Poster © Sony Pictures Releasing. Shown at reduced size for review and commentary.
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GenreAction, Adventure & Sci-Fi
RatedPG-13
Runtime2 hr 7 mins
ReleasedJune 30, 2004
StreamingSee Where to Watch
DirectorSam Raimi
StarringTobey Maguire, Kirsten Dunst, James Franco
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Spider-Man 2 (2004)
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| Spider-Man 2's Details | |
| Genre | Action, Adventure & Sci-Fi |
| Rated | PG-13 |
| Released | 06/25/2004 (Mann Village Theater); 06/30/2004 (United States) |
| Streaming | See Where to Watch on this page. |
| Running Time | 2 hr 7 mins |
| Budget | $180M (reported) |
| Box Office | Updated daily from Box Office Mojo. See the numbers below. |
| Based On | Spider-Man by Stan Lee and Steve Ditko |
| Country | United States |
| Language | English |
| Spider-Man 2's Interests | |
| General | Pizza deliveries, elevated trains, fusion reactors, rent day, one very wrinkled suit. |
| Music | Danny Elfman. Big, swooping and stuck in your head for twenty years. |
| Movies | Spider-Man (2002). Watch it first so all the grudges make sense. |
| Television | Spider-Man: The Animated Series. Doc Ock was a Saturday morning regular. |
| Heroes | Aunt May. Wise, broke and undefeated at pep talks. |
| Spider-Man 2's Crew | |
| Director | Sam Raimi |
| Writers | Alvin Sargent, Alfred Gough (story), Miles Millar (story), Michael Chabon (story) |
| Producers | Laura Ziskin, Avi Arad |
| Cinematography | Bill Pope |
| Music | Danny Elfman |
| Edited By | Bob Murawski |
| Production | Columbia Pictures, Marvel Enterprises, Laura Ziskin Productions |
| Distributed By | Sony Pictures Releasing |
Peter Parker loses his powers in this movie because he’s stressed out, which is the most relatable superhero problem ever filmed and also kind of a stretch. Tobey Maguire spends the middle hour moping, getting fired and missing Mary Jane’s play, and the Raindrops Keep Fallin’ on My Head montage goes on long enough to need its own intermission. Then Alfred Molina takes over. His Doc Ock is a sweet nerd with four metal arms whispering bad ideas into his ear, and Molina makes you feel sorry for him even while he’s throwing cars at people. The train fight is still the best Spider-Man action ever put on screen, and the quiet moment right after it hits harder than any punch. Sam Raimi goes corny on purpose and sincere all the way, and it works. A 9.1 because it’s the rare sequel that’s better at everything and still remembers to be goofy. $976 says you call your aunt after the hero speech scene and she has no idea why.
What works: Alfred Molina turns Doc Ock into a villain you feel sorry for, and the train fight is still the high-water mark for Spider-Man action.
What doesn’t: The middle stretch where Peter quits drags on forever, and the moping montage tests your patience before the movie wins you back.
Who it’s for: People who like their superheroes broke, tired and sincere, and anyone who still thinks the Raimi movies are the real ones.
Spoilers
Doc Ock takes back control of the arms and sinks his runaway fusion reactor in the river, going down with it. Mary Jane, now knowing Peter is Spider-Man, runs out on her wedding to John Jameson and shows up at Peter’s door.
Two years into being Spider-Man, Peter Parker (Tobey Maguire) is losing at everything else. He's late for physics class, behind on rent, getting fired from his pizza delivery job and missing every play starring Mary Jane Watson (Kirsten Dunst). His best friend Harry Osborn (James Franco) holds a serious grudge against Spider-Man, and Aunt May (Rosemary Harris) is worried about money. Then Peter's science hero, Dr. Otto Octavius (Alfred Molina), shows off a fusion reactor run by four smart metal arms. The demo goes sideways, and the arms stay attached. Sam Raimi directs. One hundred twenty-seven minutes, one very late pizza.
Anyone who can deliver eight pizzas on time. Peter could use the help.
| Tobey Maguire | Peter Parker / Spider-Man |
| Kirsten Dunst | Mary Jane Watson |
| James Franco | Harry Osborn |
| Alfred Molina | Dr. Otto Octavius / Doctor Octopus |
| Rosemary Harris | May Parker |
| Donna Murphy | Rosalie Octavius |
- (cur | prev) 14:30, 17 October 2026 DataBot +480 Numbers refreshed: Worldwide box office $788.3M; Domestic box office $375.1M; Opening weekend $88.2M; Profit / loss (est.) +$124.1M; Rotten Tomatoes 93%; CinemaScore A−; box office chart updated; RT 93% (276 reviews); Metacritic 83 / 100; CinemaScore A−; IMDb users 7.5 / 10 (811,833 votes); movie.guru score 8.5.
- (cur | prev) 12:00, 17 October 2026 DataBot +2,000 Profile created from Wikipedia and Box Office Mojo: cast, crew, release dates, budget, official trailer.