Kirsten Dunst has revealed her lasting regret over the cancellation of a fourth Sam Raimi-directed Spider-Man film, telling Variety she "wanted to be in that movie so badly" and wished it had been made. The project, which would have reunited her with Tobey Maguire as Mary-Jane Watson and Spider-Man, was scrapped after Raimi was unable to finalise a script he was satisfied with in time to meet Sony's deadline, leaving a gap in the franchise that has since been rebooted twice without her involvement.

Dunst played Mary-Jane in Raimi's original 2002 Spider-Man and its two sequels, becoming known for moments such as the upside-down kiss scene with Maguire, who later described the sequence as physically uncomfortable to film. The planned fourth instalment was intended for a 2011 release, but Raimi, still processing the mixed reception of Spider-Man 3, decided against proceeding rather than deliver a film he wasn't fully confident in. He has since said he "handed the torch off" to the directors who followed him, leaving the door closed on a return for his and Dunst's version of the characters.