10 Famous Characters Who Acted Totally Out Of Character In Sequels

5. Peter Parker - Spider-Man 3

We have the grand old MacGuffin to thank for this one. Spider-Man 3 is supposedly a parable concerning the darker aspects of human nature inherent in all of us. But let's be honest, it was really an exercise in Sam Raimi's mounting fatigue with a franchise he lovingly brought to life but which began weighing heavy on him with studio pressure. Spider-Man 3 is Raimi's "screw it" moment with the franchise €“ and Peter Parker's character change is the epitome of this. The alien symbiote which falls to Earth in the first act of the movie is said to latch onto aggression and negativity, and amplify such traits in whoever it chooses as a host. Nothing in that description or indeed the source material it was based on says anything about accelerating piano and dance skills or hoisting upon its host a sudden fondness for eyeliner and a hipster fringe (I always found the 'emo' tag a bit unfounded, having not known too many emo kids that enjoy strutting down highstreets and dancing on jazz club tables). At any rate, Parker's brief stint of actual angst and aggression can more likely be attributed to the new developments concerning his uncle's murder. Only after these downturns does the alien goo latch onto him and envelop him with his new, jazzy disposition. The problem with Parker's character change is that it isn't remotely foreshadowed in the previous films, or indeed the earlier stages of Spider Man 3. Raimi and co. spend two and a bit movies reaffirming what an inherently nice guy Peter is (and make no attempt to hint at any particular deftness at the piano, while we're at it). It's no secret that Raimi wanted to tell a different story to the one Columbia and Marvel forced out of him (he is very openly not a fan of the Venom/symbiote story arc) and the 'dark' Peter Parker we got instead evidences this in spades. Peter conveniently rids himself of these unwelcome traits for the third act, and slips back into his former life as an upstanding good guy as easily as he slipped out of it.