is the Best Spider-Man
Tom Holland played Spider-Man in the last real-life iteration of the character, and many think he’s the best version. The actor has many things going for him, starting with the fact that he was a real teenager when he appeared in Captain America: Civil War, making him the actor most close in age to the character. Peter is a shy, awkward, and nervous teenager, who feels that asking out the girl he likes is as difficult as beating up some bad guys. His trilogy is a coming-of-age story where we see everything he must learn, so his Spider-Man is ready to start being the college version of the character.
Holland’s Spider-Man is also the one that navigates both sides of the character better: Maguire was a great Peter, and Garfield was a great Spider-Man, but Holland’s version is the one that does both parts of the character justice, creating the most rounded hero of the bunch. His Peter has a naive innocence, a childish glee, and awkward stammering, while his Spider-Man is a bit more confident, but is still the same person.
The greatest of Holland's allies are his co-stars making his Spider-Man the one with the greatest support group and the only one who has shared his secret identity with all the people he loves most. He has a lovely, real-life relationship with his Aunt May (Marisa Tomei), a best friend who also doubles as “the guy in the chair” in Ned (Jacob Batalon), and a romantic interest who is a great character on her own in MJ (Zendaya). Their first kiss in the second film is as sweet and awkward as any kiss between teenagers should be. These three relationships were what made the ending of Spider-Man: No Way Home so sad, as he’s left alone and no one remembers him. The other versions of the character always had Aunt May, but Holland’s version has lost everyone. It might be a savvy way to create a new plot and group of friends if there’s ever a new trilogy of films centered around the actor, but for now, it's a downer ending.
About working with the three real-life Spider-Man in the last film, director Jon Watts told Variety: "We had the only three actors to ever play Spider-Man in a film, and each had been through so much, on and off the screen. It was like a Spider-Man therapy session."
Why Shameik Moore Is the Best Spider-Man
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Shameik Moore plays a different character; an animated one for now, as he’s the first big-screen adaptation of Miles Morales. We met Miles in his own movie, Spider-Man: Into the Spider-Verse, and for some, this is the best superhero movie ever made, where Peter Parker just dies at the start of the film. Miles gets bitten by the spider, but he’s still no superhero, so he gets a mentor/mentee relationship with the Peter Parker of another universe, who shows him the ropes.
Miles' life and character are different from Peter Parker's. Although both come from New York, are shy teenagers, and could be an everyman in the city, the similarities stop there. Miles' family situation and dynamic are different as he has two loving parents in a multicultural home; he’s not afraid to show his emotions and confusion, and he’s not a scientist but an artist. He doesn’t have to learn how his powers work alone, as he has Spider-Men/Women/Pig to help him on his way to becoming a hero. The fact that there are already many superheroes in his world also makes him different from Peter Parker, as he knows what’s going on when he gets bitten.
His powers are also different, as the spider that bites him has different properties than the one that bit Peter, giving him all the abilities of the original Spider-Man, and adding a bio-electric zap, and camouflage that looks like invisibility. His character imbues the "anyone could be Spider-Man" motto even better than Parker, as he’s from a culturally-diverse background, that knows what the appropriate thing to do is: help people. As Peter, he also has an uncle that changes his life with his death, although in this case, his uncle Aaron was a criminal he couldn’t save and bring to the good side. Miles might be younger and more inexperienced than Peter Parker when everything started, but he’s also his own person, making the personality changes between both pretty apparent.
Shameik Moore might only voice the character, but with every sentence, every inflection, and every interaction, you can feel the whole persona and what he’s feeling and thinking, making Miles a rounded character, that imbues what Spider-Man has always been: kind, smart, awkward and a teenager with teenage problems.
Verdict
Who is the best Spider-Man? After laying out everyone’s cases, we think Tom Holland is the best Spider-Man, as his version is the one that can mix both sides of the character better, making it the most lived-in version of Spider-Man. To be the perfect version, he still has to become more sarcastic and funny with his quips while fighting, but that’s something that would come with the confidence of being Spider-Man for a few years. Now, let’s hope the MCU has another Spider-Man franchise in them, led by Holland, so we can see him fighting new villains, getting Harry Osborn as a friend, and maybe even falling in love with Gwen Stacy or Felicia Hardy before MJ’s Zendaya comes back for the last film in the trilogy. Let’s dream about all that with the greatest Spider-Man there's ever been in a film.