I normally pay little attention to what actors get paid because no matter the figure, it’s a helluva lot more than I’ll ever make in my life. I mean, is it possible to only earn $2 million for a film? Maybe that’s a big deal if the guy or gal is accustomed to receiving $20 million, but even so, $2 million ain’t exactly chump change, or small potatoes, or another out-of-date phrase used to describe a minuscule amount of money.

Along these lines, Deadline is reporting the newly anointed Spider-Man, Andrew Garfield, will pocket a measly $500,000 to play the wall-crawler in the upcoming reboot. Well, that’s what his base salary will be anyway. If the young Brit has a decent agent, I’m sure he worked in some of those points on the back end should the movie become a ginormous blockbuster. If not, the fact that he’s going to be Spider-Man should up his asking price.

So, don’t feel too bad for Andy. He won’t need to beg for shillings like Oliver Twist or sell fruit on the side of the highway anytime soon. Although, it would be cool as sh*t to see him hocking sacks of oranges at stoplights. I’d be like, “Hey, aren’t you the new Spider-Man?” He’d lower his head in shame and nod awkwardly. Then I’d say, “Only $500,000? You got screwed, bro.” He’d respond with, “I know, I know, I shoulda held out for more.” Then I’d grab a bag of oranges and drive off without paying, shouting, “Catch me if you can, Spider-Boy!” That would rule.

[Via /Film]

According to Variety, Sony and director Marc Webb have pegged fresh-faced 26-year-old Brit actor Andrew Garfield to be the new Spider-Man. This ends what felt like years of speculation. Thank the heavens!

What about Jamie Bell? And Josh Hutcherson? And that other kid from that movie no one ever heard of? Well, none of those clowns were deemed worthy, I guess. Garfield was in The Imaginarium of Doctor Parnassus and can be seen in upcoming films such as David Fincher’s The Social Network and Mark Romanek’s Never Let Me Go.

A limey as Spider-Man? Really? I thought they’d go with someone younger too. Twenty-six isn’t ancient and he looks youthful, but I was under the impression they were looking for a teenager or someone in their early twenties. Apparently, that wasn’t the case.

I’ve seen Garfield in Boy A and Lions for Lambs. He’s a decent enough actor, although I’ve yet to see him do anything physical. Not that it matters since all the wall-crawling and web swinging will be done by a stunt dude in a costume or with fancy schmancy CGI.

Not sure how the fanboys will take the news. I expect some will be displeased. I like Spidey and all, but didn’t really care who they picked. Although, I thought Jamie Bell would’ve been a solid choice. Oh well. Time to get back to wondering who will play The Riddler in Batman 3.

Take this piece of news with a grain of salt, but according to Cinematical, via a site called Bleeding Cool, the role of the next Spider-Man has been offered to Brit actor Jamie Bell by Sony execs and director Marc Webb. Bell has appeared in such films as Billy Eliot, King Kong and Jumper.

If this proves to be true, and folks at Sony told Cinematical they are “officially not commenting” on the story, then we here at FlickSided will look pretty smart. Ya see, back in January we compiled our own list of webslinger candidates and Bell was one of our top choices. He can do action and comedy, and is also adept at playing the nerdy outcast type as evidenced by his work in The Chumscrubber and Mister Foe.

Bell, who is 23, also looks younger than his age, so if he is the pick, he could easily pull off a couple installments without looking out of place as young Peter Parker. Anyway, none of this is confirmed, but the fact that Sony isn’t denying it has our collective eyebrows raised.

Not too long ago, DC allowed Christopher Nolan to break the mold when casting one of its most iconic characters, the Joker. Instead of hiring an older, over-the-top clown prince like Cesar Romero or Jack Nicholson, the British director cast a young Australian actor fresh off of making a gay cowboy movie. WTF!? Crazy as it sounded at the time, the brash move allowed Heath Ledger to step out of the shadow of both Cesar and Jack and deliver one of the most memorable villains in film history. Mostly due to this gamble, The Dark Knight racked up the greatest opening weekend box office haul of all time and is widely viewed as the greatest comic book flick ever made.

Not too long ago, Marvel cast an ex-junkie who once spent a year in prison and had never appeared in a blockbuster as the leading man in its $150-mil-a-pop superhero franchise. Even Robert Downey Jr. himself was likely a bit surprised that he was actually cast as Iron Man. The risks involved were great — Woody Allen couldn’t even cast Downey in Melinda and Melinda because of insurance issues, and buddies Mel Gibson and Joel Silver helped with other pricey tabs — but the reward would ultimate be even greater. The franchise’s two films have made over a billion dollars worldwide and Downey is still slated to spearhead both The Avengers and Iron Man 3. Getting an ex-drug addict with a checkered past to play an alcoholic superhero was one of the ballsiest moves in big-budget movie history, and one that paid off big time.

I obviously bring all this up because Marvel turning auburn-haired geek Peter Parker into a web-slinging Steve Urkel would be a HUGE roll of the dice. Nonetheless, the idea of a black Spider-Man is one that is picking up steam. Over the Holiday weekend, 26-year-old Community star Donald Glover caught wind of the #donald4spiderman Twitter campaign that is taking the Internet by storm.  He’s been tweeting like Ashton Kutcher locked in a closet with a laptop and a case of Red Bull ever since. He wants an audition and maybe he should get one?

Meanwhile, Tristan Wilds, who killed it as Michael Lee in The Wire, has even gone as far as to say that he is being considered for the part. Rather that is true or not, who knows? But what I do know is that Marc Webb should audition actors of all races and looks for the part. I write this after I listed all traditional potential Peter Parkers in my original Casting Couch post. Why? Because what do Webb, Marvel and Sony have to lose by taking a look at going a different and potentially brilliant different way? Nothing. Chances are they go with another white actor, but someone like Donald Glover could go in there and blow everybody away. There’s only one way to find out, and that’s by auditioning different kinds of actors.

The Spider-Man franchise is in desperate need of a shake-up, which is exactly why it is being rebooted. The filmmakers shouldn’t be close minded during the casting process if they are serious about achieving a fresh Spider-Man series, even if they go in a familiar direction. We’ll get a black superhero at some point, and even if it isn’t Spider-Man it’s time for all superhero directors to start pondering the possibility. It could very well be the next bold move that rocks the comic book movie genre.

(image credit: Slash Film)

With Sony and Marvel giving (500) Days of Summer director Marc Webb full Spidey sense, just who will he cast to play Peter Parker and his web-slinging alter ego in his 2012 Spider-Man reboot? Unlike picking the protagonist for the Batman (Christian Bale) and Bond (Daniel Craig) reboots, nabbing the new Spider-Man will be more of a challenge. Our staff had an e-mail exchange that covered this very topic, and here’s who we picked for Webb’s short list.

Patrick Fugit, 27

The kid whole stole the show in Almost Famous has been out of the spotlight, but he’d be a great PP. He still looks young and we think he has the range to pull off the entire Spidey spectrum.

Jamie Bell, 23

Jamie Bell is no stranger to huge blockbusters (King Kong), so he wouldn’t be intimidated one bit. He’s also versatile, as his work in both Billy Elliot and The Chumscrubber indicate.

Anton Yelchin, 20

Yelchin has blown up over the course of the past year, due to his sizable roles in Star Trek and Terminator: Salvation. We’re guessing the young thespian also has landed a spot on Webb’s short list.

Luke Grimes, 26

Grimes is not nearly as famous as the aforementioned trio, bu he definitely has some qualities that made him a candidate of interest for our panel. Plus, he’s kind of like a less-vampish Robbert Pattinson. The chicks would dig him.

Emile Hirsch, 24

Here’s another early favorite, due to his work in films like The Girl Next Door, Into the Wild and Milk. Hey, if two-time Best Actor winner Sean Penn signs off on his acting chops, everybody else kind of has to as well.

Chace Crawford, 24

He was tabbed to star in the Footloose remake, but since that isn’t happening his schedule is pretty wide open. The actor once named the “Summer’s Hottest Bachelor” has breakout star written all over him.

Reece Thompson, 21

This is one of our favorites after seeing his work in both Assassination of a High School President and Rocket Science. The young Canadian seems like a perfect candidate to don the red-and-blue spandex.

Lou Taylor Pucci, 24

He’s a major dark horse, but after he got suggested we just couldn’t keep him off this list. Best known for his performance in Thumbsucker.

Daryl Sabara, 17

The youngest of the bunch, we had to add him to the list after seeing his turn in World’s Greatest Dad. Plus, he already has some superhero hype due to his involvement in the Spy Kids series and the upcoming John Carter of Mars.

Joseph Gordon-Levitt, 28

He’s the oldest actor on this list, but he might be the favorite. After all, given his rise to prominence and history with Webb, he might even be part of why the young director was hired in the first place. We think he looks young enough, especially if you surrounded him with an older cast.

As for Mary Jane Watson, three words:

Evan. Rachel. Wood.