Iconic creator Stan Lee’s ingenious web-shooting superhero, Spiderman first made his appearance on the big screen almost 21 years ago in Spiderman, directed by Sam Raimi. The film starred Tobey Maguire as Peter Parker aka Spiderman along with Kirsten Dunst as his love interest, Mary Jane Watson. Maguire, Raimi, and Dunst continued their association with 2 more films in the Spiderman franchise. The trilogy successfully laid the foundation for the character to develop in the future while also generating positive responses for Tobey Maguire in the titular role. Unfortunately, the same was not the case for the pairing of Maguire and Dunst, especially in comparison to their future counterparts.
Tobey Maguire and Kirsten Dunst Are Not Fan Favorites
The Spiderman trilogy directed by Sam Raimi was a pioneer in introducing the loved Marvel superhero to the movie world. The films collectively did very good business at the box office and together raked in over 2.5 billion dollars worldwide. With the character then entering the MCU and actors like Tom Holland, Andrew Garfield, Emma Stone, and Zendaya taking over, fans and audiences worldwide became critical of the relationship between Tobey Maguire’s Peter Parker and Kirsten Dunst’s MJ. The pair received backlash from many corners of social media for their apparent lack of chemistry and the toxic nature of their on-screen union. Many netizens took to Twitter to express their displeasure on the same.
Btw, zero chemistry
— Chico o Opressor (@OpressorChico) March 27, 2023
Peter and MJ are never even together for a whole movie, and all three movies have at least one love triangle. They actually have the worst on screen relationship of the three CBM Spider-Man continuities.
— Jort (@OsirisHK335) March 27, 2023
If by that you mean it's the most negative than I agree fully, it's pretty bad
— Joker BIM (@FairlyDoubtful) March 27, 2023
This couple was a character assassination of comic Peter and MJ
— Remy (CW: Welcome to Demon School Iruma-Kun) (@Remysenpaii) March 27, 2023
They have the most fucking toxic relationship ever in a CBM
— #1 Over the Hedge stan (@Captain63857795) March 27, 2023
These criticisms about the pair’s lack of chemistry are significant after Tobey Maguire was once quoted saying that the famous upside-down kissing scene between him and Dunst felt like a mechanical mouth-to-mouth resuscitation.
Spidey and MJ’s Real-Life Love Story Did Not Last Long
It looks like all the hate for Tobey Maguire and Kirsten Dunst’s relationship in the Spiderman trilogy made a dent in their personal life as well. The two actors were reportedly involved romantically, a fact that was confirmed by director Sam Raimi, who said,
“They apparently began dating with each other, I think, in the middle of the first movie … although I didn’t know it at the time”.
Both stars were very private about their relationship and hardly revealed details to the public. The Spiderman actors eventually broke up in 2002 after a brief romance while many people were still unaware of the fact that they had been together. Though there is no concrete information from both camp about the reason for their breakup, the stars always expressed mutual respect and admiration towards each other in interviews. Maguire was quoted to have said about Dunst,
“She’s very, very talented. She’s very appealing and beautiful. She has a womanly quality, but also a very fun girl quality, an innocence. [And] there’s no vanity in her acting. She just commits and goes for it.”
Kirsten Dunst returned the compliment by praising Maguire’s body of work and said that she was convinced that she should be part of Spiderman the moment she knew that he was going to be in the film.
Source: Twitter
