10 Movie Sequels That Pointlessly Took Away Things Fans Loved
9. The Meaning Behind Uncle Ben's Death - Spider-Man III
One of the most iconic scenes in comic book movie history is the death of Uncle Ben (Cliff Robertson) in Sam Raimi's original 2002 Spider-Man movie.
The brutally tragic scene sees Ben fatally shot by a thief after Peter Parker (Tobey Maguire) fails to stop said thief earlier in the movie.
The sequence brilliantly underlined the responsibility that comes with being a superhero, and the consequences of one's actions - or, in this case, inaction. It was a perfect primer to ensure that Peter left no injustice unpunished in the future.
And while this through-line stayed totally in tact for Spider-Man 2, 2007's third film ill-advisedly ret-conned Uncle Ben's death to instead be at the hands of the villainous Flint Marko aka Sandman (Thomas Hayden Church).
Beyond being a lazy ass-pull to make Spidey's feud with Sandman feel more personal, it completely undid the moral that Peter learned in the first movie.
If Ben was killed by some random mook, then his failure to stop the thief ultimately meant nothing, and worse still, it made his hand in said thief's death that much more uncomfortable.
Of all the many things Spider-Man 3 got wrong, from a character and storytelling perspective, this was easily the worst.