 Peter 's uncle . Sheen admitted he was unfamiliar with Spider @-@ Man other than Maguire 's portrayal , and knew little of the character Ben Parker except for knowing Cliff Robertson had played the part . Sheen described his character as a surrogate father , saying , " I 'm dealing with this adolescent who is having problems with changes , with hormones changing and his getting out of hand . I have to give him the marching orders and so forth . " Webb said , " You think of Martin Sheen as President Bartlet [ of TV 's The West Wing ] . He has that sense of benevolent authority , but there 's something else that 's important , in terms of the dynamic that I wanted to explore , vis @-@ à @-@ vis Peter 's relationship with his absent parents . " Webb felt that unlike the scientifically inclined Peter , Uncle Ben represented the blue @-@ collar working man , a gap that could create a dynamic between the characters . 
