Spider-Man watch order: How to watch every Spider-Man movie (live-action and animated) in release and chronological order

Ever wonder how to get started on all those Spider-Man movies? Well, this is the guide for you.

Image credit: Sony Animation

How to by Joshua Lapin-Bertone Contributing writer

Additional contributions by Graeme McMillan

Updated on Aug. 16, 2023

Spider-Man is without a doubt the flagship character of Marvel - be it Marvel Comics, Marvel Studios, or even Marvel merchandise. With thousands of comics, eight live-action movies, a dozen or so TV shows, and now two hit animated movies, it's undeniable.

But it can also be complated.

If you want to dive into Spider-Man’s filmography, but aren’t sure how to navigate it all, we’ve got you covered! Are all the films in the same continuity? Is Spider-Man 3 a sequel to Amazing Spider-Man 2 or Spider-Man 2? Where does Venom fit in? This article will answer all these questions so you can get started on your Spidey film journey!

If you're looking ahead to the future, we have a guide to all the upcoming Marvel movies and TV shows on the horizon.

Every Spider-Man film in release order

Spider-Man and Emma Stone as Gwen Stacy — Image credit: Sony

If you wanted to watch every Spider-Man film in release order, here's how you would do it.

The Sam Raimi/Tobey Maguire Trilogy

In 2002, Spider-Man finally came to the big screen after years of false starts and development hell. The Sam Raimi directed trilogy featured Tobey Maguire in the title role. The trilogy dominated the box office, making Spider-Man one of the first big comic book movie franchises of the 21st century. If you want to watch the Raimi/Maguire Spider-Man trilogy, here is the chronological order.

Spider-Man (2002)
Spider-Man 2 (2004)
Spider-Man 3 (2007)

While it isn’t a part of the Raimi/Maguire series, Tobey Maguire does reprise his role as Peter Parker in Spider-Man: No Way Home.

The Marc Webb/Andrew Garfield Series

In 2012, the Spider-Man film series was rebooted, with Marc Webb serving as director, and Andrew Garfield suiting up as Peter Parker. Webb’s films put a new spin on the mythos, telling a different kind of story than what was seen in Raimi’s films. There was a larger focus on the mystery of Peter Parker’s parents. The films also leaned into the love story between Garfield’s Peter Parker and Emma Stone’s Gwen Stacy. If you want to watch the Andrew Garfield Spider-Man films, here is their release order.

The Amazing Spider-Man (2012)
The Amazing Spider-Man 2 (2014)

Although it isn’t a part of the Webb/Garfield series, Andrew Garfield does reprise his role as Peter Parker in Spider-Man: No Way Home. In fact, if the ending to The Amazing Spider-Man 2 leaves you heartbroken, there’s a scene in the last act of Spider-Man: No Way Home that brings things full circle, giving Garfield’s Spider-Man some emotional resolution.

The Tom Holland/MCU Series

In 2015, Sony Pictures announced a partnership with Marvel Studios for the next phase of Spider-Man movies. The two studios would work together on a series of Spider-Man films, which would allow Spidey to be a part of the Marvel Cinematic Universe. Tom Holland was cast as Peter Parker, making his big screen debut as Spidey in Captain America: Civil War (2016). Holland then went on to star in his own Spider-Man film series. If you want to watch all of Tom Holland’s Spider-Man films, here is their chronological order.

Spider-Man: Homecoming (2017)
Spider-Man: Far From Home (2019)
Spider-Man: No Way Home (2021)

The animated Spider-Verse

The live-action Spider-Man movies are great, but once you see the Spider-Verse films you have to admit Marvel's wall-crawler feels especially at home here. And with Sony connecting it straight into the MCU, there's even less arguement to deny it.

Spider-Man: Into the Spider-Verse (2018)
Spider-Man: Across the Spider-Verse (2023)
Spider-Man: Beyond the Spider-Verse (2024)

Every Spider-Man MCU film in Chronological order

We’ve given you the watch order for Tom Holland’s Spider-Man films, but what if you wanted to mix it up and include all of his appearances in the Marvel Cinematic Universe? We’ve got you covered! Here’s a list of all of Tom Holland’s MCU appearances, and how they fit in with the chronology of his solo films.

Captain America: Civil War (2016)
Spider-Man: Homecoming (2017)
Avengers: Infinity War (2018)
Avengers: Endgame (2019)
Spider-Man: Far From Home (2019)
Spider-Man: No Way Home (2021)

What about the Venom films and Morbius?

Tom Hardy as Venom — Image credit: Sony Pictures

Sony has the motion picture rights to Spider-Man, and that deal includes many of the villains and allies in Spider-Man’s world. With the rise of superhero films at the box office, Sony has tried to create their own Spider-Man cinematic universe. As of this writing three spin-off films exist in that universe, with plans for more on the way.

While Morbius (2022) and the Venom films have connections to the world of Spider-Man, they are not considered Spider-Man movies. Spider-Man does not appear in any of the films, except as a piece of news footage during the end credits of Venom: Let There Be Carnage (2021). For that reason, it’s hard to justify classifying them as Spider-Man films and putting them on the master list at the beginning of the article.

However, these movies do set some seeds that might play out in future Spider-Man films. The post-credits scene from Morbius features the return of Michael Keaton as Adrian Toomes, and hints at the formation of the Sinister Six. The credits scene for Venom: Let There Be Carnage also sets up Tom Hardy’s cameo during the post-credits scene in Spider-Man: No Way Home.

There is also a question of continuity. Morbius and Venom seem to take place in a different universe than the one inhabited by Tom Holland’s Spider-Man. However, the events of Spider-Man: No Way Home seem to have broken the barriers between the universes, allowing characters to crossover. This could lead to some fun in future Tom Holland solo movies.

If you’re interested in watching the Spider-Man spin-off films, here is their viewing order.

Movies starring Kraven the Hunter, El Muerto, and Madame Web are also in various stages of production. It seems Spider-Man’s cinematic web is continuing to grow.

What about the Japanese Spider-Man film from 1978?

Japanese Sentai Spider-Man — Image credit: Toei

The Toei Company Spider-Man television series is one of the weirdest chapters in the Webhead’s career, but it’s also one of the most fun. It would be an understatement to say that the live-action Japanese television series took some liberties with the source material. The character is called Spider-Man, and he wears his iconic costume, but that’s about it. Instead of photographer Peter Parker, he’s a motorcycle racer named Takuya Yamashiro. Instead of a science demonstration on radiation, Takuya’s powers came from an alien from Planet Spider.

The series also gave Spider-Man a giant fighting mecha, which is probably the show’s most lasting piece of pop culture influence. The popularity of Spider-Man’s mecha Leopardon led to the Toei Company including giant fighting robots in their Super Sentai series. In other words, the Power Rangers had a Megazord because Spider-Man had Leopardon.

In 1978 the Toei Company produced a Spider-Man film (simply titled Spider-Man) for Japan’s Toei Manga Matsuri film festival. The film was only 24 minutes long, which makes it hard to consider it a true movie. For that reason, it has been left off the master list at the beginning of the article. Film or not, the Japanese version of Spider-Man is still a fun piece of media that every Spidey fan should experience at least once.

Didn’t Nicholas Hammond have his own Spider-Man trilogy?

Nicholas Hammond as Peter Parker — Image credit: Danchuck Productions

From 1977 through 1979, Nicholas Hammond played the title role in the live-action The Amazing Spider-Man television series. Although the series didn’t feature any of Spider-Man’s iconic villains and very few members of his supporting cast appeared, the series entertained Spider-Man fans in an era where superhero shows had smaller budgets and shorter runs. Nicholas Hammond is also fondly remembered for the way he embodied a more mature Peter Parker.

Interestingly for our purposes, the pilot for the series was a television movie, which was common practice at the time. The 1977 television pilot movie was simply called Spider-Man. It was later given a theatrical run outside of the United States. However, because it was initially written, shot, and released as a television production, we’re not counting it as an official movie. Spider-Man Strikes Back (1978) and Spider-Man: The Dragon’s Challenge (1981) soon followed.

Both had theatrical releases outside of the United States, but both of those movies were repackaged versions of episodes of the television series. In fact, Spider-Man: The Dragon’s Challenge came out two years after the episodes had already aired, and the series was already cancelled. For this reason, they’re not considered true Spider-Man movies, and that’s why they aren’t included on the master list at the beginning of the article. However, that doesn’t mean they have no entertainment value. If you want to check out Nicholas Hammond’s Spider-Man television trilogy, here is the watch-order.

Spider-Man (1977)
Spider-Man Strikes Back (1979)
Spider-Man: The Dragon’s Challenge (1981)

As you can see, Spider-Man’s film career has been quite busy, and he’s just getting started. More live-action movies, animation features, and spin-off films are in the works. Keep your eyes peeled to Popverse as we continue to cover Spidey’s future films, along with other superhero movies.

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