Spider-Man: Who Should Play the Famous Character Next

Allyson Johnson

10 years ago

So, after Marvel dropped the news earlier this week about Spider-Man coming home to Marvel the internet has been abuzz with questions and theories of where the studio will be taking the character. What we know for sure is that he won’t be played by Andrew Garfield and he’ll be a younger, still in high school version of the character. He’ll also likely pop up in Captain America: Civil War, but if the studio wants to get a real jump start on fan pandemonium they’ll somehow, someway, get it so the after credits scene in Age of Ultron features a shot of the web-slinger.

Garfield not taking part is a pretty definite shame. He inhabited Spider-Man in such an enthusiastic and playful manner that he’ll be a hard performer to top and I would have loved to see his version interacting with the rest of the Avengers ensemble. However. we’re starting from scratch once again and while it thematically makes sense I might put my head through a wall if we have to see Uncle Ben die again.

We get it. “With great power comes great responsibility.”

And on and on and on it goes.

There’s not much to go upon at the moment and we’ll likely be getting news about a director before a casting. Variety reported that Dylan O’Brien and Logan Lerman are two actors being eyed by the studio but we’ll see if that plays out over the upcoming months.

In the meantime, for fun, here are six actors I’d like to see don the suit.

6. Brenton Thwaites

This young actor received zero favors in The Giver where his protagonist Jonah was written to be boring, dumbfounded or unconvincingly heroic. I’d like to see him sink his teeth into a role that allows for more fun. He has some natural charm and if he was able to channel that into a role more befit for a outgoing personality that could greatly benefit him. He’s reportedly very good in last years under-seen science fiction The Signal and he’d be relatively unknown to the general public-a genuine plus when it comes to Marvel casting.

5. Alfred Enoch

Currently starring as the mildly hapless Wes on ABC’s How to Get Away with Murder, Alfred Enoch is doing solid work but nothing that’s a true showcase for a young actor. The times when he’s allowed to possess a personality on the show is when he really shines and he looks the part. He has the boy next door charm and how cool would it be for Dean Thomas to play Spider-Man

4. Ben Schnetzer

This one is admittedly a weird choice but I can support it by pointing out the small fact of him proving himself to be a chameleon actor. There are few younger character actors these days and with only a handful of roles he’s already proven himself to have a confident grasp on shifting and shaping into whomever he’s playing. Whether he’s a rebellious gay youth in Pride or a Jewish man in hiding in The Book Thief he possess an instantly likable charisma that spells out a formidable future. He’s on the cusp of breaking out already, might as well seal the deal with a big Marvel contract.

3. Dev Patel

Dev Patel is stupid talented and despite this he’s had a difficult time gaining traction after a marvelous break out in Slumdog Millionaire. While on The Newsroom he was always the actor who could steal a scene and make you want more screen-time with him. He has a youthful and playful presence, and due in part to his stint on Skins, very certainly can play up the dry and sarcastic part of Peter Parker as well. At 23 years old he’s yet to be given a break out similar to his leading one in Danny Boyle’s film and it’s a shame because there’s a lot of untapped talent going on underneath the surface.

2. Keith Stanfield

Another bit player who deserves a leading role. He’d be coming in with very little spotlight and a slight anonymity to the general audience, which, as I said above helps with Marvel films that have made an art form of perfect casting (aside from Doctor Strange but hey, we couldn’t always win). Stanfield was phenomenal and heartbreaking in Short Term 12 and Selma and he could channel that aggression and heartbreak into a more lighthearted role while still getting to kick some butt.

1. Dylan O’Brien

This is a bit of a no brainer to me. He looks the part, he’s showcased his ability to do humor and drama and would benefit from playing off of bigger personalities in the room. He’s likely the most unpolished actor out of the bunch but that’s why I think Marvel would be such a great fit for him. He’s a good actor with an abundance of screen presence who is still honing in the rough patches. He also has the physicality for it if The Maze Runner was any clue. With his schedule currently I don’t know how it would work but you can count me as one happy fan if it does.