From Spider-Man (2002) to Spider-Man: Across the Spider-Verse (2023), the Spider-Man movies have had some amazing fighting scenes. There have been 10 theatrical Spider-Man films between 2002 and 2023, all of which brought something different to the character’s cinematic legacy. In those two decades, different versions of Spider-Man got to face multiple versions of classic Spider-Man villains in some incredible action pieces that will forever be associated with the character.
Spider-Man’s first theatrical movie only featured one villain, the Green Goblin. Spider-Man’s most recent movie, on the other hand, featured several threats in a multiversal storyline where all Spider-Verse universes were at stake. From simple hand-to-hand combats to larger-than-life sequences, here are the 10 best Spider-Man movie fights, ranked.
10 Peter Parker vs. Flash Thompson
Peter Parker vs. Flash Thompson in Spider-Man (2002) is obviously not a spectacular Spider-Man fighting scene in the same sense as other entries on this list. It is not about Spider-Man fighting a supervillain, after all. That said, Peter’s brief fight with Flash in Spider-Man was a central moment for the film that continues to be referenced to this day. The classic “Peter Parker stands up against his bully” trope is present in almost every Spider-Man adaptation, and Sam Raimi managed to portray it in a clever and visually interesting way. The slow motion may feel like it was too much, but it fit the tone of the film.
9 Spider-Man vs. Mysterio’s Illusions
Spider-Man: Far From Home took the character in a very different direction compared to other Spider-Man films. For example, Far From Home takes place almost entirely away from New York. However, Far From Home had in the Mysterio illusions one of the most comic-accurate portrayals of a Spider-Man villain fighting style. Perhaps a Mysterio adaptation made in the early 2000s would not have worked as well as Jake Gyllenhaal’s version did. Spider-Man: Far From Home’s great visual effects combined with the clever idea that Mysterio was essentially using “VFX tricks” led to an incredible sequence in which Spider-Man faced Mysterio’s illusions.
8 Spider-Man vs. Electro’s Final Fight
The Amazing Spider-Man 2 may have had a lot of problems, but the film still had some of the most visually stunning Spider-Man sequences in all of the character’s history. The Amazing Spider-Man 2’s opening sequence set the tone for how good the movie would look, which would later culminate in the Spider-Man vs. Electro fight at the end of the film. While Spider-Man fighting Electro at Times Square midway through the movie was a great moment too, The Amazing Spider-Man 2’s ending felt even bigger because of how much was at stake. Electro’s theme combined with comic-book-like imagery resulted in a great moment.
7 Spider-Man vs. Green Goblin’s Final Fight
At a time when so many superhero movies lean heavily on the fantastical aspect of these characters, visceral fighting scenes that do not focus on superpowers or CGI spectacle are difficult to find. Spider-Man vs. Green Globin at the end of Spider-Man was not interested in showing Peter swinging around or the Green Goblin using all his gadgets. Instead, Spider-Man’s ending delivered a visceral, grounded fight where Peter and Osborn essentially just threw punches and kicks at each other. There was a sense of weight behind every move, and not many PG-13 superhero films have had scenes that showed that much blood.
Willem Dafoe’s intense performance as the Green Goblin also helped build up the tension for the final confrontation between the villain and Spider-Man. In addition, one of the reasons why Spider-Man (2002) has aged so well is the fact that it had so many practical scenes, from little moments like Peter catching the food before it touched the ground to Green Goblin and Spider-Man punching each other. The end of the Spider-Man vs. Green Goblin fight, which sees Peter dodging Norman’s glider and ends with Osborn’s death, is also an iconic moment of its own.
6 Spider-People Fight At Aunt May’s House
Five Spider-People fighting several Spider-Man villains in Aunt May’s house sounds like something that would only work in a comic book. Fortunately, Spider-Man: Into the Spider-Verse was not limited by what can and cannot work in a live-action movie. The Spider-People vs. Kingpin’s men fight at Aunt May’s house highlighted how different each Spider character featured in the film was, combining a sense of absurdity with the emotional buildup leading up to the Prowler’s confrontation with Miles. Multiverse team-ups centered on Spider-Man have become quite common on the big screen, and it all began with this unusual team of Spider-People that Into the Spider-Verse put together.
5 Spider-Man vs. Green Globin’s Apartment Fight
Spider-Man: No Way Home fixed a lot of complaints about the MCU’s Spider-Man, including the lack of hand-to-hand combat between Peter and his villains. Spider-Man and the Vulture barely fought each other, and Mysterio never actually faced Spider-Man in real combat. Of course, Spider-Man fought some of the Avengers in Captain America: Civil War as well as Thanos in Avengers: Infinity War. Still, MCU’s Peter was still missing a visceral, grounded fight like the character often encounters in the comics. Fortunately, Spider-Man vs. Green Goblin at Happy’s apartment was exactly what the character was missing.
Spider-Man angrily beating Norman Osborn was unlike anything that the MCU had done with the character up until that point. The Green Goblin had yet to kill Aunt May, but Peter’s Spider-Sense could tell that something horrible could happen at any time. Dafoe’s performance as the Green Goblin once again elevated what was already a fantastic, well-choreographed fight. Curiously, the two most grounded and violent Spider-Man movie fights featured Willem Dafoe’s Green Goblin, even though they took place in completely different universes.
4 Spider-Man vs. Kingpin
Into the Spider-Verse featured a giant Ultimate-style Green Goblin, interdimensional portals, and multiple Spider-People from across the multiverse. However, the film’s best fight was a relatively simple confrontation between Spider-Man and Kingpin. Miles had finally become Spider-Man after the iconic leap of faith scene, and Fisk could not have been angrier after his plan to find a new family in the multiverse failed. Fisk’s anger combined with the multiverse collapsing in the background made for a high-stakes fight that felt both fantastical and grounded. Into the Spider-Verse’s Kingpin design paid off in this scene, with Fisk feeling like a threat, even though Miles was the one with superpowers.
3 Three Spider-Men vs. Multiverse Villains
Tobey Maguire, Andrew Garfield, and Tom Holland all playing their respective versions of Spider-Man in a scene that also features Alfred Molinas’s Dock Ock, Willem Dafoe’s Green Goblin, Jamie Foxx’s Electro, and CG renditions of Sandman and the Lizard sounded like an absurd concept. However, No Way Home made it work. The anticipation leading up to No Way Home potentially featuring the three cinematic Spider-Men created a difficult challenge for the film. Fortunately, No Way Home did not disappoint and had everything longtime Spider-Man fans had dreamed of seeing. Despite being brief, the three Spider-Men vs. the “Sinister Five” scene will forever be remembered as a classic Spider-Man moment.
2 Spider-Man vs. The Spider Society
Seeing the Spider-Society in Spider-Man: Across the Spider-Verse was exciting by itself. Across the Spider-Verse’s Spider-Man variants, as well as all the Easter eggs to Spider-Man’s pop culture legacy, elevated the Into the Spider-Verse sequel and made it an instant-classic superhero movie. All of those elements culminated in the scene where Miles has to run away from the Spider-Society. Following Miles as he outsmarted hundreds of Spider-People was an incredible experience, and while there were not many individual fights, the sequence itself is one of the best Spider-Man movie action scenes ever made.
1 Spider-Man vs. Doc Ock’s Train Fight
Spider-Man 2 is widely considered one of the best Spider-Man movies of all time as well as one of the best superhero films in general. Sam Raimi brought back everything that worked in the first film and elevated it for the sequel. For example, every action scene in Spider-Man 2 felt bigger and bolder than the ones in Spider-Man (2002). Not only did the Spider-Man vs. Doctor Octopus train to fight age well, but it can still be considered the best Spider-Man fighting scene ever put on film. From the moment Spider-Man catches up with Doc Ock to when Peter stops the train, Spider-Man 2 delivered an instant classic sequence.
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This story originally appeared on Screenrant
