Spider-Noir TV creators explain why Nicolas Cage's Spider-Man is "jaded" Ben Reilly instead of "boyish" Peter Parker

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Spider-Noir TV creators explain why Nicolas Cage's Spider-Man is "jaded" Ben Reilly instead of "boyish" Peter Parker News By George Marston published 10 February 2026

"He's older and jaded, and not afraid to punch a guy in the face drunkenly"

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(Image credit: Amazon MGM Studios)

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Spider-Noir showrunner Oren Uziel and producers Phil Lord and Christopher Miller say there's a very good reason why Nicolas Cage is playing Ben Reilly instead of classic Spider-Man Peter Parker in Amazon MGM Studios' upcoming Spider-Noir streaming series. As it turns out, it all comes back to the need for the show to have the same hardboiled feel as classic film noir shows, with Peter representing a level of optimism that Spider-Noir doesn't have.

"This character's very different from the Peter Parker from the movies. He's older and jaded, and not afraid to punch a guy in the face drunkenly," Miller tells Esquire, with Lord adding, "He already had his Chinatown disillusionment moment that happened years and years ago."

Lord and Miller have a fairly strong handle on Spider-Noir, as a slightly different version who is Peter Parker appears in their Spider-Verse animated movie series, where he's also voiced by Nicolas Cage. Cage himself said he's bringing a combination of "70 percent Bogart and 30 percent Bugs Bunny" to his portrayal of Reilly as Spider-Man.

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"Peter Parker feels very synonymous with a high school kid. Boyish. On his way up," Uziel explains. "Ben Reilly has already gone through the entire arc and has seen it all. He's over it, and trying to move past it. But his past kind of keeps coming back to haunt him. It's just a different version that we haven't seen before."

The character Ben Reilly comes straight from comics, in which he is a clone of Peter Parker who takes on his own identity drawing his first name from Uncle Ben, and his last name from Aunt May's maiden name. He's often operated as Spider-Man instead of or alongside Peter Parker, also sometimes using the name Scarlet Spider. A version of the Scarlet Spider Ben Reilly was voiced by Andy Samberg in the Spider-Verse films.

For more, check out our list of the best Spider-Man movies, and stay up to date on all the upcoming Marvel movies and shows that are currently in the works.

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Contact me with news and offers from other Future brandsReceive email from us on behalf of our trusted partners or sponsorsBy submitting your information you agree to the Terms & Conditions and Privacy Policy and are aged 16 or over. CATEGORIES Superhero Shows George MarstonSocial Links Navigation

I've been Newsarama's resident Marvel Comics expert and general comic book historian since 2011. I've also been the on-site reporter at most major comic conventions such as Comic-Con International: San Diego, New York Comic Con, and C2E2. Outside of comic journalism, I am the artist of many weird pictures, and the guitarist of many heavy riffs. (They/Them)

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