It’s been a huge week for Marvel Cinematic Universe milestones already, and it’s only Wednesday. So far, fans have celebrated 14 years since Iron Man arrived to change blockbuster cinema forever, 20 since Sam Raimi’s Spider-Man kicked off the superhero movie boom in earnest, and that’s without even bringing up the impending release of the filmmaker’s Doctor Strange in the Multiverse of Madness on Friday.
Today brings yet another cause for reflection and rumination, with 15 years to the day having passed since one of the most polarizing comic book adaptations in history exploded into theaters. Raimi’s Spider-Man 3 was beset by studio interference, and you can still feel the regret in his voice when he discusses the conflicted trilogy-capper today, but social media is in a more forgiving mood.
As you can see from the reactions below, the internet is beginning to come around to the fact that Spider-Man 3 may not be as awful as its reputation would suggest, although it’s a million miles away from being one of the genre’s all-time greats.
The entire Venom subplot could (and perhaps should) have been removed, and the sight of Tobey Maguire going emo and dancing in the streets remains cringy as all hell, but there’s plenty to love about the sprawling story. Everyone can agree that there’s far too much going on at any given time, but that doesn’t mean Spider-Man 3 should be instantly dismissed as a failure, but it would appear that the consensus is finally beginning to soften at long last.
