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- Updated by Jake Fillery 8th June 2023.
Although X-Men and Blade predated it, Sam Raimi’s Spider-Man was the movie that truly launched the superhero movie trend. Since Raimi’s groundbreaking trilogy, the Spider-Man franchise has been rebooted twice, first with Andrew Garfield and then with Tom Holland in the Marvel Cinematic Universe. Plus, Sony has launched its own Spidey franchise with the animated masterpiece Into the Spider-Verse, providing Spidey fans with tons of easter eggs.
Tobey Maguire’s three Spider-Man movies, Andrew Garfield’s two Amazing Spider-Man movies, Tom Holland’s continuing bout of MCU solo movies (the Avengers team-ups don’t count as Spidey movies), and Into the Spider-Verse total eight Spider-Man movies since 2019 in the past two decades, with varying quality.
UPDATE: 2023/06/07 17:44 EST BY JAKE FILLERY
Updated by Jake Fillery 8th June 2023.
With great power, comes great responsibility. These words follow Spider-Man in every action he takes across a new total of 10 movies. As Marvel’s most popular superhero, it’s no surprise that Spider-Man has seen cinematic adventures spanning over 2 decades. From the first swing of Tobey Maguire’s Spider-Man to the latest by Tom Holland’s Spider-Man, there’s a legacy with this character held within cinema, whether that be live-action or animation.
Not every Spider-Man lands on their feet. Some may run out of web fluid, and Rotten Tomatoes may have something to say about the best Spider-Man movies. With all Spider-Man movies coming in at 10 solo-centric adventures, it’s the perfect time to see what the critics (Not J Jonah Jameson) say about New York City’s favorite webhead.
10 The Amazing Spider-Man 2 (51%)
After weathering complaints that Spider-Man 3 had an overstuffed plot with too many villains, Sony went ahead and gave The Amazing Spider-Man 2 an overstuffed plot with too many villains. Paul Giamatti bookends the movie as a cartoonish incarnation of the Rhino, Dane DeHaan makes James Franco’s Hobgoblin look like one of the all-time greatest comic book movie villains, and Jamie Foxx’s talents are wasted with an Electro who’s just an angry, resentful loner with electrical powers.
At the center of it, all is Andrew Garfield’s Peter Parker stalking Gwen Stacy and investigating his parents’ death, as this reboot series made an unnecessary conspiracy out of that. The film is bloated and messy, but the biggest crime is how it wastes the potential and unbridled talent of Andrew Garfield as the Friendly Neighborhood Spider-Man.
9 Spider-Man 3 (63%)
Sam Raimi’s Spider-Man 3 suffered from all kinds of behind-the-scenes problems. Primarily, Raimi didn’t want to include Venom, but Avi Arad forced him to. So, the movie has one too many villains and devolves into laughable territory when the symbiote fuses with Peter and turns him into a dancing emo buffoon.
Still, there are some breathtaking action sequences, like the malfunctioning crane smashing into a skyscraper, and Thomas Haden Church gives a surprisingly heartfelt performance as Flint Marko, whilst the bitterness of a Symbiote-addicted Peter Parker steals the show.
8 The Amazing Spider-Man (71%)
After Sam Raimi’s Spider-Man 4 fell through, Sony retooled some of its story elements for a reboot, The Amazing Spider-Man. The film recast Tobey Maguire with Andrew Garfield and retold Spidey’s origin story in almost the same way Raimi did, except with a lot of superfluous details added such as a conspiracy surrounding Peter’s parents’ death The real advantage of this reboot was the use of a villain not seen in a Spider-Man movie before.
Following in the footsteps of Batman Begins, Marc Webb went for a reboot that was darker and grittier than its predecessors. And following in the footsteps of Man of Steel and Fant4stic, it was the wrong tone for the chosen property.
7 Spider-Man (90%)
Sam Raimi set the template for superhero origin movies with 2002’s Spider-Man. The director’s horror sensibility can be seen when Peter acquires his powers, while his unique sense of humor comes through in any of the movie’s delightfully goofy one-liners.
While the Green Goblin costume in the movie is a hideous mashup of Power Rangers armor, Willem Dafoe is suitably sinister as the villainous Norman Osborn opposite Tobey Maguire’s definitive portrayal of Peter Parker, even with a new suit.
6 Spider-Man: Far From Home (90%)
Faced with the daunting task of following up from Avengers: Endgame and reeling from Tony Stark's universe-wide sacrifice, Spider-Man: Far From Home brought Spidey to Europe, where he teamed up with Nick Fury (or so he thought) to take on Mysterio.
Tony Stark’s death looms large over the movie, which grated on fans who don’t like the MCU Spidey’s attachment to Iron Man. Nevertheless, it resonated emotionally with those who were still mourning Tony’s death themselves, and brought new meaning to who could become Spider-Man.
5 Spider-Man: Homecoming (92%)
After the Russo brothers gave Spidey a great introduction into the MCU in Captain America: Civil War, Jon Watts was tasked with giving that new incarnation of the character his movie with Spider-Man: Homecoming. Drawing influence from John Hughes’ high school comedies of the ‘80s, Watts gave the MCU’s solo Spider-Man series its style right off the bat.
Tom Holland more than proved he could carry a movie with his endearing portrayal of a Peter Parker who desperately wants to join the Avengers, while Marisa Tomei made for a lovable Aunt May.
4 Spider-Man: No Way Home (93%)
No one can deny that Spider-Man: No Way Home is a celebration of the character and his years across cinema. The film follows Peter Parker as he seeks the help of Doctor Strange so the entire world can forget that Peter Parker is Spider-Man. However, when the spell goes awry, villains from Spider-Man’s Multiverse past emerge into the MCU.
The film is filled with exciting characters returning, like Willem Dafoe’s cackling Green Goblin and Jamie Foxx’s electrifying Electro. The film even brings back Tobey Maguire’s Spider-Man, as well as Andrew Garfield’s Spider-Man, creating a historic cinematic moment between the three iconic live-action Spider-Men as they try to save and cure their villains. There’s a reason Spider-Man: No Way Home is rated so highly, and it’s in part to the maturing of Tom Holland’s Spider-Man performance, the ensemble cast of beloved returning characters, and the epic final battle with the brilliant chemistry between each version of Spider-Man.
3 Spider-Man 2 (93%)
After nailing Spidey’s origin story, Sam Raimi made the quintessential Spider-Man movie with its sequel, Spider-Man 2. At the beginning of the movie, Peter Parker’s double life is hilariously hectic. When Peter loses his powers, it escalates the conflict of the story and forces him to decide whether he is a hero, or if he just got lucky acquiring superpowers.
Alfred Molina’s Doctor Octopus is one of the greatest supervillains in comic book movie history, with both mustache-twirling villainy and genuine pathos. The subway set piece in Spider-Man 2 arguably captures Spidey’s characterization better than any other movie moment.
2 Spider-Man: Across The Spider-Verse (96%)
If there were ever any doubts that animation is cinema, they are sure to be quelled with Spider-Man: Across the Spider-Verse. The movie provides audiences with yet another brilliant Spider-Man adventure, albeit, the most ambitious with a boast of hundreds of Spider-People and Dimension-hopping. Across the Spider-Verse has everything a Spider-Man film needs; superb action, grand style, quips galore, and emotional weight.
Spider-Man: Across the Spider-Verse follows on from where audiences last left Miles Morales after Spider-Man: Into the Spider-Verse. With a few years gone by, Miles is getting into the groove of being New York’s one and only Spider-Man. Although, he’s still learning the hard way about the difficulties of responsibility and two lives. The animation in Across the Spider-Verse is spectacular, and deserving of every praise. Each frame is brimming with detail, and every artist on board deserves applause, as does the voice cast, as Shameik Moore brings another beloved performance as Miles Morales, and Oscar Isaac brings a tense bitterness to Spider-Man 2099’s Miguel O’Hara.
1 Spider-Man: Into The Spider-Verse (97%)
Just when Spidey fans thought Sony couldn’t possibly handle a satisfying Spider-Man movie without the guiding hand of Marvel Studios, they went and made Into the Spider-Verse, one of the greatest animated movies of all time. Into the Spider-Verse both introduced moviegoers to a new Spider-Man, Miles Morales. The movie also established a multiverse filled with alternate Spider-People.
The movie’s unique animation style has the feel of flicking through a comic book, while the voice acting – particularly by Shameik Moore, Jake Johnson, and Hailee Steinfeld – brings real humanity to cartoon characters, a true rendition of a comic page brought to the big screen outside live-action.