Andrew Garfield explains it was his idea to have Peter Parker cross the street without looking while transfixed on Emma Stone’s Gwen Stacy in The Amazing Spider-Man 2. Following Sam Raimi and Tobey Maguire’s abandoned Spider-Man 4, Sony rebooted the web-slinging franchise with Garfield. Instead of having him hang upside down and kiss Mary Jane, The Amazing Spider-Man (2012) and The Amazing Spider-Man 2 (2014) chose to focus on Gwen as Peter’s first, and most influential love interest.

The Amazing Spider-Man 2 takes place two years after the first film. Disregarding his vow to the late Captain George Stacy (Denis Leary) to stay away from his daughter, Peter and Gwen are in a relationship. However, the former’s reservations result in Gwen dumping Peter, who then watches her from afar before the pair eventually reunite. Unfortunately, The Amazing Spider-Man 2 took some inspiration from Gwen’s infamous death storyline in the comic books. In the film’s climactic moments, the Green Goblin (Dane DeHaan) drops Gwen from the top of a clock tower before Spider-Man can save her. Despite the palpable chemistry of its stars, the lackluster response to The Amazing Spider-Man 2 led to Sony and Disney/Marvel Studios’ decision to reboot the franchise once again, this time in the Marvel Cinematic Universe.

SCREENRANT VIDEO OF THE DAY

In a recent interview with BBC Radio 1, Garfield talked about some of the most memorable moments making The Amazing Spider-Man films. Specifically, he was asked about moments that were conceived of by Garfield himself. When asked about his improvisation in those movies, Garfield remembered the scene where Peter crosses the street like he’s playing the arcade game Frogger. Read the full quote below:

“It’s very nice of you to list some things that I’m proud of in those films. [director] Marc Webb really let me play and he kind of trusted me…you know the other thing that I really love is the Frogger. I didn’t realize this was an American game, but there’s a game called Frogger. And there’s a whole sequence of me crossing the street when I see Gwen again for the first time in a long time. I said, ‘can we do a thing where I don’t stop looking at her, and then I just dodge cars, bikes, and like whatever.’ I said it to the writer and he was like ‘great, I’m writing it in.’”

Garfield also thought about how Peter’s Spidey Sense would play into the scene: would it be lessened, short-wired, or just guiding him as he floats across the street towards his love? Of course, Garfield returned in last year’s Spider-Man: No Way Home, giving both the actor and his character a shot at redemption after his disappointing solo sequel. Pulled into the MCU from the multiverse, Garfield and Maguire’s Spider-Men aid Tom Holland in his fight with past Sony villains. In the film’s climax, after lamenting the loss of Gwen, Garfield’s character is able to save Michelle Jones (Zendaya) as she falls from the Statue of Liberty. Even though he couldn’t catch Gwen, he caught MJ.

The “Frogger scene” is one of many genuinely beautiful moments in The Amazing Spider-Man 2. While the film has been criticized for trying to balance too many villains and plot lines, the performances are solid, and its central love story is more than moving. Perhaps The Amazing Spider-Man films came out too soon after Raimi’s franchise, putting an undue amount of pressure on Webb, Garfield, and Stone. Thankfully, No Way Home has reminded audiences that Garfield was always a great Peter Parker/Spider-Man, and now they want more. This could mean The Amazing Spider-Man 3 or an appearance elsewhere in Sony’s Spider-Man Universe. Regardless, Garfield seems open to the idea. The jury is still out on whether Stone will ever return as Spider-Gwen.

Source: BBC Radio 1/YouTube

Key Release Dates
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  • Morbius (2022)Release date: Apr 01, 2022
  • Doctor Strange in the Multiverse of Madness (2022)Release date: May 06, 2022
  • Thor: Love and Thunder (2022)Release date: Jul 08, 2022
  • Black Panther: Wakanda Forever/Black Panther 2 (2022)Release date: Nov 11, 2022
  • Ant-Man and the Wasp: Quantumania (2023)Release date: Jul 28, 2023
  • The Marvels/Captain Marvel 2 (2023)Release date: Feb 17, 2023
  • Guardians of the Galaxy Vol. 3 (2023)Release date: May 05, 2023
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Josh Plainse
(951 Articles Published)

Josh Plainse is a writer, movie, and television fanatic based out of Wisconsin. Josh works for Screen Rant covering the latest in entertainment while simultaneously pursuing the never-ending dream of becoming an established novelist, screenwriter, and/or decent human being. Josh would accredit characters such as Goku, Han Solo, Simba, and Maximus Decimus Meridius for instilling within him an affinity for storytelling. It is this incessant obsession which has propelled him to seek opportunities that inform, entertain, and inspire others.

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