Why Amazon's New R-Rated Spider-Man Series Won't Feature Peter Parker

1 week ago 20

Published May 17, 2026, 8:06 PM EDT

An avid comic book fan since she first read "Stan Lee's Soapbox," Allison Hambrick is your friendly neighborhood generalist writer. Journalism, editing, media production, copywriting—she does it all. From her very first blog post about Smallville as a primary schooler, Allison developed a passion for superheroes and the entertainment industry at large.

Majoring in writing and film at SCAD, Allison put her skills to work writing, editing, podcasting, and more. Currently, she moonlights as an editor at the ASHRAE Journal by day and Screen Rant by night. Allison also previously worked for Warner Bros. Entertainment and for Disney.

Through her writing, she hopes to inspire, to entertain, and to empower others to be the best versions of themselves, and her mission in life is to make Stan proud. In her free time, she enjoys reading, video game design, traveling, and spending time outside with her dogs, Loki and Elphaba. Allison is fluent in movie quotes, and her favorite film is Superman II.

Don't expect to see Peter Parker in Prime Video's upcoming Spider-Man series.

"Peter Parker is so synonymous to me with a young character and a coming-of-age story," Uziel told Entertainment Weekly. "The Ben Reilly character allows it to immediately distinguish itself from a Peter Parker story." According to the writer, the vision for the series was a "smashing together of" genres. He explained: "This show is not just a noir, and it's not just a superhero [series]. It is absolutely the smashing together of both."

Uziel continued by explaining where the writers and Cage drew inspiration from: "The thing that I said a lot from start to finish was, 'We're really trying to make an old Bogart movie; It's just that Bogart happens to be Spider-Man." According to Uziel, he and Cage would discuss specific films they were paying homage to prior to filming scenes, with the veteran actor being particularly enthusiastic about pulling from the noir genre. "That's why he's Nic Cage,'" the showrunner added.

Previously, Spider-Noir producer Phil Lord opened up about the choice to change the character from Peter to Ben in order to suit the noir direction of the series. "This character's very different from the Peter Parker from the movies," Lord said. "He's older and jaded, and not afraid to punch a guy in the face drunkenly."

He also teased that there may be more to the Spider-Noir name change than just to suit the series' aesthetic. "I have to be coy about the reasons, because you'll find out," said Lord. "The reason he's named Ben Reilly is explained." Though he did not elaborate, this hints at a deeper connection to the mystery at the heart of the series. Given Ben's comic history, Lord's statements further indicate the possibility that Peter Parker is out there within the Spider-Noir continuity.

All eight episodes of Spider-Noir debut on May 27, 2026, on Prime Video.