Major spoilers for Spider-Man: No Way Home lie ahead.
While Spider-Man: No Way Home provided audiences with a number of thrills, the biggest arguably had to be the inclusion of Tobey Maguire and Andrew Garfielld’s cinematic iterations of Peter Parker. Speculation regarding their alleged involvement circulated for months, with Garfield denying reports left and right along the way. As a result, many were certainly pleased when they did show up, and their team-up with Tom Holland’s web-slinger did not disappoint. But what was it like for director Jon Watts to actually direct the three Spider-Man? Well, it turns out, ahead of shooting their first scene together, Watts held what he now refers to as a “therapy session.”
The two veteran actors actually didn’t finalize their deals to return until later in the film shoot, so things were up and rolling by the time they donned their suits again. Though Jon Watts was clearly juggling quite a bit at that point, he still wanted to take the necessary time to work with his Peter Parkers. So he gathered the three Spideys, along with supporting actors Zendaya and Jacob Batalon, for a meeting, in which they went over the script. And it sounds like the sit-down was very intimate:
We sat on folding chairs in a circle and went through the script together. I had talked to everyone separately, but to have everyone together to talk about the story, how the pieces fit together and what Spider-Man meant to them — that was exciting for me. We had the only three actors to ever play Spider-Man in a film, and each had been through so much, on and off screen. It was like a Spider-Man therapy session.
The mere thought of being in a room with the three live-action Spider-Man actors is incredibly daunting. Jon Watts is a professional, but it sounds like he could definitely understand the gravity of the moment. And thankfully, the “therapy session” proved to be helpful, as things went well when the cameras finally started rolling. In the same interview with Variety, Watts recalled shooting that first scene with the trio of heroes (which sees the veteran wall-crawlers advising the current one) and how the crew reacted to it:
Because we had done that work ahead of time, when filming that first scene with everyone, it was great to take a step back and see the crew watching, like they were watching the movie. You’re capturing something more than a scene from a movie; you’re watching a once-in-a-lifetime event.
I couldn’t agree more with it being a “once-in-a-lifetime” event, as I’m surely going to cherish the first moment I saw all three Spider-Man actors together on the big screen. Though it was a special experience for fans, the same was also true for the actors themselves. Andrew Garfield said yes to No Way Home because he was delighted by the idea of having the three Peters meet up. He was also drawn to the themes of brotherhood and mentorship that were present within the screenplay. In addition, he had some great convos with his Spidey brethren and even humorously became jealous of Holland’s suit due to its practicality.
Tobey Maguire, the OG big-screen wall-crawler, also enjoyed working on the superhero threequel. Unlike the Amazing Spider-Man star, Maguire was able to keep a lower profile in the lead-up to the film’s release, which led to less hounding from the press and fans regarding his involvement. Like his co-star, however, he also had to deal with the pitfalls that come with redonning the suit, though he ultimately viewed it as a blessing and a sweet part of the experience.
Whether we see the two actors spin their webs again is anyone’s guess at this point. Andrew Garfield is open to returning to the role, though nothing appears to be set at this point. Meanwhile, some fans believe Tobey Maguire’s Spidey could appear in Doctor Strange in the Multiverse of Madness this year, but that’s simply speculation at this point. Fans will likely continue to ponder the future but, right now, I’m just glad that Jon Watts and co. were able to find a way to bring the beloved actors back for the final installment in Tom Holland’s “Homecoming” trilogy.
Spider-Man: No Way Home is still playing in theaters. And if you're looking forward to more from the Marvel Cinematic Universe, be sure to check out CinemaBlend's list of upcoming Marvel movies.
