Marvel fans are heaping a lot of praise on Willem Dafoe for his spectacular performance in Spider-Man: No Way Home as Green Goblin, but the iconic thespian is showing an inclination to project it on his co-stars.
The latest threequel to the MCU’s Spider-Man film franchise is being credited as one of the greatest superhero films of all time, at least so far as the critical reception is concerned. While many folks would attribute this success to the movie’s numerous cameo appearances, we shouldn’t be quick to dismiss the narrative’s surprising depth – given Marvel Studios’ formulaic approach to storytelling – and a host of great performances at every level, specifically the two that involved the emotional conflict between Holland’s Peter Parker and Dafoe’s Norman Osborn.
The latter was recently featured in an extensive profile by GQ, where he discussed returning as the sinister Green Goblin after nearly 20 years. Dafoe also took the time to speak a few words of reverence about Holland.
“I admire greatly his discipline and his commitment to the role. And physically, he was incredible,” He said.
The actor behind our young webhead, meanwhile, had a completely different and frankly humorous first impression of Dafoe on set, though it’s now clear that the two shared a mutual sense of respect for one another.
We all get that Holland is no longer the teenage initiate of the acting game he once was, but I think he should take pride in these words. It’s not every day a legendary actor of Dafoe’s caliber goes out of his way to praise a fellow thespian, though that in itself speaks volumes about his humility.