Why This SPIDER-MAN Actor Was Worried About Working With Disney
By Movieguide® Contributor
Hudson Thames, who voices Spider-Man in the upcoming animated series YOUR FRIENDLY NEIGHBORHOOD SPIDER-MAN, shared that he was pleasantly surprised when he received the script for the show.
“I thought it was awesome. I mean, my biggest fear was that is, was gonna be annoying and woke, and it wasn’t,” Thames told Collider. “I was like, ‘Yes, this is great, it’s so well written,’ like it feels real. I’m the oldest of five boys, so I feel like I kind of know what’s happening in their lives and in high school, and it felt like it was doing that justice.”
While they proved to be unwarranted, Thames’ worries were not without a basis. Disney has produced multiple Marvel-based series that promote radical ideologies. 2022’s SHE-HULK, for example, lauded feminism, Hinduism and meditation, whereas last year’s AGATHA ALL ALONG heavily promoted witchcraft and the occult. A portion of Movieguide®’s review reads:
AGATHA ALL ALONG expands upon the character introduced initially in WANDAVISION and leans into other forms of witches worldwide. As Agatha forms her coven, there are references to the occult, with many occult images throughout the first two episodes. Perhaps more concerning than the series’ depiction of witch activity is the nonchalant attitude towards the occult. The show doesn’t know if it should lean wholly into the darkness of the witch’s powers or treat them as a joke. Such occult beliefs are evil. God warns us about them in the Bible. Occult imagery aside, the script is lackluster, and the first two episodes have little to no redeeming qualities. MOVIEGUIDE® advises discerning viewers to skip AGATHA ALL ALONG, altogether.
READ MORE: AGATHA ALL ALONG EP. 1.1 AND 1.2 REVIEW
YOUR FRIENDLY NEIGHBORHOOD SPIDER-MAN may have found a reprieve from these ideologies, partially because it does not take place in the MCU. Rather it takes place in a “sister timeline.”
“Taking place in a sister timeline one universe over allows us quite a bit more freedom and helps us tell stories that don’t necessarily have to go down a familiar route,” explained showrunner Jeff Trammel. “One of the big things we wanted from the series was to not only show Spidey at his peak but also his valleys, he has his fair share of victories but experiences some big losses as well, which will hopefully make him a more adept hero in the long run.”
The first two episodes of YOUR FRIENDLY NEIGHBORHOOD SPIDER-MAN are available to stream on Disney+ now.
READ MORE: UNPACKING DISNEY+’S DOWNFALL: LESSONS LEARNED AND PATHS FORWARD
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