Kirsten Dunst Reveals the Spider-Man Set Nickname That Made Her Uncomfortable

Kirsten Dunst became one of the most recognizable faces of the early superhero era when she played Mary Jane Watson opposite Tobey Maguire in Sam Raimi’s Spider-Man trilogy. But behind the enormous success of those movies, Dunst experienced moments on set that she now views differently.

The actress revealed that crew members sometimes referred to her as “girly-girl” over the walkie-talkies while making Spider-Man. Although it was apparently intended as a joke, Dunst admitted she didn’t feel comfortable challenging the nickname at the time. Looking back, she sees the experience as an example of how differently she handled uncomfortable situations when she was a young actress trying to establish herself in Hollywood.

The Spider-Man Nickname Dunst Never Challenged

Speaking with Marie Claire for its 2024 Makers Issue, Dunst recalled hearing the nickname while working on the blockbuster franchise.

“It was a joke, but on Spider-Man, they would call me ‘girly-girl’ sometimes on the walkie-talkie,” she said, recalling crew members saying, “We need girly-girl.”

Today, Dunst’s reaction is much clearer: “Like, don’t call me that.”

At the time, however, she didn’t object. She explained that younger women working in Hollywood often felt they were expected to tolerate behavior that made them uncomfortable rather than challenge it.

“You didn’t say anything,” Dunst said. “You just took it.”

Spider-Man Turned Dunst Into a Blockbuster Star

Dunst was already an accomplished actress before Mary Jane Watson entered her life. She had appeared in movies including Interview with the Vampire, Little Women, Jumanji, The Virgin Suicides and Bring It On.

But 2002’s Spider-Man took her fame to another level.

The Sam Raimi-directed movie became an enormous commercial success, with Dunst returning alongside Maguire for Spider-Man 2 in 2004 and Spider-Man 3 in 2007.

Instead of using that success to pursue one blockbuster after another, however, Dunst deliberately moved toward projects that interested her creatively.

“That’s great for some people,” she told Marie Claire about actors embracing movie-star careers built around major franchises. “It’s not the artist that I want to be.”

She Chose an Unusual Path After Superhero Success

During and after the Spider-Man years, Dunst increasingly worked with filmmakers known for distinctive, director-driven projects.

She reunited with Sofia Coppola for Marie Antoinette, portraying the doomed French queen in the visually ambitious 2006 drama. She later starred in Lars von Trier’s Melancholia, a performance that earned some of the strongest reviews of her career.

Rather than chasing predictable romantic comedies after becoming a major Hollywood name, Dunst said she followed projects that felt personally interesting.

“I didn’t go do a bunch of romantic comedies,” she explained.

Dunst described her career progression not as a carefully designed reinvention but as a natural evolution.

“It was just growing up, and migrating to things that spoke to me,” she said, adding, “I always just navigated with my heart.”

The Power of the Dog Brought Her an Oscar Nomination

That approach eventually resulted in one of the biggest honors of Dunst’s career.

She starred as Rose Gordon in Jane Campion’s 2021 drama The Power of the Dog alongside Benedict Cumberbatch, Kodi Smit-McPhee and her husband, Jesse Plemons.

The performance earned Dunst her first Academy Award nomination, for Best Supporting Actress.

Surprisingly, the nomination didn’t immediately produce the variety of opportunities she expected. Dunst told Marie Claire that she went approximately two years without working because the roles being offered to her felt frustratingly similar.

“Every role I was being offered was the sad mom,” she said.

She believed Hollywood still offered fewer interesting opportunities to women as they entered their 40s, prompting her to wait for something that felt different.

Civil War Gave Dunst Something Different

That opportunity arrived with Alex Garland’s Civil War.

Released in 2024, the dystopian action drama cast Dunst as Lee Smith, an experienced photojournalist traveling across a violently divided United States with a group of fellow journalists.

The physically and emotionally demanding character was far removed from the “sad mom” roles Dunst said she had been receiving.

She described the movie as “elevated action” and acknowledged that its intense production affected her emotionally even after filming.

The role demonstrated the range that has allowed Dunst to move between blockbusters, comedies, period dramas and independent films throughout a career that began when she was a child.

Would Kirsten Dunst Make Another Superhero Movie?

Despite her uncomfortable memory from the original Spider-Man set and her decision not to build her career around franchises, Dunst hasn’t completely closed the door on superhero movies.

When Marie Claire asked whether she would consider making another one, her response was refreshingly practical.

“Yes,” she said, explaining that superhero movies can pay extremely well and noting that she has two children and helps support her mother.

More than two decades after Spider-Man transformed her into an international star, Dunst can look back at both the opportunities and uncomfortable experiences that accompanied that period.

The biggest difference today may simply be confidence. The young actress who once remained silent when she heard “girly-girl” over a walkie-talkie now knows exactly how she would respond: don’t call her that.

Featured Image: instagram.com/kirstendunst