Willem Dafoe reveals past 'criticism' of Green Goblin costume led to 'No Way Home' changes
Jan 08, 2022
Washington [US], January 8 : Hollywood actor Willem Dafoe has said that the past criticism of his Green Goblin costume had prompted a redesign for his return in 'Spider-Man: No Way Home'.
The 66-year-old actor first played Norman Osborn, aka the villain Green Goblin, in Sam Raimi's 2002 'Spider-Man', which starred Tobey Maguire as the superhero.
Dafoe reprised the character in 'No Way Home' after Tom Holland's Peter Parker opens a portal to other universes, bringing villains and heroes from previous 'Spider-Man' movie series into his own world.
According to People magazine, Dafoe, plus 'Spider-Man 2's' Alfred Molina (Otto Octavius/Doctor Octopus) and 'The Amazing Spider-Man 2's' Jamie Foxx (Max Dillon/Electro) spoke to a news outlet about returning for the crossover event 20 years in the making.
As per Dafoe, his character's look was reimagined because fans of his original performance expressed disappointment that his Goblin mask didn't move and appeared overly cartoonish.
In the film, Dafoe first appeared in a similar costume to the original, but the mask is smashed and destroyed early on. He then appears in a hood with his face visible.
"I must be honest; I am aware that there was some criticism of that mask in the original one. We heard it enough that it was probably a consideration, to change it up a little bit," he said.
Dafoe added, "I don't think about that because I don't think about emoting with my face. My face follows my heart. It's just an expression of what you're feeling."
No Way Home costume designer Sanja Milkovic Hays told Variety last month about updating some of the characters' outfits for this film.
She said the Goblin "needed to respect the originals, but also bring them up to the aesthetics of what the new generation expects from us. So it is upgraded and the technology for the way it was made is very different."
Hays said of creating the many costumes for the movie, "All design work is done in coordination with Marvel's visual department, who are heavily involved with the details. I then have to bring it to life, which is a huge process, as there is nothing simple about them."
Dafoe also revealed that he agreed to return for 'No Way Home' with a list of requirements for the character.
"When [producer] Amy Pascal and [director] Jon Watts called me up and said we'd like to pitch you this idea, I thought, 'This is crazy, but let's see what they have to say.' I really didn't want to do a cameo. I wanted to make sure there was something substantial enough to do that wasn't just a tip of the hat," he explained.
I wanted to make sure there was something substantial enough to do that wasn't just a tip of the hat. Because that's really fun for me. It's the only way to root the character. Otherwise, it just becomes a series of memes," continued Dafoe, as per People magazine.
