Spider-Man Kicks Ass

Empire Online caught up with Tobey Maguire at last week's Spider-Man press conference in Los Angeles and posed some questions about the upcoming movie. Empire Online: There was a lot of hype surrounding who was going to play the role of Spider-Man. What are your thoughts on nailing the part? Tobey Maguire: Well, I'm very excited for one. I've done all kinds of training and I've enjoyed it all so far. You know, I'm a little nervous, getting that pre-movie jitters. It's been a long time in the coming. I think I've been cast since July and the anticipation has been a bit over whelming, but I can't wait to get in the middle of it. Other than that, I just show up and do my job. EO: Were you familiar with the Spider-Man character before you read the script? TM: I wasn't extremely familiar with the Spider-Man comics. I mean, I know of the character and I hadn't read the comics, but I went back and I read the first three years of Spider- Man. EO: Can you relate to your role? TM: Tobey Maguire: Yeah, I can relate to Peter Parker. I think I can especially relate to Spider-Man, because I feel like a superhero in general in my life. Nah, I think he's a great character and one of the main themes is great power, and with that comes great responsibility and I think there's great power in just being alive and being a human being. I think within that there's great responsibility. Everyday I wake up, I have a responsibility to myself and to others, to be an example to people around me. Peter also goes through a lot of common struggles which I think most people can relate to. EO: There have been a lot of films made about superheroes over the years, and which have failed such as the The Punisher and Captain America. Are you looking to avoid certain aspects of those films? TM: It's not really a concern of mine at all. I'm just doing this movie. I've got my hands full with this. EO: With regards to the physical preparation for the movie, how much more comfortable will you be when you put those tights on now as to when you signed on to do this movie? TM: I had to wear some kind of tights for the screen test, which was before all my working out. I felt okay in them then and now it's five months later. It feels fine. EO: Did you have to give up any food? TM: I like structure and discipline, so I've enjoyed having the work outs and eating a certain way. And a lot of what I eat is to keep my energy up. I actually had to eat more food, which was surprising to me. I mean, what I eat is pretty scientific and boring, but I like it. EO: What is Spider-Man's fighting style? TM: Spider-Man isn't a martial artist, he has his own style of fighting. He's so strong that if he hit regular people like that, he could seriously injure them. I personally can do any style of fighting that they ask of me and I did a demonstration for Sam (Raimi) begging him to please let me show off my martial arts skills, but no, we gotta stick to the comic book. (Comedically rolls his eyes)