Sam Raimi’s Spider-Man movies changed the face of blockbuster cinema. After the success of Blade and X-Men, 2002’s Spider-Man solidified superhero movies as guaranteed hits and effectively paved the way for the Marvel Cinematic Universe to dominate multiplexes. From Tobey Maguire’s definitive performance as Peter Parker to Alfred Molina’s iconic portrayal of Doctor Octopus, Raimi’s trilogy has some terrific acting.
While they’re known to most moviegoers for their roles in the Spider-Man trilogy, some of these actors have underappreciated gems that don’t receive enough love from audiences. Kirsten Dunst and James Franco are both indie darlings, while the decades-spanning careers of Willem Dafoe and J.K. Simmons are filled with great movies.
Thomas Haden Church: Killer Joe
Outside of playing the Sandman in Spider-Man 3, Thomas Haden Church’s best-known film role is Jack, the groom-to-be who cheats on his fiancée during his wine-tasting bachelor party getaway, in Alexander Payne’s Sideways.
His most underrated movie is Killer Joe, a darkly comedic Southern Gothic crime thriller starring Matthew McConaughey with a script by the great Tracy Letts, adapted from his own play.
James Franco: Lovelace
Amanda Seyfried stars as Linda Lovelace in the 2013 biopic Lovelace, which covers her life between ages 20 and 32. Lovelace starred in the 1972 porn blockbuster Deep Throat, one of the most famous porn films of all time, but also one of the most controversial due to Lovelace's later assertions that the film was the result of coercion and abuse.
In a star-studded cast that includes Peter Sarsgaard, Sharon Stone, Juno Temple, and Bobby Cannavale, Spider-Man’s James Franco plays Playboy boss Hugh Hefner.
Topher Grace: Predators
Even Topher Grace himself was surprised that Sony executives thought he was the best actor to play Venom in Spider-Man 3. Outside Raimi’s trilogy, the actor starred in That ‘70s Show and played KKK leader David Duke in Spike Lee’s Oscar-winning gem BlacKkKlansman.
He also played a supporting role in the third Predator movie, which introduced fans to the alien hunters’ home planet. Produced by Robert Rodriguez, 2010’s Predators is easily the best of the Predator sequels.
J.K. Simmons: Burn After Reading
J.K. Simmons’ portrayal of J. Jonah Jameson in the Spider-Man trilogy was so spot-on that the MCU’s reboot didn’t bother to replace him. Although Simmons’ performance in Whiplash is his most renowned, he also appears as a top-tier CIA agent in the framing narrative of the Coen brothers’ zany spy comedy Burn After Reading.
Arriving on the heels of the Coens’ Oscar-winning neo-western masterpiece No Country for Old Men, Burn After Reading slipped under the radar in 2008. But it’s a star-studded caper filled with hysterical, unexpected moments.
Kirsten Dunst: Drop Dead Gorgeous
Kirsten Dunst was mostly relegated to the role of a damsel in distress in the Spider-Man trilogy, but the rest of her filmography – ranging from Marie Antoinette to the second season of Fargo – has proven her to be an incredible performer.
One of her most underrated movies is Drop Dead Gorgeous, a hilarious mockumentary about the world of beauty pageants with a pitch-black comedic sensibility.
Willem Dafoe: The Life Aquatic With Steve Zissou
Wes Anderson’s The Life Aquatic with Steve Zissou was a little too weird for contemporary critics, but it’s since been re-evaluated as a cult classic. Bill Murray stars as a famous oceanographer based on Jacques Cousteau who sets out to find the “jaguar shark” that ate his best friend. Willem Dafoe, best known as Raimi’s Green Goblin, gives one of his funniest performances as Steve’s sensitive German first mate Klaus.
While it has some of Anderson’s signature melancholy, The Life Aquatic is the closest the director has come to making a full-on comedy. It’s an absurdist gem with hilarious set pieces ranging from a pirate attack to a lightning-strike rescue op.
Alfred Molina: Coffee And Cigarettes
Jim Jarmusch’s Coffee and Cigarettes is a black-and-white anthology movie constructed of a bunch of short films revolving around coffee, cigarettes, and conversation.
In one of these shorts, Doc Ock actor Alfred Molina plays himself telling Steve Coogan that they have some DNA in common. Coogan asks Molina what he wants and he bluntly says, “Love me.” Coogan initially rebuffs Molina, then instantly regrets it when Molina takes a call from revered auteur Spike Jonze and he realizes the connections he’ll be missing out on.
Elizabeth Banks: Zack And Miri Make A Porno
While she’s now a well-known comedy star with major roles in a bunch of Apatow comedies and the Pitch Perfect trilogy, Elizabeth Banks got one of her early breakout parts as J. Jonah Jameson’s assistant Betty Brant in the Spider-Man trilogy.
Banks co-starred with Seth Rogen in Kevin Smith’s hilariously crude comedy Zack and Miri Make a Porno, in which they play a pair of best friends struggling financially who decide to produce their own adult movie for some quick cash.
Bryce Dallas Howard: 50/50
After Raimi cast natural blonde Kirsten Dunst to dye her hair red to play Mary Jane Watson, he cast natural redhead Bryce Dallas Howard to dye her hair blonde to play Gwen Stacy in Spider-Man 3.
Howard played a supporting role in 50/50, a heartfelt comedy-drama starring Joseph Gordon-Levitt as a young man who’s diagnosed with cancer, based on the real-life experiences of screenwriter Will Reiser.
Tobey Maguire: Deconstructing Harry
Peter Parker himself, Tobey Maguire, has appeared in a wide range of movie gems, from Seabiscuit to Pleasantville to The Great Gatsby. One of his most underrated films is Deconstructing Harry, a surprisingly dark comedy from Woody Allen about a writer confronting his past mistakes – and kidnapping his own son.
Maguire plays one of the writer’s characters in a cutaway sequence, a sex-obsessed teenager who hires a prostitute and then gets mistakenly taken by Death.