With Great Power

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This is the Golden Age of comic-book blockbusters. And while superhero icons like Batman, Black Panther, Wonder Woman, and the Avengers help chart the industry’s course, no comic book character has enjoyed as much success during this era as Spider-Man.
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Since his introduction in August 1962, Spider-Man has become a cottage industry all his own. His pop-culture reach extends from comic books and clothing to video games, toys, and television shows. But Spider-Man’s strongest impact is felt in the feature-film realm, where eight different Spider-Man movies collectively boast more than $7.2 billion in worldwide tickets sold.
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If Hollywood had a superhero throne, Spider-Man would be sitting in it.
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Marvel’s wallcrawler has come a long way since his earliest days, but his cinematic journey has yet to be documented. Unusual, since Spider-Man’s Hollywood history is littered with A-list names (such as James Cameron and Leonardo DiCaprio), behind-the-scenes squabbles, franchise reboots, and a drunken Tom Holland preventing Disney from booting Spidey out of the MCU. The prized creation of Marvel guru Stan Lee has helped create and cultivate the current Golden Age of comic-book blockbusters, and lessons learned on the Spider-Man franchises continue to be applied to all comic-book movies today.
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Veteran film reporter and author Sean O’Connell uses his exclusive access to directors, actors, producers, and screenwriters to get the inside-baseball angles on Spider-Man’s climb to the top of the superhero heap.