Tom Holland. One of the most charming and handsome people on the planet. Andrew Garfield. A decadent, ambitious, and driven actor. And finally, Tobey Maguire, an interesting character indeed. The question is, who is the best? To play the character eloquently, the actor must have the most perfect blend of both Peter Parker and Spiderman. Peter Parker being a nerdy teenager. While Spiderman is a confident, and selfless superhero.  

Let us begin with the first Spiderman. Tobey Maguire. Maguire was, at the time of filming, 26 years of age, making him ten years older than the character he was playing. In my opinion, Tobey Maguire is the best Peter Parker. He understood the nerdy quirkiness of a “normal” high school teenager. This is something well done on behalf of Maguire because of the age difference between him and his character. However, what Maguire lacks is the selflessness of Spiderman. He is overconfident and overbearing because of his jealousy to impress Mary Jane. Even though he made the courageous act when saving those people on the train in Spiderman-2, was the act good enough to make up for everything else? No.

Moving onto Andrew Garfield. While he plays a wonderful Peter Parker role, Garfield channels most of his skill into playing the superhero. Much of what happens to Peter Parker will come due to the actions of Spiderman. His love story with Gwen was beautiful; however, much of it was through Spiderman. Her caring for his wounds, him saving the day and her assisting, and finally her death. Whose suit was he in? Peter’s or Spiderman? And after Gwen’s death, in the years that followed, Peter spent less time being Peter, but more in Spiderman. As Garfield stated in Spiderman: No Way Home, “I stopped pulling my punches.” The kindness of Peter Parker is gone, and the anger that has filled his heart has begun dictating the actions of Spiderman. 

Finally, Tom Holland. Is he a perfect Peter Parker? Is he a perfect Spiderman? No. However, he is the perfect blend. As seen in his interviews, Holland is quite awkward and his personality matches Peter’s in that way. Regarding playing Spiderman, Holland was capable of doing one thing that the other two could not. He could blend the two characters. With Maguire, the focus was on Peter. With Garfield, the focus was on Spiderman. With Holland, Peter and Spiderman were the same. They were the same personality-wise, yet one could become the other at any moment. Spiderman needs Peter in the same way that Peter needs Spiderman. It makes the character who he is. In the other two stories, the focus remains on their love interests or the love for the villains in their stories, which aided in the success of Spiderman: No Way Home. However, Holland’s romance in this movie was only one aspect of the character. The character development is better. Thus, Holland is the best blend of Peter Parker and Spiderman.