Top Ten People Who Have Portrayed Spider-Man
Spider-Man has always been one of my favorite superheroes since I was a kid, and many have portrayed him in both live action and voice acting. These are simply the best ones.
Tobias Vincent "Tobey" Maguire is an American actor and film producer who gained recognition for his film roles in Pleasantville, The Cider House Rules, Wonder Boys, Spider-Man, Seabiscuit, Spider-Man 2, The Good German, Spider-Man 3, Brothers, and The Great Gatsby. He was nominated for the Screen Actors... read more What puts Tobey Maguire above Andrew Garfield was his understanding of who Peter Parker was at his core. Sure, Andrew's Spidey was more quippy and had more jokes per scene, but Tobey added a deeper level of emotion and was more relatable for the average, unpopular, sensitive, empathetic young adult. Basically, he was more genuine.
Garfield was cocky, confident in larger group settings, satisfied with his (supposed to be unsatisfying) existence, and had a bit of a "too cool for school" thing going on, especially at his high school graduation ceremony. And all that while still identifying in public as Peter and not Spider-Man. As Spider-Man, that all totally works and is consistent with the character's personality in the comics. But that's not who Peter is. Tobey Maguire had that down.
Before you can have a truly compelling Spider-Man, you have to have an equally compelling Peter. Tobey was an excellent Peter. For that, I completely excuse his less-than-always quippy Spider-Man.
Also, he never used Bing.
Thomas Stanley "Tom" Holland is an English actor and dancer. Holland is known for playing Spider-Man in the Marvel Cinematic Universe and starring in the 2012 film The Impossible. He started his career in 2008 when he played the lead role named Billy Elliot in Billy Elliot The Musical on Broadway in... read more This guy needs to be number one, in my opinion. He balances everything that made Spider-Man great. His humor and innocence make him easily more likable, relatable, and realistic. Tobey just seemed too old and was better as Peter than as Spider-Man, even though he was absolutely amazing. Andrew just couldn't pull off Peter, despite perfecting Spider-Man. Tom mixes both excellently and does it better than both. PLEASE MAKE HIM NUMBER ONE.
Andrew Garfield nails Spider-Man. Tobey Maguire nails Peter Parker. Tom Holland nails both aspects of the character. I personally believe that Tom Holland is a "happy medium" between Andrew Garfield and Tobey Maguire.
Andrew Russell Garfield is a British-American actor. Born in Los Angeles, California and raised in Epsom, Surrey, Garfield began his career on the UK stage and in television productions. He's best known for The Amazing Spider-Man films, and The Social Network (a film about the founding of Facebook),... read more Andrew Garfield is a way better Spider-Man than Tobey Maguire. He is both incredibly funny and smart, two elements that were hugely lacking in the older Spider-Man trilogy. Sure, he had a few jokes, but not nearly as many as Spider-Man should. They said that he was smart, but we never really got to see much of it.
He was a nerd, sure, but not a genius. Andrew Garfield perfectly captures all of the elements that made Spider-Man great. You really see the smart side of him, and he is perfectly sassy the way a Spider-Man should act.
He is the definitive voice for Spider-Man. The reason the top 3 are from movies is due to popularity, and it's a shame that this and some of the ones below get overlooked simply for being voice actors. Josh Keaton is to Spider-Man what Kevin Conroy is to Batman.
Everything about 'The Spectacular Spider-Man' was, genuinely, spectacular. That included the voice work of Josh Keaton. He deserves to be the highest-ranking animated Spider-Man on the list.
Come on! He's way better than Andrew Garfield.
Jared Drake Bell is an American actor, voice actor, and musician. Born in Newport Beach, California, he began his career as an actor in the early 1990s at the age of five with his first televised appearance on Home Improvement. Drake Bell is a fantastic Peter Parker as he is Spider-Man. He knows the exact tone to use when reminiscing about previous superhero events, when he is excited about other heroes teaming up with him, and other elements. I'd say he's on the same level as Andrew Garfield and Tobey Maguire. His dedication to this role for more than three seasons of Ultimate Spider-Man is also very good to know, because it shows that he enjoys playing this character.
His voice is well suited for the role, but 'Ultimate Spider-Man', as a whole, is very much lacking in a lot of departments.
His voice is pitch perfect. He should be in second place.
Neil Patrick Harris is an American actor, writer, producer, comedian, magician, and singer. He is known primarily for his comedy roles on television and his dramatic and musical stage roles.
The original Spider-Man actor deserves more praise. Yes, he may not sound the most like a teenager, but he still does a good job playing Spider-Man. He is a Spider-Man who can be both serious and funny. Plus, Paul Soles is the one who started it all, so he must be respected. He's more than just a meme.
Miles in Spider-Verse was so great.
Jared Tristan Padalecki is an American actor. He is best known for playing Sam Winchester is the CW series Supernatural. He grew up in Texas and rose to fame in the early 2000s after appearing on the television series Gilmore Girls as well as such films as New York Minute and House of Wax.
