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Tobey Maguire, the original live-action theatrical Spider-Man, made his much anticipated return as the webhead to the silver screen in 2021's Spider-Man: No Way Home, set in the MCU. In the film, he joined forces with his Spider-Man successors, Tom Holland and Andrew Garfield, to fight and cure their respective villains, in his case Green Goblin, Doc Ock, and Sandman.
Following No Way Home, Maguire appeared in Damien Chazelle's ensemble flick Babylon, where he played mobster James McKay and also served as an executive producer. Prior to his return in No Way Home, Tobey's iteration of the webslinger became famous thanks to the ever-growing meme "Bully Maguire".
"Fairly neutral. I did see the Bully Maguire videos, which was a funny discovery.": Tobey Maguire's reaction
"Bully Maguire" is a meme that is based on Tobey Maguire's performance in 2007's Spider-Man 3 when Peter Parker gets possessed by the Venom Symbiote from outer space. While under the effects of the Symbiote, Peter begins to act in a devil-may-care manner and also delivers some rather cold and bone-chilling lines, such as "I'm gonna put some dirt in your eye," and "Look at little Goblin Jr., gonna cry?"
Under the effects of the Symbiote, Peter develops a sense of confidence, where he boldly confronts Eddie Brock on defaming Spider-Man via doctored photos and has him fired. He also fights his former best friend Harry Osborn, who, out of revenge for his father Norman Osborn's death, took advantage of the growing rift between Peter and Mary Jane and forced her to break up with him. After beating Harry, he tells him coldly that his father never loved him and that he is an embarrassment.
Fans of Tobey Maguire and Spider-Man in general will also remember the scene where he did his infamous dance. To elaborate, he walks into a clothing store in casual clothes and comes out wearing formals, and proceeds to do a rather embarrassing dance, baffling the people walking around him.
Originally, when Spider-Man 3 came out, this particular aspect of Maguire's performance was not well-received by both fans and critics alike. Spider-Man 3 itself garnered mixed reviews thanks to the film being stuffed with multiple subplots and villains. The mixed reception to Spider-Man 3 contributed to the cancelation of Spider-Man 4, as Sam Raimi and Sony could not see eye-to-eye on the creative direction of the franchise.
However, over the years, Bully Maguire has become a fan-favorite meme and has only continued to grow.
Tobey Maguire, participating in an AMA on Reddit while promoting Babylon, shared his thoughts on finding out about "Bully Maguire":
"Fairly neutral. I did see the Bully Maguire videos, which was a funny discovery."
Maguire, while inquiring about the appeal of Sam Raimi's Spider-Man trilogy, was told by a fan to check out the sub-reddit: r/raimimemes
In response, the Babylon actor and executive producer said that he's grateful and that he is in fact checking out the sub-reddit.
"I've had a lot of memorable experiences with people, and they've shared what the films have meant to them. I've had some funny and touching experiences from spontaneous encounters in public and someone being surprised to sharing how I've helped them through hard times."
He added:
"It's sweet and I feel grateful. Especially with kids, it's almost like magic, it's amazing to see their eyes light up. Also I'm checking out r/raimimemes."
When asked whether he can still do the dance, Maguire said:
"Every morning when I wake up. Just trying to capture the joy of this little guy."
The "little guy" he is referring to is a young fan who perfectly mimicked the dance moves at a party.
The popularity of "Bully Maguire" will ensure that Tobey Maguire's legacy as Spider-Man lives on in the minds of Spider-Man and Marvel fans, even if his mantle is currently taken up by someone else.
