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~ Dennis' first lines after putting a gun to the manager's head.
“
Don't hurt me! Just give me a chance! Just give me a chance!
„
~ Dennis cowardly begging for his life after being beaten by Spider-Man.
Dennis Carradine, or also more commonly known as either The Burglar or The Carjacker, is the secondary antagonist of the 2002 superhero film Spider-Man, the first installment of Sam Raimi's Spider-Man trilogy.
He is a criminal who decided to rob a wrestling establishment one night, encountering with Peter Parker when he robs the corrupt organizer. Bitter over the organizer not paying him properly, Peter allows Carradine to get away with the money, but this turned out to be a fatal mistake, given that letting the burglar escape causes his Uncle Ben's death. Though Carradine was accused of murdering Ben while hijacking his car, it later turns out that Ben's killer was actually his accomplice Flint Marko, the consequences and regret of Peter's embittered choice to let Carradine escape were instrumental in shaping him into the superhero "Spider-Man", and Carradine's actions would continue haunting Peter for years.
After Spider-Man wins a wrestling match, the manager cheats him out of the reward money (giving him only a hundred bucks instead of the promised three thousand). Shortly after, Carradine arrives, points a gun at the manager and steals all his money. The manager tells Parker to stop him, but Parker spitefully lets him go. The Gunman thanks Peter as the Elevator door closes and a policeman angrily calls out Peter for letting the Gunman go. The manager told Peter that he could've stopped him and now he got away with his money, but Peter selfishly told him that it isn't his problem.
Some time later, Parker finds a crowd of people gathered around a mortally-wounded Uncle Ben, who is believed to have been shot by a carjacker. Uncle Ben succumbs to his wounds and passes away, prompting Parker to pursue the alleged murderer before he dies. Parker discovers the carjacker was the same person who ran past him. Taking advantage of Parker's dismay and unwillingness to kill him, Carradine attempts to shoot him, but Peter reflexively snaps his wrist before he can fire with his enhanced strength. Intimidated by Peter's inhuman strength, Carradine backs away, only to fall out the window to his death.
Spider-Man 2[]
Carradine doesn't appear in the film, but is mentioned by Parker as the latter was confessing to Aunt May that he let the thief go, which led to Ben's death. May, though understandably shocked at first, let's Peter know that she does not blame him after a few days of coming to terms with the information.
Spider-Man 3[]
A few years later, Parker and Aunt May are informed by Captain Stacy that new evidence indicates that Carradine was not the true killer, but rather the accomplice to the true murderer, Flint Marko. Stacy then gives Peter and May a statement on what supposedly happened based on witness statements: Ben was murdered by Marko in cold blood while Carradine tried to stop him and, in panic, stole the car leaving Marko behind, leading the police to mistake him for the killer. While still acknowledging the role Carradine played in these events Peter begins to feel tremendous guilt for enabling Carradine's death and anger at the police for failing to catch the real culprit.
After a climactic battle upon discovering Spider-Man's identity, Marko tells Peter what really happened: Marko only wanted Ben's car as he was stealing money to support his sick daughter Penny as the surgery was too expensive to afford on his own, and Carradine was helping him out in exchange for some of the cut. However, as Ben tried to reason with Marko, Carradine ran up and slapped Marko on the shoulder, startling Marko and causing him reflexively to pull the trigger shooting Ben in the chest by accident, much to Marko's shock and horror. As Marko futilely tried to save Ben, Carradine abandoned his partner in panic as the police arrive at the scene. Though Marko evaded capture since Carradine was mistaken for the murderer he was wrecked with guilt for what happened. Realizing that Ben's death was a genuine accident (as neither Marko nor Carradine had any intention of killing him in the first place), Parker decides to forgive Marko and lets him escape so that he can support Penny.
Spider-Man: The Video Game[]
In the video game of the first film, the Burglar appears as the first boss and the leader of the Skulls Gang. However, his name in this iteration is "Spike" (regarding that the name "Dennis Carradine" wasn't officially given until the third film's release).
Peter Parker - Initial Acquaintance turned Enemy and Attempted Killer
Quotes[]
“
Hurry up!
„
~ Dennis ordering the manager to give him all the cash quickly before striking him.
“
Thanks!
„
~ Dennis Carradine after Peter Parker let him escape.
“
Get in!
„
~ Dennis to Flint after he made Flint accidentally shot Uncle Ben when Dennis distracted Flint.
“
WHO'S THERE?
„
~ Dennis fearfully turns around when hearing and a huge eerie vibration of an unseen underground train echoing through the walls going past as he frightfully questions Spider-Man's whereabouts over it after reloading his gun.
“
Don't hurt me! Just gimme a chance. JUST GIMME A CHANCE!
„
~ Dennis to Spider-Man moments before he's recognized as the man who got away with the money in the elevator.
“
See ya! No!
„
~ Dennis' last words before attempting to shoot Spider-Man and falling to his death.
Trivia[]
According to the novelization of Spider-Man 2, the police were not able to confirm Uncle Ben's killer because there were no witnesses, as Peter himself can't come forward because of his involvement. This information would be later contradicted in Spider-Man 3, where it's shown that the police were aware of Carradine's involvement in Ben's death.
The retconning of Dennis Carradine into the accomplice of Uncle Ben's killer, who turned out to be the Sandman, rather than the killer himself was one of the main criticisms Spider-Man 3 received, as most fans feel like this undermines the emotive talk scene between Peter Parker and Aunt May in Spider-Man 2, where Peter admits his fault in Uncle Ben's death by letting Carradine escape. With the retcon, it can be seen that ultimately, Peter was not responsible at all and even if he had stopped Carradine, Flint Marko could have still killed Ben due to someone else distracting him.
Before Spider-Man 4 was cancelled in favor of The Amazing Spider-Man reboot, Michael Papajohn was approached to reprise his role as Dennis Carradine once more in the film. However, it's unknown if Carradine was intended to appear in flashback sequences like in the previous film or if he was going to appear in some other way.
In The Amazing Spider-Man reboot, Michael Papajohn made a cameo playing the driver of Rajit Ratha, making him the only actor alongside the late Stan Lee to play a role in both the films of Sam Raimi and Marc Webb. Interestingly, Papajohn actually asked if he could portray Uncle Ben's killer again, but the part of the Cash Register Thief was given to Leif Gantvoort.
In The Amazing Spider-Man 2 video game, Uncle Ben's killer is also called Dennis Carradine.
Dennis Carradine is mentioned by Peter in the 2021 Marvel Cinematic Universe film Spider-Man: No Way Home though not by name.
Cinematic Villains