The Big Picture
- The original Spider-Man film set the template for modern superhero blockbusters, with Sam Raimi skillfully bringing the hero to life and including comic references.
- The iconic upside-down Spider-Man kiss scene was challenging for Tobey Maguire to film, with rain and blocked airways making it difficult.
- The upside-down kiss has had significant ramifications for the rest of the Spider-Man trilogy, with the scene being referenced and reimagined in later films.
Over 20 years later, the original Spider-Man film is still, in many ways, the template for the modern superhero blockbuster. The way it details the hero's origin story while pitting him against his most infamous villain is a masterwork that has held up all these years later. Not only did Sam Raimi skillfully bring the web-slinging hero to life, but he also included plenty of direct references to the world of Marvel Comics. Whether it was pulling from specific panels or subverting longtime comic expectations, Raimi changed the game for superhero movies everywhere. But despite how effortless he made Tobey Maguire’s Spider-Man look on screen, there was one scene in particular that proved a greater challenge to the production: that infamous upside-down Spider-Man kiss. It turns out, Tobey Maguire had a rough time making this precious moment happen.
Spider-Man (2002)
PG-13superheroesActionAdventureSci-FiAfter being bitten by a genetically-modified spider, a shy teenager gains spider-like abilities that he uses to fight injustice as a masked superhero and face a vengeful enemy.
Release Date May 3, 2002 Director Sam Raimi Cast Tobey Maguire , Kirsten Dunst , Willem Dafoe , James Franco , Cliff Robertson , Rosemary Harris , J.K. Simmons , Joe Manganiello Runtime 121 minutesTobey Maguire Nearly Drowned Filming That 'Spider-Man' Kiss
We all know the scene. Kirsten Dunst’s Mary Jane Watson is wandering New York City at night only to find herself surrounded by a band of goons ready to attack. Helpless, she runs, but to no avail, as she's nearly mugged in the back alleys of New York. But in the blink of an eye, a camera flash catches them off guard, and within seconds, Spider-Man dispatches the criminal element and saves the girl. Hoping to thank her hero, MJ lays one on the costumed hero by removing only the bottom portion of his webbed mask. The pair share a passionate kiss in the rain that audiences have remembered ever since and continues to be replicated by Spidey fans everywhere. Still, though the final product turned out even better than Sam Raimi might have expected, it was still torturous for Tobey Maguire to perform.
“There was rain pouring down my nose … and then Kirsten pulls the mask up to [my nose] and it’s blocking the air passage there, so I couldn’t breathe,” Maguire revealed years ago, via The Hollywood Reporter. “And then she’s kissing me, blocking the air passage there, so there’s nowhere else to breathe.” The way the Spider-Man star described it, it was like torture, and the whole experience gave him a profound new appreciation for oxygen. “It was really challenging. They’d yell cut, and I would be [gasping for air], totally out of breath.” We often praise actors for undertaking the physique of a comic book superhero, but rarely do we meditate on these sorts of unique production struggles that actors face while the camera is rolling.
While promoting her 2024 film Civil War, Kirsten Dunst reflected on the same challenges during the film’s production. “I remember [director] Sam Raimi giving me a book of famous kisses to be inspired, but also he really wanted to make it special, even though it was kind of miserable actually doing it,” she explained, via The Independent. “It was pouring with rain, freezing, Tobey couldn’t breathe so it was almost like I was resuscitating him.” "Resuscitating" might be an apt description, as MJ's kiss does give Peter additional courage and confidence in his abilities as Spider-Man, but, obviously, for Maguire, that meant something else entirely. Thankfully, though the actual filming of this iconic superhero moment was horrible, it doesn’t come across that way on the screen. Instead, Spider-Man presents this as a turning point in the relationship between Peter and MJ, and it’s a kiss that we’ve long been waiting for by this point in the film.
That Spidey Kiss Had Serious Ramifications for the Rest of the Spider-Man Trilogy
Like much of Raimi’s original Spider-Man trilogy, this kiss felt like it was meant to be a reference to a big Spider-Man comic book moment. In a movie full of comic-to-screen moments such as the Green Goblin (Willem Dafoe) being impaled by his glider, Peter getting the “great responsibility” thing after his uncle’s death, or even Spidey saving Mary Jane on the bridge, the upside-down kiss might seem like a callback to the character’s vast comic book history. Only, this didn’t actually originate from the original Marvel Comics. First made popular by the 2002 film, the kiss has gone on to appear consistently in modern Spider-Man media (including comics) but didn’t get its start there. No, that genius came from Raimi himself. Unsurprisingly, it also set a trend that would be continued throughout the trilogy, even if it looked different each time.
Although Mary Jane is still hung up on both Peter Parker and Spider-Man in Spider-Man 2, she decides she’s going to marry astronaut John Jameson (Daniel Gillies) instead. Yet, unable to fully move on from either one of her heroes (who are really the same), MJ forces her fiancé to kiss her upside-down, only to be disappointed. It’s then that she decides she’s going to try and kiss Peter to see if he is actually her superhero, but the pair are promptly interrupted by Doc Ock (Alfred Molina). The supervillain then kidnaps MJ before the pair get the chance to kiss, though it all turns out for the best as Peter (his strength restored) jumps back into action to rescue her. It’s not until Mary Jane discovers Peter’s true identity as Spider-Man that the pair officially lock lips at the end of the superior sequel and initiate their romance. But even then, the upside-down kiss comes back once more…
In Spider-Man 3, Peter becomes bloated by his sense of self-importance as New York City decides to honor their favorite web-slinger. While receiving the key to the city from Gwen Stacy (Bryce Dallas Howard), Spidey convinces her to kiss him while he’s hanging upside-down, in broad daylight, before a large number of bystanders. In stark contrast to the iconic moment between Peter and MJ, the third film flips the script on this scene entirely, making a spectacle out of what was once a vulnerable and intimate scene. It’s no wonder MJ is furious with Peter, claiming that he sullied "their kiss." Frankly, he did, and this was only one of the many contributing factors to the deconstruction of their romance throughout the film. Thankfully, Spider-Man 3 ends on a more hopeful note for the pair, who decide to give things another shot. On a behind-the-scenes note, at least Tobey Maguire wasn’t nearly waterboarded this time around.
Could We Get More Tobey Maguire 'Spider-Man' Films in the Future?
CloseFollowing the release of Spider-Man: No Way Home, which united all three 21st-century Spider-Men as they battled some of the most deadly villains from the Spider-Man and Amazing Spider-Man film series, it seems more likely than ever that we could potentially get a Spider-Man 4. The film was originally announced following the release of Spider-Man3, with Raimi, Maguire, and Dunst all set to return. Though that project never came to fruition, maybe now is the time to see Peter and MJ reunited once more. With Maguire having already returned as Spider-Man for the Marvel Cinematic Universe and Raimi serving as director on Doctor Strange in the Multiverse of Madness, it seems like the only other original trilogy player who has yet to return is Kirsten Dunst's Mary Jane.
Though No Way Home reveals that Peter and MJ have made their relationship work after all these years, we have yet to see Maguire and Dunst return as the Spider-Man trilogy couple, but it's not for lack of interest. "I would do it. Why not? That would be fun," Dunst told Variety in 2021. "I’d be old MJ at this point with little Spidey babies." No doubt, with Tom Holland's Spider-Man filling the usual Spidey role of broke, homeless, and friendless, Maguire's Spider-Man returning once more with a family behind him might just give the MCU variant hope for his own future. Plus, who wouldn't want to see another Tobey Maguire Spider-Man movie? If Marvel Studios were smart, they might even consider a team-up Spidey film between Maguire and Andrew Garfield's version of the character, another fan-favorite who didn't quite get to finish his own story. Either way, we look forward to more Spider-Man content in the future, remembering that with great power, there must also come great responsibility.
Spider-Man is available to stream on Netflix in the U.S.
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