Spider-Man (2002)
Trivia
The first film to gross $100 million in its opening weekend alone. At the time, no movie had done so, even when adjusted for inflation.
Tobey Maguire said he had never read a Spider-Man comic book but took the role because he liked the script.
Willem Dafoe performed 90% of his own stunts.
In the wake of the terror attacks on 11 September 2001, Sony recalled teaser posters which showed a close-up of Spider-Man's face with the New York skyline (including, prominently, the World Trade Center towers) reflected in his eyes. Not all the posters were recovered, however, and the ones still at large are now highly prized collector's items.
To acquire his pumped-up physique, Tobey Maguire went through a strict five-month regimen of exercise, weight training and martial arts six times a week, as well as eating a high protein meal four to six times a day.
One of the chief difficulties that Tobey Maguire experienced in the now-famous upside-down kissing scene was that his sinuses kept filling up with water as it was performed in driving rain.
The Green Goblin's costume was originally designed to be more bulky and armoured, but Willem Dafoe, having decided to film his own stunts, rejected it in favour of a more streamlined and athletic costume. The final outfit was composed of 580 pieces and took Dafoe half an hour to put on.
Hugh Jackman revealed that he was supposed to have a brief cameo as Wolverine. Jackman actually showed up in New York to film the scene, but the entire plan was scrapped when the crew couldn't get access to the Wolverine costume from X-Men (2000).
The Green Goblin was chosen as the film's main villain since Sam Raimi felt the father-son theme (Norman and Harry Osborn and Peter Parker) would make the film deeper.
(at around 26 mins) When Peter Parker is testing out his webbing for the first time, he says several classic DC Comics (archrival of Marvel Comics) catchphrases, most notably "Up, up and away, Web!" (Superman) and "Shazam!" (DC's Captain Marvel, not to be confused with a same named Marvel Comics character). Tobey Maguire ad-libbed these lines, which were not in the original script.
By signing on for two sequels, Tobey Maguire secured himself a paycheck of $26 million.
(at around 35 mins) Outside the library, Uncle Ben tells Peter the famous words, "With great power comes great responsibility." This well-quoted line came from a 1962 published issue, although it was part of a narrative caption. When Spider-man's origin was retold once every few years, it was reassigned to Ben.
One of the reasons why Sam Raimi was a popular choice with Sony for the director's gig was because he is an avid comic book collector in his private life, with a collection of over 25,000.
In the comics, Peter Parker is using web shooters that shoot synthetic spider webs. Props for those were made for movie, and they were used in the scene in which Peter practices in his room. However, when it was decided that the web fluid should be organic spider-silk coming from his own wrists (based on a concept James Cameron had for his own Spider-Man movie that never went into production), the scene was later reshot to accommodate that change. Director Sam Raimi answered the protests of comic book fans, saying that it was more credible to have Peter shoot web this way rather than for a high school boy to be able to produce a wonder adhesive in his spare time that a big company like 3M could not make.
When James Franco joked about Tobey Maguire's 'frog-like' features on set, the latter was reportedly genuinely upset by Franco's comments. This created friction between the two actors, which led to the existing rivalry between them now - a rivalry that was admitted to by Maguire in interviews since the Spider-Man franchise.
Doctor Octopus was in the early draft of the script to appear as the second bad guy. Later on in pre-production it was decided that he be reassigned to Spider-Man 2 (2004).
A camera system called the Spydercam was developed to express more of Spider-Man's world and point of view. It was able to drop 50 stories (over 600 ft) and with shot lengths of just over 2400 feet or 3200 feet (for shooting in New York City, or Los Angeles), and could shoot at six frames/second to convey a sense of speed. The Spydercam was only used in this film for the final sequence, but was brought into more use for the sequels.
Zach Hudson, the stunt double for Tobey Maguire, fractured his leg after a stunt went wrong and he slammed in to a brick wall.
When Sam Raimi first offered to cast Tobey Maguire as Spider-Man, the studio was initially very reluctant. That was until they saw Maguire's test and they saw that the actor had clearly bulked up for the role.
Bonesaw McGraw, the wrestler Spider-Man fights for money, is played by real life wrestler "Macho Man" Randy Savage. Early in his career, Savage wrestled under the name "The Spider".
Tobey Maguire had to have his Spider-Man outfit slightly remodeled as the original design had not made any allowances for when the actor needed a bathroom break. A vent was added to enable him to relieve himself without having to remove the entire costume.
Color costume considerations meant that Spider-Man was shot in front of a green screen, while the Green Goblin was shot in front of a blue one.
Spider-Man's webbing in the film is made out of foam materials and fishing line. It was also enhanced with CGI.
Scenes of New Yorkers throwing trash at the Green Goblin and Spider-Man perched alongside the American flag were added after September 11, 2001 to reflect the city's sense of unity and patriotism.
(at around 16 mins) The smoke in the lab during Norman Osborn's transformation scene was originally white but was then digitally altered to green. Director Sam Raimi wanted to use real green smoke, but went with the CG effect when prop designers could not create a colored smoke that was non-toxic.
The first scene filmed was when Peter returns from his field-trip, feverish after being bitten by the spider.
(at around 56 mins) When Jameson's subordinates are trying to tell him about Spider-Man, one of them says, "Eddie's been trying to get a picture of him for weeks." This is a reference to Eddie Brock, a comic book character who would later be featured in Spider-Man 3 (2007).
(at around 13 mins) Although Uncle Ben claims to be 68 in the film, Cliff Robertson was 75 at the time of filming. Make-up artists still made him look a little older.
David Fincher was asked to direct. His version would have told the origin story in the opening credits and would have been based on "The Night Gwen Stacy Died".
The owners of the billboards that surround Times Square attempted to sue Sony Pictures Entertainment Inc., Marvel Enterprises, and the other companies involved with the production of Spider-Man (2002) for "digitally superimposing advertisements for other companies over their billboard space in the film." The suit was thrown out by a federal judge in New York.
The original trailer for the movie depicted a bank robbery with the robbers making a getaway in a helicopter. A close-up of the helicopter was shown, until the helicopter stopped, apparently caught in mid-air. As the camera zoomed out, it was shown that the helicopter was caught in a spider web, suspended between the two towers of the World Trade Center. After the attacks on the towers on 11 September 2001, however, the trailer was changed and the scene was removed from the film.
James Franco's hair was dyed brown to give him some resemblance to Willem Dafoe, his screen father. This decision was only made after filming had begun. Indeed, in the scene where Harry visits Aunt May in hospital, you can see that Franco's hair is his usual black.
A welder building sets for the movie was killed on March 6, 2001 when a crane toppled onto a construction basket in which he was riding and struck him in the head.
According to visual effects supervisor John Dykstra, animating Spider-Man was the most sophisticated task he had accomplished at that time. Sam Raimi wanted to convey the essence of being Spider-Man ("the transition that occurs, between him being a young man going through puberty and being a superhero"); but the main difficulty was that as the character was masked, there was no context of eyes/mouth and it immediately lost a lot of characterization; thus the animators had to insert a lot of body language into his movements so that there would be some emotional content.
(at around 32 mins) One of Peter's sketches for possible costume ideas is nearly identical to the black-and-white suit Spider-Man wore in the comics during the early-to-mid-1980s (and was then adopted by his enemy Venom), except that the spider insignia is red, not white. Peter's note on this sketch: "Needs more color."
Both Tobey Maguire and Willem Dafoe incorporated a Yoga technique called Ashtanga into their training regimens for this film. "Ashtanga" translates into English as "eight-legged," like a spider.
During the fight between the Green Goblin and Spider-Man near the end, Willem Dafoe accidentally clipped Tobey Maguire on the chin with one blow.
On a 2014 edition of The Pete Holmes Show (2013), Joe Manganiello revealed that he was offered $100 by two crew members to actually punch Tobey Maguire in the face during their fight scene. Fearing that he would never work again, he did not do it.
The genetically modified spider that bit Peter Parker was not a black widow spider but a Steatoda spider, which was chosen by Steven R. Kutcher and painted red and blue by Jens Schnabel while the spider was anesthetized.
Chris Columbus was offered the director's chair but opted to make Harry Potter and the Sorcerer's Stone (2001) instead.
(at around 1h 27 mins) In addition to both Peter Parker and Norman Osborn wearing their enemy's costume colors during the Thanksgiving dinner scene, Harry Osborn is seen wearing all of the colors. He's wearing a green shirt, red tie and blue coat.
Some of the actors considered to play J. Jonah Jameson included R. Lee Ermey, Hugh Laurie, Harve Presnell, Dennis Farina, Michael Keaton, Fred Ward, and Bill Paxton, before J.K. Simmons was cast. Stan Lee said that he had always wanted to play J. Jonah Jameson since the character was based on him. He even auditioned for the role, but it was determined he wasn't right for the part. Lee would go onto be highly complimentary of Simmons' portrayal. Keaton would go on to portray Adrian Toomes/The Vulture in Spider-Man: Homecoming (2017).
Elizabeth Banks auditioned for the role of Mary-Jane Watson before being cast as Betty Brant.
When used in the trailer, the shot of Peter doing a long back-flip onto a car hood was digitally altered to put him in his final Spider-Man outfit instead of his wrestling outfit.
Sam Raimi and John Dykstra worked hard to plan all the web-slinging sequences, which Raimi described as "ballet in the sky." The complexity of such sequences meant the film's budget rose from an initially planned $70 million to around $100 million.
Entered into the Guinness Book of World Records as having the Highest Box Office Gross in a Single Day, taking in US$43.6 million on its second day of release.
Although Spider-Man is an iconic figure for New York, the majority of the film was actually filmed in Los Angeles. Only two weeks' worth of location filming was done in the Big Apple.
The movie depicts Mary Jane as growing up next door to Peter and living with her parents. In the original story, Mary Jane was first introduced as the frequently visiting niece of the Parkers' neighbor Anna Watson, a best friend of Aunt May, but was never actually met by Peter until he was in college. However, in The Ultimate Spider Man, a comics reboot, Mary Jane was one of his neighbors earlier in life.
Peter Parker's possible costume designs were drawn by Phil Jimenez, an artist on DC's "Wonder Woman".
When two studio executives were shown shots of the computer generated Spider-Man, they believed it was actually Tobey Maguire performing the stunts.
(at around 29 mins) The scene when Peter and Mary Jane talk outside at night was shot at 4 am, and had to be shot quickly due to sunrise approaching. Kirsten Dunst also commented that it was a very cool morning weather-wise, and points out that her thermal underwear can be briefly seen peeking out above her waistband.
Broke the record for biggest opening day ever with $39.4 million. This record was broken by its sequel Spider-Man 2 (2004), and would go on to be held by Spider-Man 3 (2007), with $59.8 million, despite making the least box office gross of the three.
(at around 59 mins) Peter mentions Dr. Curt Connors firing him. Connors then appears in the next few installments.
In order to come up with the look of the high school kids, the costume department sent disposable cameras to schoolteachers in New York City and had them distribute them among their students to take pictures of each other.
Kirsten Dunst decided to audition for MJ after learning that Tobey Maguire had been cast, feeling the film would have a more independent feel. She earned the role a month before shooting in an audition in Berlin.
In real life, J.K. Simmons is bald and clean shaven, which resulted in him wearing a wig and fake moustache for the role of J. Jonah Jameson Jr. Despite the differences in appearance, Simmons said that following the movie's release, complete strangers on the street would immediately identify him as J. Jonah Jameson Jr. Ironically, Simmons' later Marvel Cinematic Universe portrayal of the character, beginning with Spider-Man: Far from Home (2019), has him bald.
To create Spider-Man's costume, Tobey Maguire was fitted for the skintight outfit, being covered with layers of substance to create the suit's shape. It was designed as a single piece, except for the mask. The webbing that accented the costume was cut by computer.
The title page of David Koepp's April 14, 2000, draft of the screenplay included the disclaimer: "This material is the exclusive property of Columbia Pictures Entertainment. Unauthorized transfer, photocopying, or reading of this material will result in the growth of large, yellowy pustules on your fingertips and hands which, given your habitual self-abuse (did you think we didn't know?) will soon spread to your genitalia. Also, posting, reading, or discussing this screenplay on the Internet is a sure sign that you have failed to fill your empty life with worthwhile activities of your own and it may be too late for you. Don't blame us, you were warned."
Willem Dafoe wears dental prosthetics for most of the movie as Norman Osborn, but his reflection as the Goblin persona retains Dafoe's natural, less perfect, teeth.
Cingular Wireless, whose logo in very prominent within the movie and the movie's promotional campaigns, was not actually available in New York City at the time of the movie's release.
Kirsten Dunst said that it really annoys her when girls scream a lot in movies. She added that she was sick of her own scream by the end of the film.
On the commentary Laura Ziskin asked Kirsten Dunst if she thinks Mary Jane knows who Spider-Man is in the scene when he rescues her in the alleyway, something about Peter and Spider-Man both saying a line about being "in the neighborhood." "No," says Dunst, "I don't think MJ's that bright."
Leonardo DiCaprio was considered for the role of Spider-Man.
The film caused some controversy in England when the BBFC rated it 12, going on record to say it was the most violent movie they had seen that was aimed at younger viewers. The distributor had requested a PG rating, but this was denied due to the levels of "personal violence" and the prevalent revenge theme. Many parents complained about the decision, saying how disappointed their children were at not being able to legally see the film (12 at this time was a legal age limit). However, when the new 12A rating was introduced in August 2002, Spider-Man (2002) was re-released with this new advisory rating, along with a new marketing campaign stressing that children could now go and see the film.
The moment in the lunch room where Peter catches Mary Jane and her tray was very nearly scrapped due to time and budget. What was initially a two-day shoot on that set was cut down to one day, but Raimi and Ziskin were determined to get that moment in the scene. The scene took 156 takes for Tobey Maguire to pull off
Tobey Maguire was approached for the film largely as a result of his performance in The Cider House Rules (1999). Sam Raimi felt that Maguire's performance in the film embodied much of the character and personal traits he was looking for in Peter/Spider-Man.
Sam Raimi hoped to use more traditional VFX (stuntwork and digital mattes) for the film, but John Dykstra explained to him that Spider-Man's flexibility and agility meant that such stunts would be near-impossible to physically enact and so Raimi decided to use computer-generated imagery. However, Raimi did not want it to be complete animation, so none of the VFX shots were 100% computer generated.
In the final battle between Spider-Man and the Goblin, the CGI artists had to change the color of the blood pouring from Spider-Man's mouth to a clear liquid, indicating spit. This was to ensure a 12/PG-13 rating.
The studio expressed an interest in Leonardo DiCaprio and Freddie Prinze Jr. playing the part of Spider-Man. Scott Speedman, Jay Rodan and James Franco all actually tested for the part.
The construction crew for the art department spent almost a year building the 100 sets needed for the film.
(at around 55 mins) During the montage of Spider-Man's heroics that featured interviews with New Yorkers, the construction workers were real, and so was the guitar player in the subway station.
The theatrical release of the movie ends with Aerosmith's cover of The Theme From Spider-Man (1967) that can be heard on the official soundtrack. For the DVD release it was changed to the original rendition of the theme.
(at around 1h 6 mins) During the World Unity parade, a billboard for Terminix can be seen, one of many insect-related inside jokes.
When James Cameron was developing Spider-Man in the early 1990s, Charlie Sheen actively campaigned for the role, apparently to Cameron's disinterest. After Titanic (1997), Cameron said his only choice was Leonardo DiCaprio before he eventually passed onto other projects.
Norman Osborn's home is decorated with masks from around the world. The filmmakers did this to suggest that Norman is a collector of masks, thus offering an explanation for how he was able to provide a mask for his Green Goblin outfit.
The shoot was fast-tracked due to an impending actors/ directors/ writers strike that was anticipated for summer 2001. The strike never actually took place.
Stan Lee revealed that Michael Jackson wanted to play Spider-Man in the 90's.
Although they play high school seniors, Tobey Maguire was 26, James Franco was 23 and Kirsten Dunst was 19 at the time of filming.
(at around 57 mins) The Moondance Diner where Mary Jane works as a waitress was actually the diner where Monica from Friends worked as a line cook.
Cliff Robertson's first film for Columbia Pictures in 25 years. The studio had blacklisted him since 1977 when he discovered that his own signature had been forged on a check written by a studio executive, which he was using to embezzle money from them. Columbia wanted to sweep the scandal under the rug, but Robertson spoke publicly about it.
The original design of the Green Goblin was closer to his appearance in the comics, and was to be made up with prosthetics; complete with green skin, a pointed chin and ears, fangs, and yellow pupil-less eyes. After a series of screen tests (which can be found on YouTube), the design was scrapped, being deemed too disturbing for a film that wanted to be just as accessible to kids as it was for adults. It was unnerving enough that reportedly Avi Arad nixed it because "We're trying to sell toys here, not scare children", and replaced it with the helmet seen in the movie.
For the scene where the spider bites Peter, Sam Raimi ruled out using a digital spider. The director wanted to use a black widow, but being dangerously venomous, he ended up choosing a "steatoda grossa", which was painted and trained by specialist Steven Kutcher.
CAA agent Steve Alexander stated in an interview with Entertainment Weekly that Heath Ledger was the first choice for Peter Parker/Spider-Man in the major motion picture. Heath ultimately declined the role stating that he would be "taking someone else's dream away."
(at around 6 mins) The jumping spider that Peter attempts to take a picture of is an Avondale Spider, the same type used in Arachnophobia (1990).
The Moondance Diner where Mary Jane Watson works is the same one that "Rent" author Jonathan Larson, and his muse Jesse L. Martin, worked at prior to quitting to pursue a career writing musicals. Andrew Garfield, who played Spider-Man in the Amazing Spider-Man series, would go on to play Jonathan Larson during this period in his life.
In preparation for his role, Tobey Maguire trained for a short while before the screen test. After he got the role, he went on a strict exercise regimen and a specific diet for five months.
(at around 1h 26 mins) When Peter Parker is on his ceiling hiding from Mr. Osborn, a green sweatshirt with a beaver insignia can be seen on the ground. This is a sweatshirt from Sam Raimi's childhood camp, Tamakwa.
David Koepp's fourth screenplay to hold the opening weekend box office record. The others are Jurassic Park (1993) (June 1993), Mission: Impossible (1996) (May 1996) and The Lost World: Jurassic Park (1997) (May 1997).
The interior of the visit to Columbia University was actually filmed in the main rotunda of the Natural History Museum in Los Angeles. The large electron microscope in the center of the set was actually made of plywood, plaster and fiberglass, concealing three 16-foot bronze centerpieces.
(at around 59 mins) A sign in front of Peter Parker and Harry Osborn's apartment building reads Webstring Platform.
Bleu's song "Somebody Else" was originally written to be the theme for a different superhero, Superman for the TV series Smallville (2001).
(at around 1h 27 mins) The Thanksgiving scene when Aunt May puts the turkey in front of Norman imitates the Norman Rockwell painting "Freedom From Want".
Pre-production planning for Spider-Man actually began in 1986 by Cannon Films. Later, Cannon sold the production rights to Carolco Pictures. Carolco would later sell the production rights to Sony Pictures Entertainment Inc. Sony and Marvel produced the Spider-Man film we see today, released through Sony's Columbia Pictures division. As a result, the film was in development for almost 15 years before it was finally made.
After the film's release, Marvel made a decision to have Peter Parker undergo a further mutation, which included having him shoot his own webbing, rather than use his artificial webbing from his webshooters which was met with some controversy. However, this was later undone in 2007 after the events of the One More Day storyline where Spider-Man would use his artificial webbing again.
(at around 1h 4 mins) Among the page-two headlines advertised on the front page of the Daily Bugle: "Public Clamors for Pest Control" and "New York Fears the Bug - 20 Victims to Date."
Sam Raimi's wife, Gillian Greene, watched The Cider House Rules, and insisted Raimi cast Tobey Maguire after seeing his performance in the film. Despite the studio wanting to cast Jude Law.
At the age of 27, Elizabeth Banks auditioned for the role of Mary Jane, but was told she was too old. She's less than two years older than Toby Maguire. They ended up casting Kirsten Dunst who is seven years younger than Maguire.
The glimpse of Peter's torso before he awakens as an enhanced superhero was not Tobey Maguire's body. Maguire had spent months bulking up his own frame so a skinny version was used with his head transposed on top of it.
Before Willem Dafoe received the role of the Green Goblin, Nicolas Cage, John Malkovich, Bill Paxton, Mel Gibson, John Travolta, Brad Dourif and Robert De Niro were offered the role. The role was originally intended to be played by Billy Crudup, who even dropped out of other projects to act in this film, but he was considered too young to play the part of Norman Osborn and was declined the role. Many other actors, including De Niro, Gibson and Travolta, turned down the role. De Niro was also considered for Otto Octavius/Dr. Octopus, (another villain), in the sequel. The final actor in line to play Norman was Bill Paxton, but Sam Raimi was finally convinced that Dafoe was right for the part after a few meetings. Paxton's father still appears in the film as Osborn's elderly butler, Bernard. Nicolas Cage would go on to voice Spider-Mair Noir in Spider-Man: Into the Spider-Verse (2018).
The Daily Bugle newspaper building is actually the Flatiron building, a famous Manhattan landmark that was built in 1902. In the comics, the Bugle's building is on East 38th Street and Second Avenue.
According to Laura Ziskin, Director Sam Raimi has a habit of working with two editors, each of whom cuts the film the way they see fit. He then takes both cuts of the film and creates his master cut from those.
The last shot of the film with Spider-Man swinging through the city was the most time-consuming shot of the entire film. Completely CG, execution on it began when production began and was the very last shot completed on the film. It took 18 months to create.
The rights for Spider-Man were in limbo for years, switching between studios. In fact, in a 1987 issue of Variety there was an advertisement proclaiming that Cannon Films would begin principal photography for the film on Nov. 14, 1988.
Kate Hudson and Tara Reid were considered for the role of Mary Jane Watson. Hudson was a heavy favorite for the role but turned it down in order to appear in The Four Feathers (2002).
The film is based on a crossover of both the Ultimate Spider-Man comic series and the original Amazing Spider-Man series. For instance, this incarnation of Mary Jane Watson is from Ultimate Spider-Man #1, while this version of the Green Goblin/Norman Osborne is from The Amazing Spider-Man #17.
The set for Norman Osborn's condo was on the Warner Brothers lot, where the production chose to choose a number of scenes. This condo set, however, had also been used in Tim Burton's Batman (1989), and Sam Raimi had to make sure to shoot it in such a way that no one would notice.
(at around 36 mins) When Uncle Ben drops Peter off to go to the library, a bus can be seen driving by with a promotional advertisement that reads, "The Producers," a Mel Brooks stage musical. Brooks later sued Sony Pictures Entertainment for unwanted advertisement in motion-picture space.
Tobey Maguire was reportedly fired by Sony executives for faking a spinal injury to increase his pay for the Spider-Man sequel. He was almost replaced by Jake Gyllenhaal before apologizing to the producers and director Sam Raimi.
Willem Dafoe had to be fitted with prosthetic teeth when he took the role of Norman Osbourne. Producers didn't feel a person as rich as Norman Osbourne couldnt afford to get his teeth straightened out. Willem Dafoe's real teeth can be seen in the scene where Norman Osbourne is having a conversation with himself in the mirror.
At the time of its release, the movie passed the US$100 million mark faster than any other movie, in just three days. That record has since been broken by Pirates of the Caribbean: Dead Man's Chest (2006), which made the mark in just 2 days. Several other movies have also reached this record, including Spider-Man 3 (2007).
The film marked the first live action to depict many of Spider-Man's longtime regular supporting characters (Uncle Ben, Mary Jane Watson, Betty Brant, Flash Thompson, Norman and Harry Osborn). The Amazing Spider-Man (1977) live action TV series, which Stan Lee found dissatisfying, had largely eschewed the comic book supporting characters in favor of ones created for the TV show.
The Spider-Man mask wasn't designed to be pulled right off, and one had to be made specifically for the shot where Peter takes it off as he's hiding from MJ, Aunt May, Harry, and Norman in the apartment.
While filming the wrestling scene, Randy Savage suffered a neck injury after he was tossed into the ropes and landed on the ground with his head first. The moment can be seen in the film.
Wes Bentley was considered for the role of Peter/Spider-Man, and was widely viewed as the choice of most fans for the part.
Frankie Muniz and Topher Grace were considered for the role of Peter Parker/Spider-Man. Grace would later play Venom in the third film.
The film cast includes three Oscar winners: Cliff Robertson, J.K. Simmons and Octavia Spencer; and four Oscar nominees: Kirsten Dunst, Willem Dafoe, Rosemary Harris and James Franco.
(at around 1h 9 mins) During the World Unity Fair fight scene, in the background one of the signs on the buildings shows a police officer and behind him read the words "Protecting, Serving, Blah Blah Blah."
The title designer, Kyle Cooper, also designed the opening Marvel logo which now runs in front of every Marvel film. Producer Laura Ziskin remembers the rousing ovation the logo got when the film played for the first time.
There wasn't enough money in the budget to execute Peter's dream sequence the way it was scripted, and the entire segment was nearly scrapped altogether. Bob Murawski, one of the two editors, pieced the sequence together using shots from the opening titles, stock footage from Sam Raimi's earlier film, Darkman (1990), and even a shot from the Lucio Fulci film, The Beyond.
Willem Dafoe's own face bears an uncanny resemblance to the original Green Goblin mask from the comics, designed almost 40 years before he was cast in the role.
Although it wound up being faithful to the comics, many designs were made for Spider-Man's costumes: one concept costume designer James Acheson became fond of the idea of having a red emblem over a black costume. Even though that idea wasn't used, it was still included during the costume possibilities montage.
Stan Lee said in a radio interview that he thought John Cusack would be a perfect choice to play Spider-Man/Peter Parker.
The location where Spider-Man and Green Goblin do their final battle wasn't a set but an actual, abandoned hospital on Roosevelt Island.
One of the original designs for the Green Goblin mask closer resembled the one from the comics. It was an articulated animatronic mask with a realistic green face, large pointy ears, big yellow eyes and the Green Goblin's typical purple hood. It looked so convincing that some crew members were scared by it. However, Sam Raimi decided to not use the mask, as the actor for the Green Goblin had yet to be cast. This led to the designers creating a new mask that would eventually evolve into the one seen in the film.
The scene where Harry walks in on Peter and MJ at the hospital was James Franco's first day of shooting. Even though Sam Raimi along with everyone else had agreed Harry's hair would match that of his father, Franco showed up to set with black hair.
On the commentary Grant Curtis asked Sam Raimi if the Green Goblin's arm coming up out of debris was an homage to Evil Dead (1981). Raimi says it's not, and is a reference to all of the Universal monster movies.
Alicia Witt, Mena Suvari, Eliza Dushku and Elisha Cuthbert auditioned for the role of Mary-Jane Watson. Dushku's screen test can be seen on the DVD special features.
In an online interview with the Planet Origo website, director Albert Pyun said that he was hired to direct "Spider-Man" for Cannon Films back in 1988. He said that his movie would have featured the origin of Spider-Man, featured Dr. Curt Connors, a.k.a. the Lizard, as the film's main villain, and that most of the movie would have been featured in the sewers of Brooklyn, where Spider-Man would chase after, and fight with, the Lizard. His plans to direct "Spider-Man" fell through when Cannon Films went bankrupt. Oddly enough, his basic story line was used in the reboot The Amazing Spider-Man (2012).
(at around 27 mins) When Peter Parker tests out his webbing for the first time, among the notable catch phrases he says, he also uses the same gesture (middle and third fingers folded into the palm, the rest extended outward) he typically uses in the comic books to fire his mechanical webbing wrist guns.
Josh Hartnett turned down the role of Peter Parker/Spider-Man.
The first major special effects shot in the film is when the enhanced spider spins down to land on Peter Parker's hand.
When Peter is running to catch the bus and pulls the banner off the side, there was originally another moment after that where he had to jump over a truck to avoid being hit. This was cut because of budget constraints.
Green Goblin latches a body count of at least 12 before his defeat. It makes him the deadliest of all on-screen Spider-Man villains, including the villains in the Andrew Garfield reboot and Spider-Man: Homecoming (2017). Mysterio in Spider-Man: Far From Home matches his scale but even then none of his attacks apparently had civilian casualties, and all his attempts to kill people are foiled on-screen, making Dafoe's Norman still the reigning champion of the Spidey movie death toll.
Before being cast as Harry Osborn, James Franco originally auditioned for the role of Spider-Man. He was cast in the role of Harry Osborn after Raimi's wife Gillian Greene saw his audition and thought he would be perfect for the role.
Willem Dafoe only has around 18 minutes of screen time as both Norman Osborn and Green Goblin.
Peter Parker's room is wallpapered with spider web wallpaper. Best to view this is when Parker is practicing shooting his web in his room for the first time.
It was executive producer Avi Arad's idea to have MJ call Peter "Tiger" when she does in the film. It was Kristen Dunst's idea to have her casually throw it out as she's walking off.
When the project began in the late 1980s, the role of Mary Jane Watson was considered for many actresses, including Jennifer Jason Leigh, Ally Sheedy, Jodie Foster, Natasha Richardson, Phoebe Cates, Tatum O'Neal, Bridget Fonda, Lori Loughlin, Diane Lane, Sarah Jessica Parker, Brooke Shields, Kyra Sedgwick, Justine Bateman, Nicole Kidman, Julia Roberts, Molly Ringwald, Jennifer Aniston, Uma Thurman, Jennifer Connelly, Winona Ryder, Christina Applegate, Cameron Diaz, Alyssa Milano, Tori Spelling, Neve Campbell, Tiffani Thiessen, Alyson Hannigan and Drew Barrymore. But when the project eventually went into pre-production, all of them were considered too old for the part. Jennifer Connelly would go on to being the voice of Karen for Spider-Man: Homecoming (2017).
(at around 32 mins) When Peter Parker browses through several newspapers looking for a used car, one of the ads shown is for an Alfa Romeo convertible: that model was marketed in Italy under the name Spider.
WILHELM SCREAM: (at around 36 mins) As Peter enters the wrestling arena, the wrestler slams his opponent to the deck. The Wilhelm Scream is barely audible, but definitely there.
Willem Dafoe was considered for the role of the Joker in Batman (1989), a character similar to the Green Goblin. Both villians are known for their maniacal laughter and both of their trademark colors are green. Also Green Goblin is considered Joker's equivalent counterpart as Spider-Man is to Batman and are both their greatest adversaries.
The film was supposed to feature Doctor Octopus and Green Goblin. However, Sam Raimi decided against using two villains, to focus on a more straight forward story. Doc Ock would later be used in the sequel.
In 1985, Menahem Golan and Yoram Globus, heads of Cannon Films, bought the rights to make a Spider-Man film. However, they thought Spider-Man was a monster rather than superhero, similar to the Wolf Man. They enlisted The Outer Limits (1963) creator Leslie Stevens to write a script based on their misconstrued notion of the character. Stevens' script involved a scientist subjecting Peter Parker to radiation, transforming him into an eight-armed tarantula-like creature. Stan Lee, disapproving of this version, suggested a different story involving Doc Ock that was similar to the plot of Spider-Man 2 (2004). Tobe Hooper was considered to direct, and the proposed cast was Tom Cruise as Peter Parker, Bob Hoskins as Doc Ock, Stan Lee as J. Jonah Jameson, and either Lauren Bacall or Katharine Hepburn as Aunt May. The project was scrapped after the box office failure of Cannon's Superman IV: The Quest for Peace (1987).
On the commentary, Laura Zisken revealed the story of showing a CG mock-up of Peter Parker dressed in his wrestling outfit scaling a wall, to the film's investors and told them it was test footage of Tobey Maguire in the suit. They were convinced that it was real footage.
"Sam came in one day and said, 'I want him to have a trident.'," said Laura Ziskin regarding Green Goblin when he tries to kill Spider-Man by stabbing him with a spear type weapon on his glider .
In the comics, Peter gets his powers from a radioactive spider. In real life this spider would die once it became radioactive. However, in this movie the spider that bites Peter is a genetically-designed "super-spider," one which has the best abilities of various types of spiders. Genetic engineering is a real area of scientific study, and there have been cross-breeding experiments to combine the DNA of animals. Therefore, it is at least theoretically possible that there could be a "spider man."
"Sam, if you were 19, would you walk away?" asked Grant Curtis on the commentary about Peter's decision to leave MJ at the end of the movie. "I don't remember what it was like to be 19," responded Sam Raimi.
In 1988, director Albert Pyun was hired to direct a "Spider-Man" movie for Cannon Films. Scott Leva was hired to play Peter Parker/Spider-Man, and filming was set to take place at De Laurentiis Studios in Wilmington, North Carolina. With a $6 million budget, the Brooklyn sets were built for "Spider-Man" on the Wilmington stages and Pyun would also film a sequel to Masters of the Universe (1987) during the same time as "Spider-Man". Pyun had originally planned to film two weeks worth of scenes for "Spider-Man" before Leva's nerdy Peter Parker is bitten by a radioactive spider, then Leva would undergo a supervised eight week workout regimen to build muscle mass while director Pyun would film "Masters of the Universe Part 2", and filming for "Spider-Man" would resume for the scenes after Peter gets his spider powers. However, both projects were scrapped when Cannon Films eventually went out of business.
"It's the thing about hair," said Laura Ziskin on the commentary when J.K. Simmons shows up as J. Jonah Jameson, "Once we got the hair, he was Jameson."
Sam Raimi was not Sony's first choice as director. Others considered were Chris Columbus, Tony Scott, Jan de Bont, James Cameron, Barry Sonnenfeld, Michael Bay, Roland Emmerich, Ang Lee, David Fincher and M. Night Shyamalan. Realizing Raimi was a Spider-Man fan, Sony would hire him.
Ivan Raimi did some uncredited script doctoring on this film.
Cliff Robertson, who plays Uncle Ben, had previously appeared as Shame, a gunfighter villain on Batman (1966) show. This makes him one of a number of actors who have appeared on screen in both Marvel and DC productions.
John Malkovich was considered for the role of Norman Osborn/Green Goblin and met with director Sam Raimi.
Mel Gibson declined the role of Green Goblin/Norman Osborn.
Laura Ziskin remembers when Randy Savage auditioned for the role of Bone Saw McGraw and how she fell in love with his voice.
The interior of the Osborn mansion was previously used as the interior for Wayne Manor in Tim Burton's Batman. Sam Raimi worked hard to shoot the corresponding scenes in such a way that the audience wouldn't catch it.
Kristen Dunst mentioned how the paparazzi were always around while they were filming on location in New York City. She notes that Tobey Maguire always liked to mess with them, something he usually does when he isn't trying to run them over.
Columbia submitted four names to the Writers Guild that it recognized as the official contributors to the final script - James Cameron, David Koepp, Scott Rosenberg, and Alvin Sargent. Cameron, Rosenberg, and Sargent voluntarily relinquished credit to Koepp.
Sam Raimi wanted Bill Pope to be the film's cinematographer, but Pope was busy working on The Matrix Reloaded (2003) and The Matrix Revolutions (2003). Raimi's second choice was Peter Deming, but he was working on Austin Powers in Goldmember (2002).
The studio had expressed interest in actors Leonardo DiCaprio, Elijah Wood, Edward Furlong, Jude Law, Freddie Prinze Jr., Chris Klein, Wes Bentley and Heath Ledger for Spider-Man. Furlong had been considered by James Cameron for the role in 1996, while Sam Raimi joked of Prinze that "[he] won't even be allowed to buy a ticket to see this film." In addition, actors Scott Speedman, Jay Rodan and James Franco were involved in screen tests for the lead role with Franco later being cast as Harry Osborn.
In the comics, Peter Parkers's eyes are brown (or hazel) and Harry Osborn's eyes are blue. In real life, Tobey Maguire's eyes are blue and James Franco's eyes are brown, in opposite to their characters.
According to Laura Ziskin and Grant Curtis, the Times Square Unity Festival scene was the most difficult scene to shoot given all the practical and digital elements that had to be incorporated. Ziskin notes it took three weeks to shoot.
At one point during production, Spidey was to have mechanical web shooters. Footage exists of the scene where he tries out his webs in his room, that shows (even in the shots that were used in the film, which were later edited) he had the shooters on his wrists. The E3 2002 trailer for the film even shows the shooters' full design, taken from that same scene. (In the final film, look carefully at Tobey Maguire's wrists, and you'll notice very slight blurring where the shooters were supposed to be)
Willem Dafoe said that the criticism of his original Green Goblin mask from Sam Raimi's "Spider-Man" "probably" influenced the iconic villain's redesign in No Way Home. "I must be honest, I am aware that there was some criticism of that mask in the original one," Dafoe, 66, said in a new interview with the New York Times. "We heard it enough that it was probably a consideration, to change it up a little bit." The actor added: "I don't think about that because I don't think about emoting with my face. My face follows my heart. It's just an expression of what you're feeling." The actor's emotive facial expressions were inhibited by an immobile mask, which had a fixed mouthpiece and yellow pieces covering his actual eyes.
From initial concept of getting the film to the screen to the film's actual release was 18 years. Laura Ziskin says this was a good thing, since visual effects weren't advanced enough to bring the character to life the way Sam Raimi needed to for this film. Some would even say visual effects weren't advanced enough until the sequel.
The balloons at the Unity Festival were made by Aerostar International, Inc., in Sioux Falls, South Dakota.
A change from the original comic story - in which Peter Parker was bitten by an irradiated spider - had to be implemented for our more modern times, as Parker would have suffered radiation poisoning rather than gaining superpowers. Genome sequencing was a more plausible reason for his transformation.
There are brief flashes of a tarantula during Peter's metamorphosis. These are likely remnants of a deleted scene (present in the novelization), where Peter has a nightmare that he's transformed into a giant spider.
Marion Ross was considered for the role of Aunt May.
(at around 37 mins) Octavia Spencer plays the check-in-girl at the wrestling match.
The novelization features a part with Mary Jane and Harry discussing the book Interview with the Vampire, where MJ remarks that she "saw the movie. The little kid in it creeped me out." Kirsten Dunst, of course, was that little kid in the film adaptation. Another vampire-related one; two years prior to the release of this film, Willem Dafoe starred in Shadow of the Vampire, where he played a vampiric version of Max Shreck from Nosferatu. When confronted by the film's director, F.W. Murnau, he comments that "You and I, we're not so different", in almost the same tone as when the Goblin says it to Spider-Man. The line is, of course, mostly remembered from this film.
Rosemary Harris later appeared with Marisa Tomei, one of her successors as Aunt May Parker, in Before the Devil Knows You're Dead (2007).
Osborn's line "I'm something of a scientist myself", which became a meme in the years proceeding the release of Spider-Man: No Way Home (2021), was reprised in the film.
The film took a large amount of scenes from Spider-Man: The Animated Series: Green Goblin being a split personality of Norman's developed from the Goblin formula and Norman talking to him. The plot point of the Green Goblin going after people who wronged Norman Osborn. Aunt May being sent into hospital due to being attacked by the Green Goblin, with Mary Jane visiting May in hospital at the same time as Peter, also occurs in the animated series, but with the Hobgoblin instead of the Green Goblin
The Green Goblin's armor is typically green with purple accents, particularly the torso and hat. In this universe the armor is completely green, though light that reflects off of it tends to have a purple shine to it especially during the scene where Spider-Man knocks the goblin off his glider and he lands on a purple tent the purple from the tent reflects off the top of his helmet mask.
Actor/stuntman Scott Leva was considered for the role of Peter Parker/Spider-Man when the film project was first proposed in the mid-1980s.
(at around 57 mins) The famous New York extra Craig Castaldo (aka Radioman) can be seen outside the Moondance diner when MJ exits.
The couple at the World Unity Festival with their backs to the camera when Peter pulls them to safety by using his web, The man was reportedly Nicholas Hammond, Friedrich Von Trapp from The Sound of Music and Spider-Man from the '70s TV show.
Billy Crudup was initially chosen as Norman Osborn before Willem Dafoe was cast. However, Crudup dropped out of the project due to scheduling conflicts with Almost Famous and on the fact that he considered himself "too young" for the part. Nicolas Cage, John Travolta, Bill Paxton, Mel Gibson, Jason Isaacs, Robert De Niro, and John Malkovich were approached for Norman Osborn as well before the casting of Dafoe. Malkovich was slated to portray the Vulture in Spider-Man 4 before it was cancelled and replaced with The Amazing Spider-Man.
Although Spider-Man's suit wound up being faithful to the Spider-Man comics, many designs were made. One concept that costume designer James Acheson became fond of was the idea of having a red emblem over a black costume. Another, which would eventually lead to the final product, featured an enlarged logo on the chest and red stripes going down the sides of the legs. To create Spider-Man's costume, Tobey Maguire was fitted for the skintight suit, being covered with layers of substance to create the suit's shape. It was designed as a single piece, including the mask. A hard shell was worn underneath the mask to make the shape of the head look better and to keep the mask tight while keeping the wearer comfortable. For scenes where he would take off his mask, alternate suit where the mask was a separate piece. The webbing, which accented the costume, was cut by computer. The mask's eye-lenses were designed to have a mirror look. Dykstra said the biggest difficulty of creating Spider-Man was that as the character was masked, it immediately lost a lot of characterization. Without the context of eyes or mouth, a lot of body language had to be put in so that there would be emotional content. Raimi wanted to convey the essence of Spider-Man as being "the transition that occurs between him being a young man going through puberty and being a superhero." Dykstra said his crew of animators had never reached such a level of sophistication until giving subtle hints of making Spider-Man feel like a human being. When two studio executives were shown shots of the computer-generated character, they believed it was actually Maguire performing stunts.
Vulture ranked the Green Goblin 19th on the top 25 superhero film villains in 2018. Collider ranked him the 5th greatest Spider-Man film villain in 2020.
Tobey Maguire described the suit as "comfortable" and "flexible," but said that "zippers would break, so they would end up sewing me into the suit." If he needed water or a bathroom break, it was a lengthy process.
J. Jonah Jameson has a telescope in his office. While preparing for the role, J K Simmons visited the offices of the New York Post and saw that the editor had a telescope in his own office. So, he incorporated it into Jameson's character.
This movie contains a few nods and mentions of Superman. The first being Peter Parker testing out his web shooting on top of a roof where one of the catchphrases he uses is "Up, up and away web!" And later on when Peter asked Aunt May if there's anything he can do for her, she replies "You do too much - college, a job, all this time with me... You're not Superman, you know". In the comics, Spider-Man did two crossovers with Superman in " Superman vs. the Amazing Spider-Man" which was published in January 1976 and "Marvel Treasury Edition" issue 28 which was published in July 1981.
Both James Franco and Joe Manganiello auditioned for Peter Parker before Franco being cast as Harry Osborn and Manganiello being cast as Flash Thompson.
Stan Lee lobbied for years to play J. Jonah Jameson himself, but was too old by the time production started, so J. K. Simmons was cast. Lee did make his traditional cameos in the trilogy.
26 year old Tobey Maguire and 23 year old James Franco play high school seniors. Kirsten Dunst at 18/19 during filming in 2001 was the only one close to the age of her character. Although Uncle Ben claims to be 68 in the film, Cliff Robertson was 75 at the time of filming. Make-up artists still made him look a little older.
Only Spider-Man film out of the eight Spider-Man installments [excluding Captain America: Civil War (2016) where MCU Spider-Man is introduced, as it's not his solo movie] where Peter Parker gets his Spider-Man abilities naturally (via a radioactive spider-bite) instead of any involvement of gadgets.
Rosemary Harris is only six years younger than Jeff Donnell, who portrayed Aunt May in The Amazing Spider-Man: Spider-Man (1977).
Some of the directors who had been attached to the project over the years include Tobe Hooper, Joseph Zito and Stephen Herek. A longtime contender to direct was Albert Pyun when the film rights were held by Cannon, as he had already made a superhero adaptation with Captain America (1990).
According to someone who interviewed him, Spider-Man co-creator Steve Ditko had mixed feelings about the film. He felt that the film was too dark and he did not like its portrayal of the military and businessmen.
A popular meme emerged from this film where Peter puts on his glasses to better see a blurry image. In the film, however, the scene where the meme comes from depicts Peter's newfound powers improving his vision to the point where he no longer needs his glasses.
Elizabeth Banks auditioned for Mary Jane Watson, but was deemed too old for the role. She was instead cast as Betty Brant.
In the Marvel Canon, this film along with Spider-Man 2 (2004) & Spider-Man 3 (2007) are officially classified as taking place in Earth-96283.
Stan Lee creator of Green Gobln and Spider-Man cameos as the man who saves a child from falling debris in Times Square.
In February 1995, Wizard Magazine published its casting choices for a Spider-Man film:
- John Cusack as Spider-Man
- Cindy Crawford as Mary Jane
- Howie Long as Venom
- Larry Drake as Doctor Octopus
- Michael Douglas as J. Jonah Jameson
- Robert Guillaume as Robbie Robertson
- Katharine Hepburn as Aunt May
- Eddie Jones as Uncle Ben
- Dana Delany as Betty Brant
- Bill Fagerbakke as Flash Thompson
Tim Burton was considered to direct the film but turned it down citing that he was "more of a DC guy."
Michael France wrote in 1999 a script that feature Green Goblin & Doctor Octupus & a post credtids Scene teasing Venom
Quest Aerospace, Oscorp's rival company, shares the name with a model plane manufacturer that was bought about by Toy Biz, a now-defunct subsidiary of Marvel Comics.
When they first showed the end sequence to the producers, the bridge on which the scene takes place hadn't been digitally constructed yet nor was there a Spider-Man for half of the scene. "We were trying to say, 'No, no, trust us. It's going to be okay.'," said Laura Ziskin.
This version of Norman Osborn has traits that have similarities to multiple villains from the Spider-Man mythos: In terms of his life positioning, he does resemble his comic book counterpart through being the founder and head of the company Oscorp, having a son with whom he has a strained if not distant relationship, the use of the Goblin persona and gear, etc. The more timid Norman Osborn is afraid of his dark side including going so far as to refuse to accept that he was capable of murder with him blaming an "alternate entity" for it (in contrast to the more ruthless Norman Osborn from the comics who had a shady side even before becoming a costumed character). His friendship of sorts with Peter Parker before they become enemies, and his first true villainous act being the murder of his assistant after which he becomes a full-on costumed villain resemble that of Miles Warren aka The Jackal.
This is the second of two films that Octavia Spencer and James Franco have appeared in together. The first was Never Been Kissed (1999).
Of all the Spider-Man films made (even including The Amazing series and Spider-Man: Homecoming (2017)), which all were filmed in widescreen 2.39:1, this is the only installment to be filmed, entirely, in the taller 1.85:1 aspect ratio, although The Amazing Spider-Man (2012) and Spider-Man: Far from Home (2019) had sequences that have been Specially Formatted in IMAX 1.90:1.
This film, similar to the 1989 Batman film, features a scene of someone looking at someone's photos and saying they're "crap." Coincidentally, both films were also scored by Danny Elfman.
Plans for a Spider-Man feature film had been in the works since the '80s, with Cannon Films and director Tobe Hooper attached to the project at one point.
R. Lee Ermey, Christopher Lloyd, and Dennis Farina were considered for the role of J. Jonah Jameson before the casting of J. K. Simmons.
It has long been believed that the outcry from UK children and their parents when the British Board of Film Classification (BBFC) gave Spider-Man a "12" certificate led to the creation of the less-restrictive "12A" rating, which is false. The BBFC were already making plans to revise their "12" rating as early as 2000 as a result of parents arguing that their 10 or 11-year-olds were mature enough to go see movies like the James Bond pictures yet were legally restricted from seeing them in the cinemas. In 2001, they introduced the "PG-12" rating as a test run in Norwich which allowed children under 12 to see the movie in the accompaniment of an adult. After the Norwich test run proved successful, the BBFC introduced the "12A" certificate with the release of The Bourne Identity.
Tobey maguire for research read the first 100 issues of the amazing Spider-Man as that was primarily what Sam raimi grew up reading.
Joey King's favorite superhero is Spider Man. She would later star with James Franco, the title character in Oz the Great and Powerful (2013).
During production in 2001, Bryan Singer said that he was interested in the movie and, if he had the opportunity, he wanted to visit the movie set. Eventually, Singer ended up visiting and after wandering, he refrained from giving a press, saying it was just 'exciting'. In addition, director Sam Raimi challenged him and left him in a difficult position, asking "Spider-Man or Wolverine wins?"
On June 6th, 2002, Steven Spielberg revealed he was offered to direct the movie and later it's sequel. However, he said he loves Spider-Man a lot, but he refused the offer because he wanted to make a movie that is more important than the movie, which goes beyond his previous work.
The character named General Slocum foreshadows some of the disasters to come. In 1904 the passenger steamboat "General Slocum" caught fire on the East River in New York City a catastrophe in which nearly 1000 people lost their lives. It was the deadliest disaster to befall New York until the September 11, 2001 attacks, and it remains the deadliest maritime disaster in New York history.
The scene where Peter misses his school bus is reminiscent of a similar scene in the premiere episode of Toby Mcguire's short-lived sitcom, Great Scott! (1992). As with his portrayal of Peter Parker, on the show he played an awkward dweeb who has fantasies about a would-be girlfriend.
One of the problems that some people notice in this movie is that Sam Raimi (the director of the film) turned this film into the 1:85:1 format despite the fact that it is 35MM however in that Widescreen it makes the movie look horrible in every way from omitting details, it does not offer more information and very saturated colors. For these reasons, some prefer Spider-Man 1 in Fullscreen because that format identifies too perfectly to how the movie was recorded.
This movie along with Toy Story 1 and 2 are the most completed movie in DVD with the movie include, extras (music video, making of, delete scenes, bloopers etc) and also 2-Disc
Leonardo DiCaprio was the first choice for the role of Peter Parker before Tobey Maguire was cast, but turned down the offer due to his reluctance to committing to a large, multi-movie franchise. DiCaprio was previously considered for Spider-Man in James Cameron's script treatment. Jude Law, Heath Ledger, Wes Bentley, Chris Klein, and Freddie Prinze Jr. were also considered for the part of Peter Parker. Law would go on to play Yon-Rogg in Captain Marvel set within the Marvel Cinematic Universe. Scott Speedman, Jay Rodan, James Franco, and Joe Manganiello screen-tested for the titular role as well before the casting of Maguire. Franco and Manganiello would later go on to portray Harry Osborn and Flash Thompson respectively.
Along with Harry Potter and the Sorcerer's Stone are the only movie in VHS that have a Bonus Extra include but with Spider-Man 2002 is the music video of the song call Hero by Chad Kroeger ft Josey Scott
In May 2000, John Malkovich's name was spoken for the role of Green Goblin, and said that movies such as Spider-Man are not his own style, as well as that the film is reversing the role because of the clashes about the shooting schedule and what he suggested to him for that role, added that he could not accept such terms for the market movie (how unfortunate it was). However, he would end up accepting the role of Vulture for Spider-Man 4 before it was cancelled.
William Joseph Firth is the son of actor Colin Firth, and Rosemary Harris is the mother of actress Jennifer Ehle. Firth and Ehle appeared together in Pride and Prejudice and The King's Speech.
Cameo
Stan Lee: (at around 1h 7 mins) The creator of Spider-Man appears in the scene where the Green Goblin attacks the balcony at the World Unity Festival.
Bruce Campbell: (at around 37 mins) the wrestling referee who gives Peter the name The Amazing Spider-Man. Campbell makes a cameo appearance in each Sam Raimi Spider-Man movie, but always as a different character.
Lucy Lawless: (at around 55 mins) as a punk rock girl who says "Guy with 8 hands. Sounds hot." Sam Raimi previously worked with Lawless on Xena: Warrior Princess (1995). Lawless kept the punk rock costume, and wore it on the plane ride home.
Nicholas Hammond: actor who played Peter Parker in The Amazing Spider-Man (1977) is at the World Unity Festival.
Sumner Redstone: (at around 1h 3 mins) the chairman of Viacom appears in a non-speaking role as an Oscorp board member.
Director Trademark
Sam Raimi: [car] The 1973 Oldsmobile Delta 88, also known as The Classic, appears in the movie as Uncle Ben's car.
Sam Raimi: [mirror] Dual personalities of one person looking in a mirror, also exhibited in Evil Dead II (1987), directed by Sam Raimi.
Sam Raimi: [supporting cast] Cameo appearances by longtime friends Bruce Campbell and Lucy Lawless, and by brother Ted Raimi.
Sam Raimi: [whip pan camera shot] (at around 1h 26 mins) when Norman Osborn walks into Peter Parker's bedroom.
Sam Raimi: [shaky cam shot] This technique, created by Raimi, is used on a shot of the Green Goblin.
Spoilers
Willem Dafoe was never an intended choice to play the Green Goblin. After the script fell into his possession, he began lobbying for the role and met with Sam Raimi, who had intended to cast Billy Crudup in the role. Sometime later, while filming a movie in Spain, Dafoe was approached and shot some test footage inside the hotel room he was staying. It led to his being cast. Once he received the role, Dafoe asked that he be allowed to perform his own stunts so that the character and movements would feel authentic, or else the audience would notice the difference. He performed about 95% of his own stunts, and unlike many of the stunt crew, learned how to handle the Goblin Glider after just 15 minutes. Having such a great time during filming, he offered to return for Spider-Man 2 (2004) and asked if they could write him in somewhere, his character having died in this movie. Sam Raimi took him up on the offer and both of them set aside a specific day of filming on Spider-Man 2 for Dafoe to shoot Norman Osborn's cameo in other characters' dreams and memories.
The film's climax is based on the infamous "The Amazing Spider-Man" # 121 comic, "The Night Gwen Stacy Died." In that comic, the Goblin captures Stacy and suspends her over a bridge, and Spider-Man attempts to save her, but fails. In near-insane anger and retaliation he beats the Goblin to near-unconsciousness, and when he tries to use his glider to impale the wall-crawler, it backfires and impales him instead. In the film, the main differences are that Mary-Jane is the one held over a bridge, and she survives. The Goblin's death is remarkably faithful to the story. At Osborn's funeral, a gravestone nearby says Stacy.
The World Trade Center Towers can be seen in the background of some scenes and once in the reflection of Spider-Man's eye. In addition, during the ending scene where he is swinging around the American trade building, you can see the towers in the far background slightly blurred. The makers of the film chose not to remove them digitally.
One of the scenes that Tobey Maguire performed for his screen test was the final one in which Peter Parker rejects Mary Jane.
The film contains multiple allusions to future Spider-Man villains: Doctor Curtis Connors (Lizard), Eddie Brock (Venom), Harry Osborn (Green Goblin No. 2), Mendel Stromm (Robot Master).
(at around 1h 9 mins) In the World Unity Festival sequence, when MJ is falling Spider-Man catches her first, then shoots a web to swing her to safety. This adheres to the proper laws of physics, since shooting a webline directly at her to catch her would break her neck (this happened with Gwen Stacy in the comics).
(at around 3 mins) At the beginning of the movie when we first see Mary Jane on the school bus, she is dressed in the Green Goblin's (from the comic book, anyways) colors. Her top is purple and her coat is green. This outfit is also the uniform of Gwen Stacy from the comics, who was killed by the Green Goblin in a battle not unlike the bridge scene in the movie.
(at around 47 mins) When Uncle Ben's killer crashes the car into the gate after Spider-Man leaps off, the police car that pulls into frame on the right side has a very obvious license plate with "1927" being the only markings. This is to honor Stan Lee's great friend, Marvel and DC veteran illustrator John Buscema who was born in Brooklyn, New York on December 11, 1927. He sadly passed away on January 10, 2002 shortly before the film came out.
The shot where Norman Osborn dies was filmed later in production after Willem Dafoe had already gone on to another project. His hair was different, and he had to wear a wig for this shot. "He's more like the David Bowie of Green Goblins," joked Sam Raimi.
Not depicted in the movie, was that in the original comics series, Flash Thompson idolized Spider-Man, while tormenting Peter, naturally unaware that Peter was Spider-Man. In addition, Flash was shown out growing his bullying and actually becoming a close friend of Peter. No such development is depicted (or hinted at) in the movie or either of the sequels (neither in which Flash is prominent, although he makes a brief appearance at the funeral in Spider-Man 3 (2007)).
After receiving the news of his dismissal from the board of Oscorp, Norman Osborn goes through the five stages of grief in a microcosm.
During the scenes at the science exhibit, Mary Jane Watson wears a purple dress, green coat, and black head band. Incidentally, Gwen Stacy wore a similar looking outfit in 'The Night Gwen Stacy Died' from the comics.
In 1993, James Cameron was hired to rewrite an existing draft for "Spider-Man" for Carolco Pictures. The script was going to feature Liz Allen as Peter Parker's love interest instead of Mary Jane Watson, and the villain was Doctor Otto Octavius/Doctor Octopus. Unlike the comics, Octavius was a professor who would be a mentor to college senior Peter Parker, and Otto called himself Professor Octopus after his four mechanical arms become accidentally fused to his body. During an accident, Octavius turns into Professor Ock when he is bitten in the back of the neck by the same radioactive spider that turns Peter into Spider-Man. To make the film more kid-friendly, the company had Doc Ock constantly use the phrase "Okey! Dokey!" and Ock had an assistant named Weiner that later kills Peter's Uncle Ben Parker instead of a burglar that Spider-Man lets escape. Arnold Schwarzenegger was Cameron's first choice for Doctor Octopus and Edward Furlong was considered for Peter Parker.
Cameron wrote a new draft several years later that featured Peter Parker as a high school senior in love with Mary Jane Watson, and Spider-Man would fight two villains, Electro and Sandman. However, Electro was changed from electrical lineman Max Dillon to billionaire businessman Carlton Strand (who could absorb data from computers), while Sandman was changed from crook Flint Marko to Strand's hired henchman, Boyd. In this version, the spider bite gave Peter organic web-shooters in his wrists, instead of him having to make them himself. The script was much less family-friendly, containing R-rated profanity and even a sex scene between Peter and Mary-Jane on the Brooklyn Bridge, but it had the blessing of Spider-Man creator Stan Lee. Cameron had intended to cast Lance Henriksen as Strand, and Michael Biehn as Peter Parker (foreshadowed in earlier Cameron movies The Terminator (1984), Aliens (1986), and The Abyss (1989) where Biehn's character always gets bitten in the hand, like Peter Parker is by the spider), but later considered Leonardo DiCaprio as Peter, and Biehn as Boyd. However, the director couldn't make his Spider-Man movie when it turned out that Carolco never had the sole movie adaptation rights (they were shared by several companies). Carolco went bankrupt soon afterwards, leading to a long battle over the legal rights that caused the project to go into limbo for several years. When Sony finally got the rights, the screenplay was heavily re-written by several authors, and despite retaining many elements from Cameron's treatment, only David Koepp was credited. Cameron later commented that this lack of acknowledgment made him feel "slighted, but not injured".
Cameron wrote a new draft several years later that featured Peter Parker as a high school senior in love with Mary Jane Watson, and Spider-Man would fight two villains, Electro and Sandman. However, Electro was changed from electrical lineman Max Dillon to billionaire businessman Carlton Strand (who could absorb data from computers), while Sandman was changed from crook Flint Marko to Strand's hired henchman, Boyd. In this version, the spider bite gave Peter organic web-shooters in his wrists, instead of him having to make them himself. The script was much less family-friendly, containing R-rated profanity and even a sex scene between Peter and Mary-Jane on the Brooklyn Bridge, but it had the blessing of Spider-Man creator Stan Lee. Cameron had intended to cast Lance Henriksen as Strand, and Michael Biehn as Peter Parker (foreshadowed in earlier Cameron movies The Terminator (1984), Aliens (1986), and The Abyss (1989) where Biehn's character always gets bitten in the hand, like Peter Parker is by the spider), but later considered Leonardo DiCaprio as Peter, and Biehn as Boyd. However, the director couldn't make his Spider-Man movie when it turned out that Carolco never had the sole movie adaptation rights (they were shared by several companies). Carolco went bankrupt soon afterwards, leading to a long battle over the legal rights that caused the project to go into limbo for several years. When Sony finally got the rights, the screenplay was heavily re-written by several authors, and despite retaining many elements from Cameron's treatment, only David Koepp was credited. Cameron later commented that this lack of acknowledgment made him feel "slighted, but not injured".
The scene of Mary Jane comforting Peter at Norman's funeral recalls how she comforts him at Gwen Stacy's funeral in '...Just a Man Called Cage!' (The Amazing Spider-Man Vol 1 #123, August 1973). Aunt May is present at both funerals.
During the finale, Spider-Man uses his webbing to catapult himself through the air. He's used this trick countless times in the comics, with the earliest example being way back in Amazing Spider-Man Vol 1 #1.
(at around 1h 29 mins) Harry, at the Thanksgiving party says about his father "If I'm lucky, I'll become half of what he is!" Foreshadowing the third film.
The sketches Peter creates when designing concepts for his costume were drawn by comic artist Phil Jimenez. One of the designs is redolent of his black outfit from the comics, only with the white areas cultured red. The black suit would appear in Spider-Man 3 (2007).
The scene where Peter hides on the ceiling of his bedroom to avoid being seen in his costume is adapted from 'The Return of the Vulture' (Amazing Spider-Man Vol 1 #7, December 1963).
After the events of Spider-Man: No Way Home (2021), this is technically the first movie set in the Marvel Cinematic Universe (No Way Home establishes that the film is part of the Multiverse).
The idea of Peter and Mary Jane being childhood neighbors originated in Ultimate Spider-Man Vol 1 (2000). The scenes of Peter admiring Mary Jane from afar are reminiscent of 'Powerless' (Ultimate Spider-Man Vol 1 #1, October 2000).
The moment where Green Goblin snares Spider-Man with a cable and drags him behind his glider might have been inspired by the cover of 'How Green Was My Goblin!' (Amazing Spider-Man Vol 1 #39, August 1966).
Peter graduated in the comics back in 'The Menace of the Molten Man!' (Amazing Spider-Man Vol 1 #28, September 1965). In the film, Norman congratulates him on overcoming the adversity of his uncle's death. Aunt May says something similar to him in the comic.
The first line Green Goblin exchanges with Spiderman is "impressive!". This is also the first line Norman Osborn says to Peter. Norman and Green Goblin are, of course, the same person.
The first film characterizes Peter Parker as an intelligent, bookish, and level-headed yet lonely and isolated teenager, focusing on his personality as a shy and bashful outsider before he gains his powers and subsequent struggles of deciding between using his newfound abilities for personal gain or for the betterment of others. By overcoming these struggles, Peter uses his abilities to help people after his uncle Ben is murdered by a carjacker during a robbery, for which Peter was indirectly responsible. Inspired by Ben's words, Peter is motivated to use his super-human abilities for a more noble cause under the persona of a masked vigilante: "Spider-Man". However, even after taking up the persona of Spider-Man, Peter still retains his socially-inept, awkward and dorky, yet endearingly good-hearted nature, and develops a sarcastic and witty sense of humor in his Spider-Man guise. Peter deals with all his personal struggles, all while wrestling with his feelings for his childhood crush and close friend Mary Jane Watson and handling his close relationship with his best friend Harry Osborn.
