In a way, the entire film is about mourning and the ways our reactions to death can honour (or dishonour) the ones we’ve lost. Raimi actually dreamt up and storyboarded this moment during the making of the first film, shaping Spider-Man 2 around it. It’s Octopus who Peter battles in a thrilling fight on top of a train: a set-piece that become recognised as the film’s standout sequence. But the final script opted for a streamlined, leaner film, that positioned Octopus as another father figure for Peter, still grief-stricken from the death of his Uncle Ben. An original treatment had seen comic villains the Lizard and Black Cat also in the mix another involved a love triangle between Dr Octopus, Parker and MJ. Shooting began in April 2003 in New York, reuniting the original’s all-star cast, with Kirsten Dunst (MJ) and James Franco (Harry Osborne) both back alongside Maguire. Producer Amy Pascal offered the role to Jake Gyllenhaal, who almost stepped in, before Maguire backed down on his demands. He also wanted more money – more, it seemed, than Sony was willing to pay. Maguire, who filmed horse racing drama Seabiscuit after making Spider-Man, had back complaints from that shoot. Sony weren’t about to waste any time fast-tracking a sequel.
#HOW TO SPIDERMAN 2 MOVIE#
It was a smash: the first film to reach $100m in a single weekend, and the most lucrative movie of all time based on a comic book, with a box office gross of over $821.7m worldwide. With great spectacle, came great laughter. For every moment of high-wire action, Spidey hurtling through the skyline doing battle with deadly foes, there was a relatable example of the agony of being a teenager, struggling (and failing) to get his life together (such as when Peter accidentally mixes up his spandex suit in his washing and dyes all his underwear pink). To many, it’s not just the best Spider-Man film, but the definitive example of superhero cinema so far: a punchy, hyper-bright teen drama that balanced brilliantly big blockbuster set-pieces with the humour and pathos of a boy trying to find his place in the world. It was Spider-Man 2, released 15 years ago today, that’s largely to credit for the enduring romance between Maguire’s Spidey and fans. No wonder fans were excited last month at the thought of a comic book “Spider-Man 4” Tobey Maguire’s endearingly dweeby version of the character remains deeply beloved. Despite the success of the latter – Far From Home, the second MCU Spidey solo film, was released last week to strong reviews and a $580m opening weekend – for many fans, the Noughties Spider-Man movies still represent peak Peter Parker. In the time since, two new live-action incarnations of Peter Parker have swung onto the silver screen: Andrew Garfield, in two Amazing Spider-Man films that weren’t in fact all that amazing, and Tom Holland, in Marvel’s all-conquering MCU.