Spider-Man is one of the most famous superheroes of all time. In addition to thousands (if not millions) of comics, there are countless live-action adaptations, animated shows and movies, and video games based on and around the web-slinging hero. Since Spider-Man was first created, dozens of alternate versions with similar powers who call themselves Spider-Man (or some variation thereof) have joined the comic book canon as well. But who is the hero who started it all, and who originally created him?
Where did Spider-Man come from?
The original Spider-Man, a.k.a. Peter Parker, made his debut in 1962. Created by writer Stan Lee and artist Steve Ditko, Spider-Man first appeared in Marvel’s Amazing Fantasy #15. Spider-Man has captured the imaginations of millions of people all over the world and became the most famous wall-crawling hero in the process. In Amazing Fantasy #15, Peter Parker gets bitten by a radioactive spider, and his life is changed forever as he learns to grapple with the pressures of being a hero and the troubles of his everyday teenage life. That first appearance set the tone for Peter Parker and Spider-Man’s entire Marvel history, as it also includes the heartbreaking and character-building moment in which Peter’s uncle Ben is tragically murdered.
Despite being a Marvel superhero through and through, Disney and Marvel Studios—the current arbiters of the sprawling Marvel Cinematic Universe—do not hold the rights to Spider-Man, and this might have caused some confusion about Spider-Man’s origins. In 1999, the Marvel Entertainment Group licensed the Spider-Man adaptation rights—including Spidey’s entire rogues gallery, all canonical Spider-Man variants, and any other related characters—to Sony Pictures. The comic book rights, however, stayed with Marvel.
Since the deal was struck, Sony has used those rights to the fullest, producing three separate Peter Parker-centric live-action movie series, a successful soon-to-be trio of video games for PlayStation, and the incomparable and wildly successful animated Spider-Verse movies—arguably the culmination of Spider-Man’s entire comic book history. Sony’s list of adaptations also includes the launch of a somewhat less successful anti-hero/villain universe, which has produced titles like Venom, Morbius, and the upcoming Kraven the Hunter.
Tom Holland’s portrayal of Peter Parker is canon in the MCU as a result of an additional deal struck between Disney and Sony Pictures. Yet the full rights to our favorite wall-crawler rest solely with Sony, for now. At heart, however, Spider-Man will always be a Marvel hero, and whatever deal Marvel Studios had to make with Sony was certainly worth it. I’ve always wanted to see Spider-Man steal Captain America’s iconic shield on the big screen.
(featured image: Marvel Comics)
