Principal photography began in April 2003 in New York City and also took place in Los Angeles. Reshoots took place later that year and concluded in February 2004.Danny Elfman returned to compose the score.
Spider-Man 2 premiered at theMann Village Theater in Los Angeles on June 25, 2004, and was released in both conventional andIMAX theaters on June 30. It received acclaim from critics, who praised its emotional weight and visual effects, as well as Maguire and Molina's performances and Raimi's direction, and grossed $795.9 million worldwide, making it thethird-highest-grossing film of the year. It was selected by theAmerican Film Institute as one of the top 10 films of 2004.
Two years afterNorman Osborn's death,[b]Peter Parker struggles professionally and personally because of his commitments as Spider-Man. Peter juggles multiple jobs and faces overdue rent and schoolwork as hisAunt May is being evicted.Daily Bugle ownerJ. Jonah Jameson slanders Spider-Man in the paper, and Peter's best friend,Harry Osborn, blames Spider-Man for his father's death and resents Peter for not revealing his identity. To protect her from his enemies, Peter has distanced himself fromMary Jane Watson, despite their unspoken romantic feelings. Tired of Peter's secrets, Mary Jane agrees to marry Jameson's sonJohn.
Harry usesOsCorp to fund the development of afusion power machine by nuclear scientistOtto Octavius, who befriends and mentors Peter. During a public demonstration, Octavius wears a harness with four powerful mechanical tentacles controlled by artificial intelligence (AI) to interact with the machine. Though initially successful, the fusion reaction destabilizes, threatening mass destruction, but Octavius refuses to shut down the machine. Before Peter can cut the power, the power surges kill Octavius's wife, fuse the harness to his body, and destroys the inhibitor chip restricting the tentacles' AI. Octavius is taken to a hospital where doctors attempt to surgically remove the harness, but the tentacles violently defend themselves. He flees to a decrepit harbor warehouse, where the tentacles corrupt his mind and convince him to rebuild the machine to prove it works. Octavius robs a bank to fund his plan and takes May hostage, but Peter rescues her.
Overwhelmed by stress, exhaustion, and his conflict between wanting a normal life and his responsibilities as Spider-Man, Peter's powers begin to fade. He gives up being Spider-Man and rejects his lateUncle Ben's wish for him to use his powers responsibly. Embracing civilian life, Peter excels at university and sees Mary Jane perform in anoff-Broadway play, much to her delight. However, she rejects his romantic intentions, unable to accept that he has changed. Peter also confesses his responsibility in Ben's death to May to assuage her guilt;[b] though initially shocked, she forgives him. Despite his lost powers, Peter later saves a child from a burning building, but another person dies. Believing he could have saved them both as Spider-Man, Peter concludes that his responsibilities as Spider-Man outweigh his personal happiness.
Octavius completes his enhanced machine and confronts Harry, demanding the rare isotopetritium to fuel it. Harry agrees in exchange for Octavius bringing him Spider-Man, instructing Octavius to use Peter to find him. Realizing she does not love John, Mary Jane meets with Peter to confess her feelings, but he lies that he does not reciprocate. Octavius attacks the pair and kidnaps Mary Jane to coerce Peter into finding Spider-Man. Peter's powers fully return, and as Spider-Man, he fights Octavius atop aNew York City Subway train. Octavius sabotages the train, forcing Peter to use all his strength to stop the runaway vehicle from plunging into theNew York Harbor. Despite the passengers' efforts to protect him, Octavius captures the weakened Peter and delivers him to Harry.
Harry unmasks Spider-Man, discovering Peter's true identity. Peter persuades Harry to help him save Mary Jane, leading him to Octavius's lair. The larger fusion reaction destabilizes again and Peter unmasks himself to convince Octavius to resist the tentacles' influence and help him. Octavius, acknowledging his folly, sacrifices himself to drown the machine in the bay. Peter rescues Mary Jane, who now knows his secret, and admits that while he loves her, he cannot be with her. Meanwhile, Harry sees a vision in a mirror of Norman demanding vengeance. Harry refuses to hurt Peter and shatters the mirror, revealing a storeroom of Norman'sGreen Goblin equipment.
On her wedding day, Mary Jane abandons the ceremony and runs to Peter's apartment, telling him her choice to be with him despite the risk. Their kiss is interrupted by police sirens, and Mary Jane encourages him to go help as Spider-Man.
Tobey Maguire asPeter Parker / Spider-Man:[12] A superhero,Columbia University physics student, and photographer for theDaily Bugle. Juggling these separate lives means he briefly gives up his responsibilities as a superhero in a moment of adversity.
Kirsten Dunst asMary Jane Watson:[13] An aspiringBroadway actress and a friend Peter has loved since he was a child, yet he gave up the chance of being with her out of concern for her safety. Still harboring feelings for Peter, Mary Jane begins datingJohn Jameson and eventually becomes engaged to him. She also is infatuated with Spider-Man, who saved her life numerous times in the past, and is initially unaware that the hero and Peter are one and the same.
James Franco asHarry Osborn:[14]Oscorp's currentChief executive officer (CEO), Norman Osborn's son and Peter's best friend, who holds his alter-ego Spider-Man responsible for his father's death. He is also Mary Jane's ex-boyfriend and still harbors feelings for her.
Alfred Molina asDr. Otto Octavius / Doctor Octopus:[15] A scientist working on behalf ofOscorp and Peter's role model and mentor who goes insane after his failure to create a self-sustaining fusion reaction, which also resulted in the death of his wife, Rosie. Octavius is bonded with his handling equipment, four artificially intelligent mechanical tentacles, which influence his mentality and convince him that he must finish his experiment at all costs.
As with the previous film,Bruce Campbell has acameo appearance, this time as an usher who refuses Peter entry for arriving late to Mary Jane Watson's show.[19][20]Spider-Man co-creatorStan Lee portrays a man on the street who saves a woman from falling debris during a battle between Spider-Man and Doctor Octopus.[21]Dylan Baker portraysDr. Curt Connors, one of Peter's college physics professors and a colleague of Octavius,[17] whileWillem Dafoe reprises his role asNorman Osborn, Harry's deceased father who appears to him as a hallucination. Dafoe came up with the idea during promotion forSpider-Man, which he compared toKing Hamlet haunting his son to avenge him.[22]Elizabeth Banks, John Paxton,Ted Raimi andBill Nunn reprise their roles asBetty Brant,[23] Osborn family butler Bernard Houseman,[24] Ted Hoffman,[18] andRobbie Robertson, respectively.[25]Elya Baskin portrays Mr. Ditkovitch, Peter's landlord, (whose name is a reference toSpider-Man co-creatorSteve Ditko) andMageina Tovah plays his daughter Ursula.[26]Cliff Robertson reprises his role as Peter's uncleBen Parker in a dream sequence.[27]
Scott Spiegel portrays a man who attempts to eat some pizza Spider-Man is delivering, only to have it webbed from his hands.[28] Elyse Dinh portrays a violinist.[29]Joel McHale portrays Mr. Jacks, a bank teller.[30]Hal Sparks portrays anelevator passenger who has a conversation with Spider-Man.[30]Donnell Rawlings portrays the New Yorker who exclaims that Spider-Man "stole that guy's pizzas"[31] andEmily Deschanel portrays a receptionist.[30]Brent Briscoe plays the garbage man who finds Spider-Man's costume in the trash and gives it to Jameson.[32]Peter McRobbie plays an OsCorp representative.[26]Reed Diamond plays Algernon.[26]Daniel Dae Kim plays Raymond, an assistant of Otto Octavius working in his laboratory.[30]Aasif Mandvi portrays Mr. Aziz, the owner ofJoe's Pizza.[30]Joey Diaz,[33]Dan Hicks andChloe Dykstra portray train passengers.[26]Vanessa Ferlito portrays Louise, one of Mary Jane's co-stars.[34]Joy Bryant appears as a spectator that witnesses Spider-Man in action.[30]John Landis plays one of the doctors who operate on Doctor Octopus.[35]Phil LaMarr portrays a train passenger who is most easily seen to the left of Spider-Man (the viewer's right) while the hero uses webbing to slow the train down.[36]Gregg Edelman portrays Dr. Davis.[26] Twin actorsPeyton andSpencer List were to make their film debuts as a little girl and boy playing on steps but their scene was cut from the film.[37][38][39]
Immediately after finishingSpider-Man, directorSam Raimi signed on to direct a sequel.[40] In April 2002, Sony hiredSmallville alumni,Alfred Gough andMiles Millar to write a script for the film, as Raimi, Ziskin, and Maguire lovedSmallville.[41][42] On May 8, 2002, followingSpider-Man's record-breaking $115 million opening weekend,Sony Pictures announced a sequel for 2004.[43] EntitledThe Amazing Spider-Man, after the character's main comic book title,[44] the film was given a budget of $200 million[45] and aimed for a release date of May 7, 2004. The following month,David Koepp was added to co-write with Gough and Millar.[42] Koepp originally wanted to do theGwen Stacy and Harry Osborn story and have Gwen to be killed in the middle of the second movie.[46]
In September 2002,Michael Chabon was hired to rewrite.[42] His draft had a younger Doc Ock, who becomes infatuated with Mary Jane. His mechanical limbs useendorphins to counteract the pain of being attached to his body, which he enjoys. When he injures two muggers on a date, this horrifies Mary Jane and in the resulting battle with Spider-Man his tentacles are fused together, and the fusion begins to kill him. In the script, Octavius is the creator of the genetically altered spider from the first film, and gives Peter an antidote to remove his powers: this means when Octavius is dying with his tentacles, he wants to extract Spider-Man's spine to save himself. This leads to an alliance with Harry (a detail which made it into the finished film). Beforehand, Harry and theDaily Bugle put a $10 million price on Spider-Man's head, causing the city's citizens to turn against him.[47][48]
Raimi sifted through the previous drafts by Gough, Millar, Koepp and Chabon, picking what he liked with screenwriterAlvin Sargent.[49] He felt that thematically the film had to explore Peter's conflict with his personal wants against his responsibility, exploring the positive and negatives of his chosen path, and how he ultimately decides that he can be happy as a heroic figure.[40] Raimi said that he took inspiration fromSuperman II (1980) for the story of Peter giving up his responsibilities.[50] Although the story takes some partial influence from Doc Ock's debut in 1963 and the 1966 storylineIf This Be My Destiny...!, the story was mostly inspired by the 1967 storylineSpider-Man No More!, specificallyThe Amazing Spider-Man #50. It was decided that Doctor Octopus would be kept as the villain, as he was both a visually interesting villain who was a physical match for Spider-Man, and a sympathetic figure with humanity, accompanied by the fact that the character had been repeatedly considered as a villain for the first film over the course of its 15-year development.[40] Raimi changed much of the character's backstory, however, adding the idea of Otto Octavius being a hero of Peter, and how their conflict was about trying to rescue him from his demons rather than kill him.[44]
When Tobey Maguire signed on to portray Spider-Man in 2000, he was given a three-film contract.[12] After filmingSeabiscuit in late 2002, a pre-existing back condition that Maguire suffered from was bothering him.[42][51][52] Raimi heard that Maguire could be paralyzed if there was an injury in his back.[53]Jake Gyllenhaal was cast to replace Maguire; the two actors so resemble each other that "a source close to Maguire" reportedly said that, had Gyllenhaal taken over the role, "A year from now? The public wouldn't know the difference". Maguire's girlfriend's fatherRonald Meyer—head ofUniversal Studios—helped Maguire regain the role, with a salary of $17 million.[54][55] Maguire underwent tests to make sure if his back was fit for filming.[56] Gyllenhaal would later say in a 2019 interview that he was one of several actors considered to replace Maguire.[57] Raimi stated that prior to filming he was concerned that Maguire and Dunst weren't going to have the same chemistry, as they had since broken up.[58]
Several actors were considered for the part of Doctor Octopus, includingEd Harris,Chris Cooper,David Duchovny, andChristopher Walken;[59][60] Molina was cast as Octavius in February 2003 and underwent physical training for the role.[15] The reaction to his casting was mixed.[61] Raimi had been impressed by his performance inFrida and also felt that his large physical size was true to the comic book character.[62] Molina only briefly discussed the role and was not aware that he was a strong contender.[40] He was a big fan ofMarvel Comics and was excited to get the part.[63] Although he was not familiar with Doc Ock, Molina found one element of the comics that he wanted to maintain, the character's cruel, sardonicsense of humor.[51]
The Spydercam was used extensively in the film to "track stunt doubles and acomputer-generated Spider-Man through the air".[64]
Spider-Man 2 was shot on over one hundred sets and locations, beginning with a pre-shoot onthe Loop inChicago during two days in November 2002. The crew acquired a train of2200 series cars, placing sixteen cameras for background shots of Spider-Man and Doc Ock's train fight.[40] Members of the film's production team acknowledged that the surroundings of where the Chicago subway car was filmed do not correspond to the kinds of routes that present day New York City subway cars travel.[65] Filming was originally slated to start in January 2003, but was pushed back to April so that Maguire could finishSeabiscuit.[66][67]Principal photography began on April 12, 2003, in New York City and Chicago. The crew moved on May 13 to Los Angeles,[42] shooting on sets created by production designer Neil Spisak.[68] After the scare surrounding his back pains,Tobey Maguire relished performing many of his stunts, even creating a joke of it with Raimi, creating the line "My back, my back" as Spider-Man tries to regain his powers.[49] Raimi said that while filming the scene he yelled at Maguire to get to the edge of the building, but Maguire refused to do it.[69] EvenRosemary Harris took a turn, putting her stunt double out of work. In contrast,Alfred Molina joked that the stunt team would "trick" him into performing a stunt time and again.[40]J. K. Simmons said that while filming the scene where Spider-Man gets his suit back from TheDaily Bugle, when Simmons said "he's a thief" his fake-teeth popped out of his mouth.[70]
Filming was put on hiatus for eight weeks, in order to build Doc Ock's pier lair. It had been Spisak's idea to use a collapsed pier as Ock's lair, reflecting an exploded version of the previous lab and representing how Octavius's life had collapsed and grown more monstrous,[40] evoking the cinema ofFritz Lang and the filmThe Cabinet of Dr. Caligari.[71] Filming then resumed on that set, having taken fifteen weeks to build, occupying Sony's Stage 30. It was 60 feet (18 m) by 120 feet (37 m) long, and 40 feet (12 m) high, and a quarter-scale miniature was also built for the finale as it collapses.[40] Reshoots for the film eventually wrapped in February 2004.[72]
Acamera system called theSpydercam was used to allow filmmakers to express more of Spider-Man's world view, at times dropping fifty stories and with shot lengths of just over 2,400 feet (730 m) in New York or 3,200 feet (980 m) in Los Angeles. For some shots the camera would shoot at six frames per second for a faster playback increasing the sense of speed. Shots using the Spydercam were pre-planned in digital versions of cities, and the camera's movement was controlled with motion control, making it highly cost-effective. The camera system was only used in the previous film for the final shot.[40][73]
Although roughly the same as before,costume designerJames Acheson made numerous subtle changes to Spider-Man's costume. Its colors were made richer and bolder, its spider emblem was given more elegant lines and enlarged, its eye-lenses were somewhat smaller, and its muscle suit underneath was made into pieces, to give a better sense of movement. The helmet Maguire wore under his mask was also improved, with better movement for the false jaw and magnetic eyepieces, which were easier to remove.[40]
To createDoctor Octopus's mechanical tentacles,Steve Johnson's Edge FX was hired to create a corset, a metal and rubber girdle, a rubber spine and four foam rubber tentacles which were 8 feet (2.4 m) long and altogether weighed 100 pounds (45 kg). The claws of each tentacle, which were called "death flowers", were controlled by one puppeteer sitting on a chair.[74] Each tentacle was controlled by four people, who rehearsed every scene with Molina so that they could give a natural sense of movement as if the tentacles were moving due to Octavius's muscle movement.[75] On set, Molina referred to his tentacles as "Larry", "Harry", "Moe" and "Flo",[76] with "Flo" being the top-right tentacle as it was operated by a femalegrip[77] and performed delicate operations like removing his glasses and lighting his cigar.[78]
Edge FX was only hired to do scenes where Octavius carries his tentacles.CGI was used for when the tentacles carry Octavius: a 20 ft (6.1 m) high rig held Molina to glide through his surroundings, with CGI tentacles added inpost-production.[75] The CGI versions were scanned straight from the real ones to allow them to appear more realistic.[40] However, using the real versions was always preferred to save money,[75] and each scene was always filmed first with Edge FX's creations to see if CGI was truly necessary. In some shots where CGI is used, Molina is replaced by avirtual actor possessing the CGI tentacles. Through the use of motion-capture and cyber-scanning, visual effects supervisorScott Stokdyk and CGI character animation supervisorAnthony LaMolinara were able to create more detailed virtual actors to replace Maguire and Molina in some shots, as well as make them display natural human motion. Completing the illusion, the sound designers chose not to use servo sound effects, feeling it would rob the tentacles of the sense that they were part of Octavius's body, and instead used motorcycle chains and piano wires.[40]
As with the previous film,John Dykstra served as visual effects designer. Dykstra and his crew sought to make the weakest shot of the second movie look as good as the best shot of the first movie. Dykstra not only created the physical appearance of Octavius's tentacles, but also that of the nuclear reaction that Octavius attempts to carry out in the film. The reaction resembles thesun, complete withsolar flares, and poses a threat to its immediate environment through its strong gravitational pull, which can draw surrounding objects directly into it and disintegrate them. As mentioned previously, the film's increased budget allowed the reaction to have a significant amount of artistry and reality.[40][citation needed]
The film was scored byDanny Elfman, composer of the previous film. However, during recording sessions, Elfman had a falling out with directorSam Raimi, saying that composingSpider-Man 2 was a "miserable experience".[79]Christopher Young (who eventually scored the sequel),Joseph LoDuca, andJohn Debney did additional scores for the film.[80][81] They wanted Elfman to do one cue that was fromHellraiser, but he couldn't get it close to it and he wasn't going to imitate Christopher Young, he instead suggested to hire Young, but Young also couldn't get it close either, so they instead licensed the cue fromHellraiser.[82]
In March 2024, Sony announced that all of their live-action Spider-Man films will be re-released in theaters as part of Columbia Pictures' 100th anniversary celebration.Spider-Man 2 was re-released on April 22, 2024.[86]
In June 2025, it was announced that Sony, in collaboration withFathom Events, would be re-releasing the Sam Raimi Spider-Man trilogy in theaters. This also marks the first theatrical release of the film's extended cut,Spider-Man 2.1, which was re-released on September 27, 2025, and was then followed by an encore screening on October 4, 2025.[87]
The film was initially released onDVD andVHS on November 30, 2004, in the United States, in Australia on November 17, and in the United Kingdom on November 26. The DVD was available in bothanamorphic widescreen andpan-and-scan "fullscreen", as well as aSuperbit edition and in a box-set with the first film. The film was also the first Sony Pictures movie released in the United States under theSony Pictures Home Entertainment banner,[88] and one of the final major titles released outside of North America under the Columbia TriStar Home Entertainment name. There was also a collector's DVD gift set including a reprint ofThe Amazing Spider-Man #50.[89] For the DVD release, this two-disc set features numerous bonus features, including audio commentaries, behind-the-scenes featurettes, a trivia track with facts displayed throughout the movie, traiĺers forHitch and other films, a music video, Web-i-sodes, galleries and bloopers.[90] The DVD release sold 11,604,597 units and grossed $174,260,344 in the United States.[91] The film was also released onSony's proprietaryUniversal Media Disc (UMD) format in 2005, with 1million UMD copies of the film sold in the United States as part of aPlayStation Portable (PSP) bundle.[92] The film received a novelization written byPeter David.[93] The film was released onBlu-ray in October 2007 as a part of theSpider-Man: The High Definition Trilogy box set.[94] It was also released separately on Blu-ray in November 2010 as well as theprevious film as part ofSony's Blu-ray Essentials Collection including both the theatrical release and the 2.1 extended cut.[citation needed] All three films were re-released on Blu-ray as part of theSpider-Man: Origins set in 2017.[95] Raimi'sSpider-Man trilogy was released onDisney+ on April 21, 2023.[96]
An extended cut of the film, entitledSpider-Man 2.1, was released on DVD on April 17, 2007.[97] The cut included eight minutes of new footage, with new special features not included in the original release, as well as a sneak preview of the then-upcomingSpider-Man 3.[98] The cut also featured new, alternate, and extended scenes, and a featurette: "Inside Spider-Man 2.1", detailing the making of the cut.[97] A similar cut aired on January 2, 2007, on theFX channel with an exclusive sneak preview forSpider-Man 3.[99]
Spider-Man 2 grossed $374.7 million in the United States and Canada and $421.2 million in other territories for a total worldwide gross of $795.9 million, against a production budget of $200 million.[2][4]
Spider-Man 2 opened in the United States on June 30, 2004, and grossed $40.4 million in its first day; this broke its predecessor's opening day record of $39.4 million until it was surpassed a year later byStar Wars: Episode III – Revenge of the Sith ($50.0 million).[100] Playing at 4,152 theaters upon opening, it had the second-highest number of screenings, behindShrek 2, which had an extra 11, bringing the total to 4,163.[101][102] The film also brokeThe Lord of the Rings: The Return of the King's record ($34.5 million) for the highest-grossing Wednesday of all time.[103] It held the Wednesday record for three years until it was topped byHarry Potter and the Order of the Phoenix ($44.2 million).[104] Its Friday-to-Sunday gross reached a total of $88.2 million, surpassingAustin Powers in Goldmember ($73.1 million) to have the largest July opening weekend. Moreover,Spider-Man 2 also beatMen in Black II ($52.1 million) for having the biggest Fourth of July opening weekend at the time.[105][106] The film held the record until 2011 when it was broken byTransformers: Dark of the Moon ($97.9 million).[107] With a total gross of $152.6 million, it surpassedShrek 2 ($129 million) to have the highest five-day Wednesday opening.[108] In its first six days, the film had grossed over $180 million, which surpassed the previous largest six-day opening record held byThe Matrix Reloaded ($146.9 million).[106] Additionally, it had the highest Monday gross of any film, generating a total of $27.6 million. The film would hold this record for a decade until it was eclipsed byStar Wars: The Force Awakens ($40.1 million) in 2015.[109]Spider-Man 2 became the quickest film to hit the $200 million mark, taking eight days to do so.[110] This record would be tied withRevenge of the Sith andPirates of the Caribbean: Dead Man's Chest. All three films were surpassed byThe Dark Knight in 2008.[111]
Internationally,Spider-Man 2 opened in 28 territories and grossed $43 million in its first week. The film set opening records in Brazil, generating $3.1 million on 650 prints, claiming 62% of market share and beating its predecessor's opening weekend by 22%. It took in $6.6 million on 873 prints in Mexico, which was ranked as the country's third largest opening, coming in at 10% less than the original.Spider-Man 2 produced $1.3 million in Malaysia, smashingGodzilla's record for having the biggest movie opening in the country.[112] In Indonesia, it was the first film in the country's history to reach $2.3 million, surpassing the previous record held byTitanic.[113] In total, the international grosses include Australia ($17.8 million), France ($40.2 million), Germany ($24.2 million), Italy ($24.4 million), Japan ($59.5 million), Mexico ($20.5 million), South Korea ($13 million), Spain ($18.8 million), and the United Kingdom ($49.7 million).[4]
On thereview aggregator websiteRotten Tomatoes,Spider-Man 2 holds an approval rating of 93% based on 275 reviews, with an average score of 8.3/10. The website's critical consensus reads, "Boasting an entertaining villain and deeper emotional focus, Spider-Man 2 is a nimble sequel that improves upon the original."[114]Metacritic, which uses aweighted average, gives the film a score of 83 out of 100 based on 41 reviews, indicating "universal acclaim".[115] Audiences polled byCinemaScore gave the film an average grade of "A−" on an A+ to F scale, the same grade earned bythe previous film.[116]
Chicago Tribune gave the film three and a half stars out of four, and Mark Caro stated that Alfred Molina was a "pleasingly complex" villain, and the film as a whole "improves upon its predecessor in almost every way."[117] William Arnold, of theSeattle Post-Intelligencer gave it a positive review, saying, "ForgetRaising Helen andThe Notebook, this is the movie summer's most touching young romance."[118]Kenneth Turan, of theLos Angeles Times, gave the film four stars out of five and concurred with Caro when he stated, "Doc Ock grabs this film with his quartet of sinisterly serpentine mechanical arms and refuses to let go."[119]Roger Ebert gaveSpider-Man 2 four stars out of four, calling it "the best superhero movie since the modern genre was launched withSuperman (1978)", and praising the film for "effortlessly [combining] special effects and a human story, keeping its parallel plots alive and moving."[120] He later called it the fourth best film of 2004."[121]Joe Baltake, ofThe Sacramento Bee gave the film a scoring of four out of four, calling it "the closest thing to an art-house action film sinceTim Burton's originalBatman in 1989."[122]IGN's Richard George felt "Sam Raimi and his writing team delivered an iconic, compelling version of Spider-Man's classic foe... We almost wish there was a way to retroactively add some of these elements to the original character."[123] In 2016, James Charisma ofPlayboy ranked the film #9 on a list of "15 Sequels That Are Way Better Than The Originals".[124] Conversely,J. Hoberman, ofThe Village Voice, thought the first half of the film was "talky bordering on tiresome", with the film often stopping to showcase Raimi's idea of humor.[125]Peter Bradshaw ofThe Guardian gave it 3 out of 5 stars, writing, "In between the combat scenes it gets a little dull and I've never found the seething resentment of Peter's friend Harry Osborn...particularly interesting. Doc Ock's much better value."[126]
The cast's performances were widely acclaimed. Ebert, who had panned the first film yet praised Maguire's performance, reciprocated his praise, writing, "if Maguire hadn't returned (along with Spidey's throwaway line about his aching back), we would never have known how good he could be in this role." He also wrote that Dunst "[brought] depth and heart to a girlfriend role that in lesser movies would be conventional. When she kisses her astronaut boyfriend upside-down, it's one of those perfect moments that rewards fans of the whole saga; we don't need to be told she's remembering her only kiss from Spider-Man."[120] Concerning Molina's performance,ABC News wrote, "Molina is one of the summer's greatest scene-stealers — and now, instantly recognizable. How long can you play an eight-limbed monster and a Broadway fiddler before audiences get distracted?...The answer: So far, so good. Playing to packed houses, Molina can apparently fiddle on the finest roofs onBroadway without the extra metal limbs getting in the way. They may even help."[c][127] in a 5-star review, Josh Wilding of ComicBookMovie.com added, "[Molina] is excellent, and Doc Ock is an unhinged, terrific bad guy who serves as an undeniably worthy follow-up toWillem Dafoe's memorableGreen Goblin," in addition to praisingDanny Elfman's score and the visual effects.[128]
Spider-Man 2 has frequently been listed among rankings of the best superhero films.[d] The film was placed 411th onEmpire magazine's top 500 movies list, describing the film as "Bigger and better than its predecessor, with a superior villain in Alfred Molina's Doc Ock, and a more confident Raimi sneaking in some of his own trademarks."[133] Rotten Tomatoes listed the film as one of the essential films of the 2000s.[134] In 2013,Forbes described it as "Not just one of the greatest sequels, but one of the best films of the genre, period."[135] In 2018,Film School Rejects called it "the best summer movie ever" and said that its "emotional and calculated story stands above modern summer flicks" like those ofThe Avengers andThe Dark Knight.[136] Writing forThe Independent in 2019, Al Horner believed the film to be "the definitive superhero movie" that "laid the blueprint for the entire modern superhero genre".[137]Digital Trends' David Caballero namedSpider-Man 2 the best superhero movie of all time for its 20th anniversary in 2024.[138]
In 2025, it was listed in the "Readers' Choice" edition ofThe New York Times' list of "The 100 Best Movies of the 21st Century," finishing at number 154.[139]
In March 2004, three months beforeSpider-Man 2's release,Sony announced that a sequel was already in development.[159]Spider-Man 3 was released on May 4, 2007.[160]
In 2021, Molina was announced to return as Doctor Octopus inSpider-Man: No Way Home (2021), which is part of theMarvel Cinematic Universe and directed byJon Watts. Molina later clarified in April that the character would be the same iteration as depicted inSpider-Man 2[161] and his story arc would continue directly from the film's ending.[162]
^abFleming, Michael; Brodesser, Claude (July 31, 2000)."Maguire spins 'Spider-Man'".Variety.Archived from the original on October 12, 2007. RetrievedJanuary 22, 2007.
^abHiatt, Brian (February 13, 2003)."Eight Arms to Hold You".Entertainment Weekly. Archived fromthe original on August 25, 2007. RetrievedApril 30, 2007.
^Brodesser, Claude; Harris, Dana (April 13, 2003)."Tobey's tangled rep web".Variety.Archived from the original on October 12, 2007. RetrievedApril 30, 2007.
^Cohn, Angel (May 20, 2004)."Meet Spider-Man 2's Dr. Octopus".TV Guide.Archived from the original on December 30, 2020. RetrievedDecember 16, 2020."[Director] Sam Raimi saw a whole bunch of us character actors," Molina reveals. "It was me, Ed Harris, Chris Cooper and Christopher Walken. We were all actors on a list because we all had movies that made a bit of a splash.
^"KARMA CHAMELEON".The Irish Times.Archived from the original on January 28, 2023. RetrievedNovember 26, 2022.
^"Empire: Movie News". April 19, 2006. Archived from the original on April 19, 2006. RetrievedJanuary 13, 2023.{{cite web}}: CS1 maint: bot: original URL status unknown (link)
^"Fortune".Fortune.153.Time Inc.: 78. April 2006.Archived from the original on November 19, 2020. RetrievedNovember 25, 2018.When Sony released its PlayStation Portable in the U.S. last year, the first million units were packaged with a Universal Media Disk of the Spider-Man 2 movie released by Sony Pictures Entertainment
^"CinemaScore".CinemaScore.Archived from the original on August 9, 2019. RetrievedDecember 19, 2020. Each film's score can be accessed from the website's search bar.
