Andrew Garfield still advocates for gay Spider-Man
Andrew Garfield still believes there should be a gay Spider-Man, more than 10 years after he first argued for the superhero to be same-sex attracted.
Andrew Garfield believes there should be a gay Spider-Man.
The 43-year-old actor played the web-slinging superhero in 2012's The Amazing Spider-Man and 2014's follow-up The Amazing Spider-Man 2, as well as making an appearance via the multiverse in 2021's Spider-Man: No Way Home, and he believes the character is a great vehicle for inclusivity.
Andrew first advocated for a gay Spider-Man back in 2013 and stands by his comments now, particularly after the release of 2018's animated film Spider-Man: Into the Spider-Verse, which featured film's first Black Spider-Man, first female Spider-Man, and even the first talking-pig Spider-Man.
In his 2013 interview with Entertainment Weekly, he recalled a conversation he'd had with one of the film's producers about his character's love interest Mary Jane Watson, aka MJ, and said: “I was kind of joking, but kind of not joking about MJ... I was like, ‘What if MJ is a dude?’ Why can’t we discover that Peter is exploring his sexuality? It’s hardly even groundbreaking!… So why can’t he be gay? Why can’t he be into boys?”
Looking back on his comments now, he told the publication: “It was an exercise in rebellion that I felt passionate about. I just still believe that anyone can be in that suit.
“That’s the point of why it’s such a kind of universally beloved character, one of the greatly beloved characters in the history of fiction is because you don’t see skin colour, you don’t see gender, you don’t see sexuality. Anyone can project themselves into that suit.
“I like the idea of a place where everyone is being honoured and everyone is being included, and it was just a kind of act of saying, ‘Well, why not?’ And you’ll be telling on yourself if you have a strong opinion either way.”
In 2022, Marvel introduced Cooper Coen, aka Web-Weaver, the first-ever gay Spider-Man, in the Edge of the Spider-Verse #5 comic book.
Meanwhile, current Spider-Man actor Tom Holland - who has played Peter Parker and his web-slinging alter ego in six movies since 2016 - recently teased there is a "clear vision" as to how he will bow out of the superhero franchise and pass "the baton" to the next actor who will tackle the role.
During an appearance on the Happy Sad Confused podcast, Tom explained: "There’s a whole plan that we have been working on for, I would say, since we finished [2021’s] Spider-Man: No Way Home.
"It’s laid out. It’s gonna change for sure, but I have a really clear vision to the passing on of the baton, and I think it’s really exciting.
"I know I get really excited when we have these meetings and chat about it. But that is the thing I want to do most in this character, for sure."
