[UPDATE 7/28/22: Yuri Lowenthal voiced Peter Parker in the iOS mobile version ofThe Amazing Spider-Man 2(2014), not the main console port starring Sam Riegel. The original story follows, with sources added.]
Superhero comic books have been a mainstay of popular culture sinceAction Comicsintroduced Superman in 1938. The popularity of these characters has waxed and waned over the decades thanks to moral panics and organizations such as the Comics Code Authority, but modern society is more saturated with superhero media than ever. Marvel’s MCU film and television series is a big contributor, but individual characters likeSpider-Manhave received various live-action iterations well beforeMarvel Studios’Iron Manteased the Avenger Initiative in 2008.
DC Comics' Caped Crusader, Batman, is one of the clearest examples of how successful different takes on a comic book character can be. Fans have long debated the merits of Bruce Wayne performances, from Adam West’s campiness in the 1960s toRobert Pattinson’s more serious turn in 2022’sThe Batman. However, merely voiced takes on the character are just as often part of the discussion, with many expressing love for Kevin Conroy inBatman: The Animated Seriesand Rocksteady’sArkhamgames.
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Similarly, voice actor Yuri Lowenthal is becoming as recognizable for playing Spider-Man as the character’s live-action counterparts. Lowenthal’s experience covers a huge range; from games likeTitanfall 2,Injustice, andSuper Smash Bros. Ultimateto TV shows likeYoung Justice,Ben 10, andArcane. But as ofMarvel’s Spider-Man 2’s release in 2023 he will have reprised his role as Peter Parker in six different games, with no signs of slowing down anytime soon.
The Long History of Spider-Man Performances
Though Spider-Man was created by Stan Lee and Steve Ditko some 30 years after DC Comics' golden boy Superman, introduced in 1962’sAmazing Fantasyno. 15, he has received about as many adaptations. WhileAdam West and Burt Ward portrayed Batman and Robinin live-action, aSpider-Mananimated series debuted in 1967 that starred the late Paul Soles. This low-budget iteration has become known for memes like Spider-Man pointing at himself, and the Japanese “tokusatsu” series from the late 1970s is just as recognized for its humorous potential - starring Shinji Todo as Takuya Yamashiro, who uses the Leopardon mech.
In the late 1990s, Marvel faced bankruptcy and began selling the rights to various characters. This led to popular film franchises in the 2000s, such as Fox’sX-Menheadlined by Hugh Jackman and Sony’s take onSpider-Manstarring Tobey Maguire. Director Sam Raimi got to work on threeSpider-Manfilms between 2002 and 2007, bringing the superhero a unique style fostered by his work on projects like theEvil Deadseries. ThoughSpider-Man 3went out with a whimper, partially thanks to studio interference according to Raimi, the highs ofSpider-Man 2left audiences excited for hisreturn to Marvel withDoctor Strange: Multiverse of Madness.
Once the MCU hit its stride, Sony tried again with theAmazing Spider-Manfilm series starring Andrew Garfield. Marc Webb only got to direct two films for this, released in 2012 and 2014, as they were not nearly as well-received as Raimi’s trilogy. Just two years later, a third live-action Spider-Man hit the silver screen whenTom Holland debuted inCaptain America: Civil War. Holland would receive a series of MCU films joint-produced by Sony, leading to messy negotiations between the conglomerates in 2019 that resulted in Marvel receiving more revenue.
That renewed deal made way for2021’sSpider-Man: No Way Home, a movie centered around multiversal shenanigansin which Maguire and Garfield return alongside a handful of villains like Willem Dafoe’s Green Goblin and Jamie Foxx’s Electro. Though the prominance of Sony’sSpider-Manfilms have made Maguire, Garfield, and Holland key representatives of the character, plenty of others have put on the mask. For example, Jake Johnson plays an older Peter Parker inSpider-Man: Into the Spider-Versealongside Shameik Moore’s Miles Morales, and there have been multiple animated TV shows with Peter voiced by Neil Patrick Harris, Josh Keaton, Robbie Daymond, and more.
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Yuri Lowenthal’s Ongoing Run as Spider-Man
Among this pantheon of Spider-Men, Lowenthal is best known for bringing the character to life inMarvel’s Spider-Man- developed by Insomniac Games and released in 2018. However, this isn’t the first time Lowenthal took on the role. According to the Internet Movie Database (IMDb), the voice actor also portrayed Garfield’s Peter Parker in the 2014 video game adaptation ofThe Amazing Spider-Man 2.
It’s the Insomniac title that really matters, though, asMarvel’s Spider-Manbecame one of the PlayStation 4’s biggest first-party releases. This put Peter Parker alongside icons of the era likeGod of War(2018)’s Kratos,Horizon Zero Dawn’s Aloy, andThe Last of Us 2’s Ellie, all of whom have benefitted from Sony’s marketing power going into the PS5 generation. Lowenthal returned forSpider-Man’s DLC, and in a tertiary role as the mentor for Nadji Jeter’s Miles inSpider-Man: Miles Morales,though the remastered original game included with some versions ofMiles Moraleswas controversial forrecasting Peter Parker’s face modelto better reflect Lowenthal’s performance.
The fact that Insomniac decided to rebuild its lead character in an ongoing franchise based on the voice actor is telling, and Lowenthal’s performance was immediately iconic enough to garner him appearances in other games. Lowenthal reprises the role inMarvel Ultimate Alliance 3: The Black OrderandMarvel Future Revolution, according to IMDb, and Firaxis Games made headlines when it announcedLowenthal would play Spider-Man inMarvel’s Midnight Suns. He will also return alongside Jeter in the PS5-exclusiveSpider-Man 2, and there’s undoubtedly more to come for this branch of the Marvel universe given Insomniac is developing aWolverinegame.
All that being said, Lowenthal is not the de factoSpider-Manin all projects off the silver screen. Sean Chiplock, known for video game roles like Revali inThe Legend of Zelda: Breath of the Wild, took the mantle inCrystal Dynamics' PlayStation-exclusiveMarvel’s AvengersDLC. Still, it’s not hard to see Lowenthal garnering a reputation akin to Conroy’s Batman in non-live-action projects. If Conroy can stand out among the likes of Christian Bale and Michael Keaton, Lowenthal can similarly stand the test of time alongside Maguire, Garfield, and Holland.
Marvel’s Spider-Man 2is scheduled to release in 2023 for PS5.
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