A while back, I asked the question of whether it really mattered who ended up playing Peter Parker in the Spider-Man reboot. With the most recent list of short listers emerging at Heat Vision, it seems like the answer to that question is moving further toward being “no.”

Those names include:

• Jamie Bell: a fine actor in his own right who has proven himself in British dramas and period pieces. If he got the role, it might mean double franchises since he’s already playing Tintin for Steven Spielberg and Peter Jackson.
• Alden Ehrenreich: Despite having a name that I wish upon fellow journalists, Ehrenreich has only really been seen as the younger brother in Tetro. He would be a true unknown for the American public.
• Andrew Garfield: After appearing in the Red Riding Trilogy, I assume his next biggest role was as the bumbling assistant in The Imaginarium of Dr. Parnassus. He’s definitely got a lack of coordination down, and would also be an unknown unless his role in The Social Network hits hard.
• Frank Dillane: The young actor has only appeared, very briefly in Harry Potter and the Half-Blood Prince as the young Tom Riddle and as a small child in Michael Winterbottom’s Welcome to Sarajevo with his father in the lead role. Again, he’s a virtual unknown.
• Josh Hutcherson: The one name on the list that’s definitely not an unknown, Hutcherson has appeared in a disgusting amount of family-friendly films and children’s fair in a short amount of time. From Kicking and Screaming to Zathura to Journey to the Center of the Earth 3D to The Vampire’s Assistant, the kid has been around the block. Giving him the job would be a statement that the production wants someone who movie goers already recognize.

So that’s the list. Any names stand out to you or was I write to opine that it didn’t really matter?

What do you think?