I don’t know if you guys know this, but I’m a pretty big Marvel fan. I’ve seen all of the movies since they started making them (the good and the bad—looking at you, Ben Affleck’s Daredevil), and I’ve read some of the comics, too. So, I’m a bit of a purist when it comes to my Marvel movies. That’s why I’m so disturbed to hear that Marvel Studios has tapped Asa Buttefield of Ender’s Game fame to replace Andrew Garfield as Spider-Man in the upcoming reboot. I mean, really? Has he even hit puberty yet? I don’t think any of Spidey’s enemies are going to be too intimidated by a man who has the voice of a nine-year-old girl.
Okay, but all joking aside, Asa is just a bad choice. I know he’s eighteen and he’s six feet tall, which is pretty spot on with the character’s age and appearance, but something about it just doesn’t work for me. There are so many better options out there, and I really feel like we’d be doing a disservice to the character (and ourselves) by not mentioning them. So, here are 9 actors that would be a better choice to play Spider-Man than Asa Butterfield:
9. Dylan O’Brien
Setting aside the fact that I think I may actually be in love with Dylan even though we’ve never met, he’s still my first pick to replace Andrew in the franchise. He can clearly pull off an action hero role, as illustrated by his role as Thomas in The Maze Runner, and anyone who watches Teen Wolf knows that he can do the whole “adorable and noble yet still socially awkward” thing. Plus, there were rumors swirling for a long time that he was being considered for the role, but it seems that they were just rumors all along.
8. Logan Lerman
He’s already done the whole superhero thing with the Percy Jacksonseries, and he’s done the whole socially awkward thing with The Perks Of Being A Wallflower. Plus, he totally looks the part. Plus plus, I just think he’s a precious pea.
7. Andrew Garfield
Guys, can we all agree that Andrew should just come back and play Spider-Man forever? I know there are a lot of people out there who will disagree with me (and even more who claim that Tobey Maguire was the better Spider-Man, to which I say, “Should Spider-Man really look that constipated when he cries??”), but I thought he portrayal of Peter Parker was totally spot-on. Besides, it’s not his fault that the writers made the sequel all about his romance with Gwen Stacy instead of the whole Osborne storyline. And my dad agrees with me. There. #TheRob has spoken.
6. Nat Wolff
Nat Wolff has been showing off some serious acting chops as of late (oh, and if you haven’t seen Stuck In Love, I suggest you drop everything and go do that. It’s on Netflix. I can wait.), so you know what that means: Time to make him the star of a popular franchise! In all seriousness, I’d love to seem him do something outside of his romantic comedy/dramedy comfort zone.
5. Ellar Coltrane
I’ll just be completely honest here: I didn’t see Boyhood. I just never got around to it. But he looks the part, and as one of my editors pointed out, he could carry off the sarcasm and the whole “struggling with being a teenager and a superhero at the same time” thing really well.
4. Jonah Bobo
Okay, so the above GIF isn’t entirely accurate, because that’s Jonah at age twelve when he was in Crazy, Stupid, Love. He’s seventeen now, and he’s the perfect age and build for Peter Parker. Let’s give this cutie a shot!
3. Thomas Brodie-Sangster
Thomas is probably my second choice for the role behind Dylan O’Brien. He, too, was in The Maze Runner and showed a real ability for action roles, and it’s easy enough to change his hair color. Whether or not he’ll be able to cover his accent well enough is another question, because a British accent and a Queens, NY accent aren’t exactly similar.
2. Brendan Robinson
Ah, Brendan. The forgotten hero of Pretty Little Liars (seriously, people who watch that show: Where has he even been???). He’s got the whole awkward high school student thing down pat, he looks the part, and he can get a little angsty, which is a specialty of Spider-Man’s.
1. Freddie Highmore
The way I see it, if he can play a young Norman Bates in Bates Motelconvincingly, then he can probably be a superhero too. I don’t know if that logic holds up in the court of public opinion, but it holds up in my brain.
What actors do you think would make a good Spider-Man? Are you happy that they might cast Asa Butterfield? Let us know in the comments!