Across the Multiverse: 20 Years of Spider-Man Movie Costumes

To mark the release of Spider-Man: No Way Home, we take an inter-universal trip through the hero’s suits

Spider-Man: No Way Home lands in theaters December 15 in the UK, and December 17 in the US. The third Spider-Man movie in the Marvel Cinematic Universe follows the iconic web-slinger Peter Parker (Tom Holland), as he copes with the aftermath of a magical mishap.

After asking Doctor Strange (Benedict Cumberbatch) to erase the world’s memory of his secret identity, the multiverse begins to tear apart, and suddenly enemies from parallel realities are released upon the world.

Spider-Man has been swinging through different stories and franchises ever since his first appearance in a comic called Amazing Fantasy in 1962. Created by Stan Lee and Steve Ditko, in the last twenty years the character has appeared in three separate sets of movies. From 2002-2007, the Spider-Man trilogy starred Tobey Maguire. The Amazing Spider-Man from 2012-2014 starred Andrew Garfield. Finally, the current MCU version first appeared in Captain America: Civil War in 2016.

Three live-action Spider-Man franchises means a lot of costuming. From the mask to the suit to the ever-evolving logo on his chest, Spider-Man has shifted through a range of looks. In 1962, the trademark look was a red and dark blue suit with a prominent black web pattern, and web-like 'wings' that allowed him to fly through the air.

One of the key aspects of costume design is considering how clothing and accessories reflect the personality and motivations of a character. So, let’s open up a portal and take our own leap across the multiverse, to consider the costume designs for Spider-Man through the last twenty years.

Spider-Man (2002)

In the earliest blockbuster movie, Peter Parker is desperate to impress his crush, Mary Jane. When he is bitten by a mutated spider on a school trip, he develops superhuman abilities and decides to use them to raise money and buy a flashier car than his romantic rival. And so we get the first iconic suit: The Human Spider, which he wears for a wrestling match with a cash prize.

This suit features a red balaclava and spray-painted top with a large, menacing-looking spider logo, paired with blue joggers and red sneakers. This comical first attempt demonstrates how overconfident yet underprepared he is: the logo jarring with the otherwise childlike look of the outfit.

Although he wins the fight, immediately afterward Peter suffers a tragic loss and realizes he can’t use his powers for selfish reasons. It is only then that Peter puts the effort into creating the more iconic Spider-Man costume, and begins to fight injustice. This design has very prominent web details and sharp triangular eyes, clear references to the original 1962 character design. In this film, then, the changing suit comes to represent Peter maturing and taking responsibility.

The Amazing Spider-Man (2012)

Zip across the multiverse, and suddenly we meet Andrew Garfield’s Peter. An intelligent and slightly mischievous version, this Peter has a more technical approach to his suit.

His origin story comes when sneaking into a lab, he discovers a ‘bio-cable’ being made from spider silk and is bitten by one of the test spiders. Although his first costume consists of a red face mask with a black beanie and street clothes, he later comes across a luchador poster and decides to build a better suit. This movie goes into more detail about the fabrication of the suit, including the wristwatches he uses to create ‘web-shooters’.

The final suit in this film has a more technological feel to it, with an almost scale-like texture and a segmented, long-legged spider logo extending down the torso, that seems reminiscent of biohazard symbols. This more edgy design stands out from the first trilogy, as can be seen in the trailer below.

MCU’s Spider-Man

But in maybe the most stark contrast yet (pun intended), we hop to the action-comedy vibes of Holland’s Spider-Man. In this universe, the youngest version of the character yet already has his powers and is truly a friendly neighborhood Spidey, helping solve petty crimes. He wears a playful homemade suit with adjustable goggles, a red hoodie, and a more rounded, bubbly spider logo drawn on in marker pen.

But it isn’t long before Tony Stark (Robert Downey Jr.), Peter’s mentor, teases upgrades that take his suits to the next level as he joins The Avengers.

It’s only as Peter matures as a hero that he learns to use these powerful suits—demonstrating the much larger character arc that this Peter goes through compared with his predecessors. These suits are by far the smoothest and least fabric-like, demonstrating the advanced tech Stark uses to make them.

The logos also range from a small, minimalist spider in the center of Peter’s chest, to sprawling designs that dominate the entire suit. There is a wider range of colors, using black and even gold in the metallic Iron Spider suit. Nanotech? Check. Giant spider legs that fold out at will? Check. There are even some references back to the original 1962 suit design, with some suits featuring the web-like wings that can be used for gliding.

And of course, with the latest film allowing all of these worlds to suddenly collide together, it looks like many of these suits are about to coexist. Which will be the fan-favorite? Only time will tell.

There’s a lot to consider when it comes to creating the perfect outfit design for a character. Their history, fan expectations, the CGI requirements, and so much more. All of this will impact the colors, silhouettes, and materials selected.

If you want to learn more about costume design, and how it can reflect both the character’s journey and the tone of the story they are part of, check out this course on Costume Design for Film and TV by Bina y Pepo, or Styling and Costume Design for a Stage Performance by Lisa Katnić.

For more trivia from the movies and beyond, check out the Interesting Facts tag on the blog.

You may also like:

- What is Film Casting?
- Superman Joins the Growing List of LGBTQ+ Superheroes
- Comic Tutorial: How to Create a Comic Strip
- Cinematography courses - Advanced Cinematography Techniques, course by David Curto
- Script Writing for Movies and Television, course by Julio Rojas