Andrew Garfield says he still believes in a gay Spider-Man: ‘Anyone can be in that suit’

Ryan ColemanTue, September 1, 2026 at 3:34 AM UTC

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Andrew Garfield in ‘The Amazing Spider-Man’ (2012)Credit: Jaimie Trueblood/Columbia/SonyKey Points -

Andrew Garfield says he still wants a gay Spider-Man.

The actor revisited his 2013 interview with Entertainment Weekly, in which he wondered aloud why Spidey can’t “be gay? Why can’t he be into boys?”

In a recent conversation, Garfield reflected, “It was an exercise in rebellion that I felt passionate about... I just still believe that anyone can be in that suit.”

Animated 2018 film Spider-Man: Into the Spider-Verse proved to be a landmark in the development of Spider-lore, giving us the big screen’s first Black Spider-Man, first female Spider-Man, and first talking-pig Spider-Man. So why hasn’t a cinematic Spidey ever been gay?

Andrew Garfield asked himself that question back in 2013, and he finds himself still pondering it today. Four more live-action Spider-Man films have passed since the release of Garfield’s last turn as the web-slinger, 2014’s The Amazing Spider-Man 2, and two animated Spider-Verse films have also come and gone. Still, no Peter Parker has ever proudly carried the rainbow flag through the movie-house.

In a conversation with Entertainment Weekly ahead of the premiere Garfield’s latest, the gritty historical drama The Uprising, the actor looked back on his 2013 plea in the pages of Entertainment Weekly, in which he asked, “Why can’t he be gay? Why can’t he be into boys?”

“It was an exercise in rebellion that I felt passionate about,” Garfield reflected. But his feelings haven’t changed. “I just still believe that anyone can be in that suit.”

Tobey Maguire, Tom Holland, and Andrew Garfield in ‘Spider-Man: No Way Home’ (2021)Credit: Sony Pictures/Marvel Entertainment

“That’s the point of why it’s such a kind of universally beloved character, one of the greatly beloved characters in the history of fiction,” Garfield continued, “is because you don’t see skin color, you don’t see gender, you don’t see sexuality. Anyone can project themselves into that suit.”

The Tony winner also noted, “I like the idea of a place where everyone is being honored and everyone is being included, and it was just a kind of act of saying, ‘Well, why not?’ And you’ll be telling on yourself if you have a strong opinion either way.”

In the 2013 interview, Garfield elaborated on a conversation he had with one of the film’s producers, Matt Tolmach, about Peter Parker’s canonical love interest, Mary Jane Watson.

“I was kind of joking, but kind of not joking about MJ... I was like, ‘What if MJ is a dude?’ Why can’t we discover that Peter is exploring his sexuality? It’s hardly even groundbreaking!… So why can’t he be gay? Why can’t he be into boys?”

Garfield even suggested his own replacement to star in a queered Spider-Man film: “I’ve been obsessed with Michael B. Jordan since The Wire. He’s so charismatic and talented. It’d be even better—we’d have interracial bisexuality!”

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Of course, the web of lore surrounding the masked do-gooder who swings through the streets of Manhattan on silken ropes extends far beyond the big screen.

The character was created by the legendary Marvel Comics founder Stan Lee and the influential comics artist Steve Ditko, first appearing in a 1962 issue of Amazing Fantasy. The character quickly took off, with the first Spider-Man animated series kicking in 1967. The first film treatment of the Spider-Man comics came in 1977 (Spider-Man), but it wouldn’t be until 2002 that director Sam Raimi and star Tobey Maguire took Spidey-lore to a whole new level with their glossy, high-octane Spider-Man.

Michael B. Jordan, who went on to Marvel fame in a different film — ‘Black Panther’ (2018)Credit: Marvel

Two more Maguire films followed, and then two featuring Garfield, and Spider-Man: Brand New Day, the fourth starring the current Spidey, Tom Holland, released in July. All this time, Parker’s love interests have been women — Kirsten Dunst in the Maguire films, Emma Stone in the Garfield films, and Zendaya in the Holland films.

That isn’t to say the web-slinger is straight in every iteration across media. In 2022, Marvel introduced Web-Weaver, the canon’s first-ever gay Spider-Man. The character was introduced by writer Steve Foxe and artist Kris Anka in Edge of the Spider-Verse #5, released that September. Before he’s bitten by the same radioactive spider as Parker, Cooper Coen is just an ambitious fashion student, but he goes on to be a formidable fighter after gaining powers and donning a custom-made costume.

It isn’t impossible that the next cinematic incarnation of Spider-Man is gay. Holland has said he has a “really clear vision to the passing on of the baton” to a new star after Brand New Day, meaning a plan for the next Spider-Man is still very much on the drawing board.

The Uprising arrives in theaters on Sept. 11.

With reporting by Gerrad Hall.

on Entertainment Weekly

Original Article on Source

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