WHY WON'T HOLLYWOOD CAST TOBEY MAGUIRE ANYMORE?
It wasn't too long ago that Tobey Maguire
was an A-list star with an Oscar-winning movie
and a record-breaking superhero franchise
to his name. Nowadays, you pretty much never
hear about him. So how did Tobey go from hero
to zero?
SPIDER-MAN 3'S WEB OF CRAP
The Spider-Man franchise made Tobey Maguire
a superstar. It also stunted his career. Despite
Spider-Man 2 being a hit with critics and
fans, 2007's Spider-Man 3 was a critical disaster.
Even director Sam Raimi admitted its shortcomings
in a 2014 interview with Nerdist, saying,
"I messed up plenty with the third Spider-Man,
so people hated me for years. They still hate
me for it. It's a movie that just didn't work
very well."
SPIDER-MAN 4 GOT SQUISHED
After Spider-Man 3, Raimi sought redemption
with a fourth movie, but Sony scrapped the
project. Instead, they rebooted the franchise,
resulting in 2012's Amazing Spider-Man, starring
Andrew Garfield in the lead. The decision
made sense, since Maguire was already pushing
35. Still, if he'd gotten the chance to reprise
the role of Peter Parker, maybe he'd still
be wearing the webs.
HIS BOYISH CHARM STOPPED BEING CHARMING
Maguire has a young face and a soft voice,
features that worked well when he first became
a young star. As he aged, Maguire never quite
grew out of his boyish looks, making it difficult
for audiences to connect with him in his more
mature roles. For proof, look to 2013's The
Great Gatsby. Ironically, that's the same
problem Maguire's friend and Great Gatsby
co-star, Leonardo DiCaprio, overcame by taking
on grittier roles. Tobey might want to give
Leo a call.
HE'S BUSY PRODUCING MOVIES
Maguire has spent a few years producing films
through his production company, Material Pictures.
But some Material Pictures films never actually
materialized, like Tokyo Suckerpunch and Afterburn.
And the films co-produced by Maguire that
did make it to the screen haven't done too
well. Rock of Ages made $38.5 million of a
$75 million budget; Pawn Sacrifice pulled
a mere $2.4 million in 2015; and the 2016
thriller The 5th Wave climbed to $33.1 million.
Yeah, it's definitely time to call Leo.
HE GAMBLED WITH BAD PRESS...AND LOST
In 2011, Maguire was linked to an illegal
poker club that allegedly involved Matt Damon,
Ben Affleck, and DiCaprio. Two years later,
Molly Bloom, one of the club's organizers,
wrote a scathing memoir, alleging that Maguire
"was the worst tipper, the best player, and
the absolute worst loser." During one game,
Bloom writes that Maguire offered her a $1,000
chip...but only if she'd "bark like a seal
who wants a fish." She claims he went on to
say, "I'm not kidding. What's wrong? You're
too rich now? You won't bark for a thousand
dollars?" Ugh, my rich, entitled creep sense
is tingling.
HE'S A DAD NOW
Maguire is now in his 40s, married, and has
two kids. Maybe he just bowed out of Hollywood
to relax and be a family man. That certainly
wouldn't be unheard of for an actor headlined
one of the biggest movie franchises in the
world for six years. Maybe he just doesn't
have to care that much anymore. Emo Spider-Man
would be proud.
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