In less than two decades, Spider-Man has built quite the film resume, with seven appearances under his belt. But next month marks the first time that the Web-Slinger's mythology is being tackled on the big screen through animation, as Spider-Man: Into the Spider-Verse will see new Spider-Man Miles Morales teaming up with veteran Spidey Peter Parker, the Spider-Gwen version of Gwen Stacy and other Spider-heroes from across the multiverse. And this won't be our only time delving into this particular continuity, as Spider-Man: Into the Spider-Verse 2 and a separate spinoff movie are already in development.
According to THR, Joaquin Dos Santos, whose previous animation work includes Avatar: The Last Airbender and Netflix's Voltron, has been hired to direct the Spider-Man: Into the Spider-Verse 2. No specific details for the sequel were revealed, but presumably Miles Morales will remain the focus like he is in this first movie. Zombieland 2 and Wonder Woman 1984's David Callaham is writing the script.
At the same time, Lauren Montgomery, who has also worked on Voltron and co-directed animated DC movies like Superman/Batman: Apocalypse and Justice League: Doom, has been tapped to helm an "untitled Spider-centric project" that will see various female Spider-heroes teaming up and likely have Spider-Gwen taking center stage. Zoo's Bek Smith is writing the script.
Clearly Sony has confidence in Spider-Man: Into the Spider-Verse if the studio is already beginning work on a sequel and spinoff. Currently the movie is predicted to make between $28 million and $35 million opening weekend, though Sony is being more reserved and is tracking it as just $30 million. Spider-Man: Into the Spider-Verse's major opening weekend competition is Mortal Engines, although the week after will see the release of Mary Poppins Returns, Aquaman and Bumblebee, among others.
Given that Peter Parker (this time played by Tom Holland) is still the star of the show when it comes to live action Spider-Man stories, it makes since that Spider-Man: Into the Spider-Verse 2 will keep Miles Morales front and center rather than switch focus to Jake Johnson's version of Peter. Since being introduced to the comics in 2011, Miles has become one of Marvel's most popular characters, and while it remains to be seen if we'll ever see him in live action, these animated movies will be a good way to expand his fanbase.
Looking at this women-led Spider-spinoff, characters like Spider-Woman (the Jessica Drew version), Spider-Girl (Mayday Parker), Madame Web and Silk are among the heroes who could be brought in to share screen time with Spider-Gwen. Remember, these movies are working with countless parallel realities, so no idea is too crazy to implement. After all, Spider-Man: Into the Spider-Verse features has a web-spinning, anthropomorphic pig!
Sony now has its Spider-properties covered on both the animated and live action fronts for the foreseeable future. Regarding the latter, along with Sony partnering with Marvel Studios on Spider-Man's MCU adventures, the studio is also building out its own shared universe of Spider-Man characters. Venom kicked off this franchise last month and has made a ridiculous amount of money, and now two more movies are scheduled for 2020, which are suspected to be Morbius and Venom 2.
You can catch Spider-Man: Into the Spider-Verse in theaters on December 14, and stay tuned to CinemaBlend for more updates on its sequel and spinoff.
