These 4 Spider-Man Movies Are the Only Ones You Can Watch Without Disney+

One of the biggest films of the summer, Spider-Man: Brand New Day sees Peter Parker starting from scratch after having removed himself from the memories of everyone in the whole world, including those he loves. It's the fourth solo outing for Tom Holland in the title role, making him the longest-serving Spidey both in terms of years and appearances — and, with a $168 million opening day box office, it might end up becoming the most successful Spider-Man movie of all time.

While he first appeared in 2016's Captain America: Civil War, his finest moment in the suit is surely his initial solo outing in 2017's Spider-Man: Homecoming, which has spent weeks web-crawling up the Netflix charts, where it's currently the seventh most-popular streaming film. But Spider-Man: Homecoming isn't just special because it's Tom Holland's debut — it is also one of only four Spider-Man movies currently available to watch without a Disney+ subscription. The Tobey Maguire trilogy of Spider-Man films — Spider-Man (2002), Spider-Man 2 (2004), and Spider-Man 3 (2007) are all streaming on Hulu. Every other film, including Andrew Garfield's Amazing Spider-Man films and the rest of Holland's contributions, are only available with a Disney + subscription.

'Spider-Man: Homecoming' Took Peter Parker Back to School

In a movie that introduced the character for the third time in 15 years, director Jon Watts avoided franchise fatigue by throwing out much of what we thought we knew, and creating a version of Peter Parker that could boldly change the Marvel Cinematic Universe.

The first solo outing for Holland's Spider-Man forgoes the origin story of the character. We don't see the radioactive spider biting him, the death of Uncle Ben, or a lot of the early stages of his growth as Spider-Man. Instead, we find the 15-year-old dealing with regular high school issues like homework, crushes, and field trips, while balancing life as the hero we recognize, taking on a new threat in the form of Michael Keaton's Vulture under the watchful eye of mentor Tony Stark (Robert Downey Jr).

This direction sets him apart from the two men who had played the character before.Tobey Maguire's Peter Parker graduates around 40 minutes into his first film, while Andrew Garfield received his diploma in the first moments of The Amazing Spider-Man 2. For both, school was where we found the character when he first developed powers, and tested them out (usually on school bully Flash Thompson). In Homecoming, we spend more time in class, thanks to some help from the past.

This Marvel Hit Drew on '80s Classics

This youth-centered approach was helped by Watts drawing inspiration from some of the most beloved teen movies of all time. The work of writer/director John Hughes was instrumental in achieving the film's tone, so much so that Watts instructed his cast to watch '80s classics The Breakfast Club, Sixteen Candles, and Pretty in Pink. The film borrows the sensibilities of that time, giving the trials of the teen years more weight and adding tension to the double life Peter tries to lead. Zendaya's Michelle, later revealed as MJ, is an homage to Ally Sheedy's moody Breakfast Club character, Peter's prom date takes a similar turn to Pretty in Pink, and there's even a sequence where Peter runs through backyards that is a shot-for-shot remake of a classic moment from Ferris Bueller's Day Off.

All of this allows Peter to be a high schooler without resorting to stereotypes. Hughes' films broke through the ideas of labels like "jock" or "nerd", and presented characters as complicated individuals whose issues were not glossed over just because they were young. It allowed Peter to develop more organically than his predecessors. For Holland's Parker, school life wasn't a training ground as he discovered his powers. It was as much a part of his identity as his life as Spider-Man, making him a relatable young outlier in the largely adult MCU.

A New Father Figure Gave Spider-Man Depth

Another reworking of the Spider-Man myth involved Tony Stark stepping into Uncle Ben's shoes as the father figure in Peter's life. Ben is not prominently featured in the film due to Watts and the film's producers not wanting to repeat that storyline for a third time. Instead, Stark takes Parker under his wing following his recruitment in Captain America: Civil War. Homecoming provides the grounding of one of the most important relationships in both their lives, as both grapple with responsibility. It leads to some of the best exchanges in the MCU, as Tony tries to teach his apprentice to be "better" than he was. Confiscating his Stark Tech, he tells Peter: "If you're nothing without this suit, then you shouldn't have it."

This set the foundation for some of the most dramatic moments in the MCU. Peter idolizes Tony, while Tony begins to care deeply for this young Avenger. The bond that is sealed here is proven in later tragedy — would Peter being "blipped" at the end of Avengers: Infinity War have been as heartbreaking without Tony's desperately trying to stop it? Equally, Stark's sacrifice at the close of Endgame shaped Peter into someone haunted by grief in Far from Home, and forced to manage that pain in No Way Home.

Almost a decade on from its release, Spider-Man: Homecoming endures because it rethought much of what we knew about the character. As he swung into the MCU, Spider-Man wasn't just an addition to an ensemble, but a fully rounded character ready to lead the world's biggest franchise into a new era.

The Original Spider-Man Films Are Still Worth Your Time

Though Tobey Maguire's original trilogy, directed by Sam Raimi, are sometimes overlooked due to their pre-MCU status, they hold up — both as the summer blockbusters they were, and as reminders of a time when superhero movies required less preparation and supplementary material for viewers to understand them. Peter Parker's original tangles with the Green Goblin, Dr. Otto Octavius, Venom, and others feature classic practical effects, and some of Raimi's best direction (especially in Spider-Man 2's famous subway train battle).