Could Spider-Man Be Pansexual? Andrew Garfield Talks Peter Parker’s Sexual Orientation

Andrew Garfield might not be Spider-Man anymore, but he hopes the character will be more diverse in the future. While promoting his new film, “99 Homes,” the actor revealed that he hoped Spider-Man would be pansexual.

“I'm excited to get to the point where we don't have to have this conversation,” Garfield said to Mic, “where we can have a pansexual Spider-Man.”

“The beauty about Spider-Man, for me, is that he's covered head to toe,” he added. “That's why everyone thinks it could be them in that suit. You don't see skin color. You don't see sexual orientation. You don't see how old the person is, gender, the whole thing. I celebrate that. Anyone can be a hero in their own lives.”

This isn’t the first time Garfield has suggested that the web slinger could be gay. His recent comments echo statements he made about Peter Parker in 2013 when he was playing the role. (He starred in two films in 2012 and 2014.) “Why can’t we discover that Peter is exploring his sexuality?” Garfield told Entertainment Weekly. “It’s hardly even groundbreaking! … So why can’t he be gay? Why can’t he be into boys?”

Shortly after he first suggested the idea, he elaborated on it at San Diego Comic-Con. He explained that his original comment was slightly tongue-in-cheek. He knew that he wouldn’t play a gay Spider-Man, but he hoped that someone might be able to in the future. Garfield explained that it would help Peter Parker be representative of his audience.

“He represents the everyman, but more importantly, maybe, he represents the underdog and those marginalized, those who have come up against great prejudice, which I, as a middle class, straight, white man, don’t really understand so much,” he said. “When Stan Lee first wrote and created this character, the outcast was the computer nerd … those guys now run the world. So how much of an outcast is that version of Peter Parker anymore? That’s my question.”

Watch Garfield discuss why he believes Spider-Man could be gay below:

Tom Holland will play the new Spider-Man, but his character’s sexuality hasn’t been addressed yet. However, he might not be able to play a pansexual Spider-Man. Gawker uncovered documents in the Sony leak that suggested Peter Parker is contractually obligated to be white and straight.

Holland’s “Spider-Man” is expected to hit theaters on July 28, 2017.