Spider-Man: Into The Spider-Verse - Why We Didn't Get Tobey Maguire In The Movie

Widely regarded as one of the greatest superhero movies ever made, the 2018 animated comic book film "Spider-Man: Into the Spider-Verse" introduces fans to a wide variety of Spider-People from across the multiverse, all of whom find their way into Miles Morales' (Shameik Moore) universe. These include Peter Porker (John Mulaney), Spider-Man Noir (Nicolas Cage), and Peter B. Parker (Jake Johnson), the latter of whom becomes a mentor to Miles despite being disillusioned with the superhero lifestyle. Despite this multiverse-centric premise, the movie doesn't feature any cameos from the main live-action iterations of Spider-Man, those being Tobey Maguire, Andrew Garfield, and Tom Holland.

As it happens, the film's directors Bob Persichetti, Peter Ramsey, and Rodney Rothman did actually considering bringing back Maguire in particular to play the older Peter B. Parker, though these plans fell through due to concerns about confusing the audience. "There were many thoughts about where we could put Tobey Maguire and others," Rothman said during a 2018 interview with ScreenCrush. "I think after this film, those thoughts might have a little more traction. But before this movie, and introducing the idea of the 'Spider-Verse' to the audience, I think everybody was afraid that it would just really confuse people."

While the team behind "Spider-Man: Into the Spider-Verse" backed out of casting Tobey Maguire as Peter B. Parker, the former "Spider-Man" star would go on to play a similar version of the character just three years later in the 2021 blockbuster "Spider-Man: No Way Home." In that film, Maguire reprises his role as Peter Parker from the Sam Raimi "Spider-Man" trilogy, acting as a mentor to a younger, alternate version of himself. Unlike Peter B. Parker, this version of Spider-Man is still optimistic about his crime-fighting career and is more than happy to impart some life lessons on the Marvel Cinematic Universe's Spider-Man. 

Maguire's reappearance in "Spider-Man: No Way Home" serves as a solid epilogue for his version of the character, but it doesn't seem like the actor is ready to fully retire the role. Following the release of the 2021 flick, Maguire indicated in an interview with Marvel that he's very open to reprising the part again down the line. "I love these films and I love all of the different series," the actor said. "If these guys called me and said, 'Would you show up tonight to hang out and goof around?' or 'Would you show up to do this movie or read a scene or do a Spider-Man thing?,' it would be a 'yes!' Because why wouldn't I want to do that?"

Whether or not Maguire plays Spider-Man for a future project, his appearance in "Spider-Man: No Way Home" technically also canonizes him in the "Spider-Verse" movies, thanks to "Spider-Man: Across the Spider-Verse" connecting to the MCU.

Even if Tobey Maguire didn't end up the elder Spider-Man mentor for Miles Morales in "Spider-Man: Into the Spider-Verse," Jake Johnson's character of Peter B. Parker still borrows a lot of traits from his Sam Raimi counterpart. Apart from the broad beats of their origin story being the same, the Spider-Verse version slots in a couple sly references to Maguire's iteration, including his notorious street dance from "Spider-Man 3" and his iconic upside-down kiss with Mary-Jane Watson (Kirsten Dunst) in the first "Spider-Man." Beyond that, the movie even mentions Peter B. once breaking his back, a subtle reference to when Maguire sustained a major back injury while filming "Spider-Man 2."

Outside of references, the two undergo a pretty similar character arc. Both Johnson's Peter B. and Maguire's Peter are generally down-on-their-luck characters who end up gradually getting jaded by their superhero career, then later becoming inspired once again. Both of them face relationship troubles with their respective versions of Mary-Jane Watson, though they're ultimately able to work it out. Most importantly, though, both end up being Spider-Man deep into adulthood.

Based on these elements, it's clear that Maguire's Spider-Man definitely had an influence on the development of Peter B. Parker. Even if the actor didn't make it into the original film, his take on the character is still felt in the DNA of "Spider-Man: Into the Spider-Verse."