Character profile

Scarlet Spider

Ben Reilly

A clone who did the job for five years and never got the credit.

HeroesSpider-Verse
Scarlet Spider poster art

Biography

Ben Reilly is the clone the Jackal made of Peter Parker, presumed dead in 1975 and revealed in the 1990s to have spent five years drifting across America under an assumed name — Ben from Uncle Ben, Reilly from Aunt May's maiden name. He came back to New York during the Clone Saga, built a costume out of a sweatshirt and a printed spider, and became the Scarlet Spider: the same powers, the same guilt, none of the life.

For a while Marvel went all in, briefly declaring Ben the original and Peter the clone and letting him hold the Spider-Man title outright in 1996 — until the Green Goblin killed him and his body crumbled, proving the reverse. He has come back as the Jackal in The Clone Conspiracy, headlined Ben Reilly: Scarlet Spider, and turned villain as Chasm during Beyond. His stingers, impact webbing and jacket-over-costume design have all outlived the storyline that produced them.

Vital statistics

Real name
Ben Reilly
Also known as
Ben Reilly, Spider-Man (1996), The Jackal, Chasm
Species
Human clone
Place of origin
New York City
First appearance
Amazing Spider-Man #149 (October 1975) as Peter Parker's clone; first appears as the Scarlet Spider in Web of Spider-Man #118 (November 1994)
Created by
Gerry Conway, Ross Andru, Tom DeFalco
Affiliations
Spider-Army, New Warriors (ally), Beyond Corporation (later)

Power grid

Intelligence4
Strength4
Speed3
Durability3
Energy2
Fighting4

Rated 1–7 on the classic Marvel power-grid scale.

Powers

  • Spider Powers

    An exact genetic copy of Peter Parker's strength, agility, wall-crawling and spider-sense.

  • Impact Webbing

    His own invention — web capsules that detonate into restraining cocoons on contact.

  • Stingers

    Wrist-mounted darts that fire tranquilliser or barbed projectiles.

  • Web-Shooters

    External shooters worn over the costume, rebuilt from Peter's original designs.

  • Improvised Chemistry

    A capable chemist and inventor who upgrades his own equipment constantly.

Abilities

  • Trained biochemist
  • Experienced solo vigilante across multiple US cities
  • Skilled improvisational fighter
  • Genuinely likeable, which Peter Parker often is not

Weaknesses

  • Clone degeneration and identity crises
  • No stable civilian identity or documentation
  • Emotionally unmoored from the life he remembers but never lived
  • Vulnerable to the Jackal's manipulation

Comics history

Created by Gerry Conway and Ross Andru in Amazing Spider-Man #149 (1975) and left for dead, the clone returned in the 1990s Clone Saga as the Scarlet Spider, took over as Spider-Man in 1996, and was killed by the Green Goblin in Peter Parker: Spider-Man #75. Dan Slott resurrected him as the Jackal for The Clone Conspiracy (2016), Peter David wrote Ben Reilly: Scarlet Spider (2017), and Beyond (2021-2022) turned him into the villain Chasm. Kaine, Peter's other surviving clone, also carried the Scarlet Spider name in a well-regarded 2012 series.

Allies

  • Peter Parker
  • Kaine
  • Mary Jane Watson
  • Janine Godbe

Enemies

  • Green Goblin
  • The Jackal
  • Kaine (initially)
  • Spider-Man (as Chasm)

Weapons & equipment

  • Impact webbing
  • Stingers
  • Web-shooters
  • Blue hoodie over red costume
  • Chemistry kit

Trivia

  • His name combines Uncle Ben's first name with Aunt May's maiden name, Reilly.
  • Marvel briefly declared Ben the original Peter Parker and Peter the clone — reversed when Ben's body crumbled after his death.
  • The hoodie-over-costume look has been reused for Kaine, for Miles Morales' early designs, and in multiple video games.

Famous quotes

Five years on the road. Same powers, same nightmares, no Aunt May.
I'm not his shadow. I'm what happens when you get the same lesson twice.

Timeline

  • 1975

    Created as Peter Parker's clone in Amazing Spider-Man #149.

  • 1994

    Returns as the Scarlet Spider in Web of Spider-Man #118.

  • 1996

    Takes over as Spider-Man, then dies at the Green Goblin's hands.

  • 2016

    Resurrected as the Jackal in The Clone Conspiracy.

  • 2021

    Becomes the villain Chasm during Beyond.

Gallery

Scarlet Spider poster art
Spider-Man
Green Goblin poster art
Miles Morales
Silk poster art
Spider-Man 2099

Poster art is generated from each character’s signature palette. Drop official art into assets/images/ and set the img field to swap it in.

Related characters

Frequently asked

Is Ben Reilly a clone of Spider-Man?
Yes — created by the Jackal from Peter Parker's DNA in Amazing Spider-Man #149 (1975). He survived, spent five years travelling under the name Ben Reilly, and returned in the 1990s as the Scarlet Spider before briefly becoming Spider-Man himself.
Was Ben Reilly ever the real Spider-Man?
Marvel said so for a while. During the Clone Saga the company declared Ben the original and Peter the clone, and Ben held the Spider-Man title in 1996. His death at the Green Goblin's hands — his body crumbling as clones do — reversed the claim.
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