Ahead of the release of Spider-Man: Miles Morales and Spider-Man: Remastered last year, Insomniac Games revealed that the improved technology of the PlayStation 5 meant a new face model was needed to better match actor Yuri Lowenthal's voice and motion-capture performance.
Many fans were quick to pick up on the new version's similarities to Tom Holland, and the backlash online was...vocal. At the time, Lowenthal took to Twitter to joke, "Guys. It’s my face’s fault. The stupid stupid bones in my face. Blame my bones."
Now, though, he's opened up to us about whether he knew the change was coming, his take on the reaction, and what it means for the hit franchise.
"I did know it was coming, and I did agree with all the reasons [Insomniac] were going ahead with it," the prolific actor known for his iconic performances in Naruto and Prince of Persia revealed. "I know that people, once they fall in love with something, for you to change that thing is very hard... and understandably so! There are a lot of people who will always love that original thing best, but I think the reasons they did it were sound, and going forward, the game will benefit."
"I understand it’s also especially hard when you form an emotional attachment. Playing a game is playing a game, and you get used to things, but the story and characters from that game, we all grew to love them," Lowenthal continued. "When you’ve formed that emotional attachment and that thing changes, it’s hard. I’m hoping people in the end will understand it was done for the good of the game and will understand it’s for the good of the franchise. We’ll all get used to it!"
The fact is, fans have got used to it, and now that this new-look Peter Parker has been seen in action (coupled with the actor's amazing performance), the anger and disappointment has quickly subsided.
We'll have much more from Yuri for you soon (the full interview will hit the site tomorrow), but you can find him on Twitter @YuriLowenthal, Instagram @yurilowenthal, and his Cameo (where you can get personalised messages from the actor and the characters he's played), by clicking HERE.