Kirsten Dunst and Tobey Maguire’s iconic upside-down kiss in Spider-Man lives on as one of the most romantic scenes in film history, but apparently, the experience was not as pleasant as it looked. In fact, the actress even described it as “miserable”.
During an appearance on The Jonathan Ross Show, Dunst reflected on the production of the scene and detailed the logistics of the moment, where a suspended, mask-wearing Spider-Man, played by Maguire, is given a kiss in the rain by Dunst’s character, Mary-Jane.
“It was pouring with rain, freezing; Tobey couldn’t breathe, so it was almost like I was resuscitating him,” she explained.
Her co-star echoed the sentiment in a prior interview, telling The Hollywood Reporter that he was “practically suffocating” during the scene. “There was rain pouring down my nose, and then Kirsten pulled the mask up to [my nose], and it’s blocking the air passage there, so I couldn’t breathe,” he said. “Then she’s kissing me, blocking the air passage there, so there’s nowhere else to breathe.”
“It was really tough, actually. It was really challenging,” he continued. “They’d yell cut, and I would be [gasping for air], totally out of breath. It was torture. It makes you realise how important oxygen is.”
Dunst actually dated Maguire from 2001-2002, adding to the lore that all Mary Janes and Peter Parkers are bound to take their chemistry off-screen (the two, Andrew Garfield and Emma Stone, and Tom Holland and Zendaya).
The actress also revealed that director Sam Raimi was determined to make the kiss scene memorable. He even gifted the actress a “book of famous kisses” to inspire the performance.
It’s safe to say that Raimi got his wish, as the scene is constantly referenced in pop culture, but hearing about the discomfort involved certainly puts a damper on the mood.
Relive the moment in all its “miserable” glory below.
