There have been an excessive amount of Spider-Man adaptations and numerous actors taking on the iconic role, so it seemed unlikely that an animated Spider-Man film not centered on Peter Parker would become successful. The surprising Spider-Man: Into the Spider-Verse flipped that doubt on its head, and its sequel, currently titled Spider-Man: Into the Spider-Verse 2, is looking to do the same.
The 2018 critically-acclaimed film, which would go on to win the Academy Award for Best Animated Feature Film, offered a fresh new story for fans to latch onto, and they did just that. From its poignant story, engaging characters, to the vibrant yet trippy visuals that pop out of the screen, the film brought spidey swinging back in a unique and stylish way with more heart than ever. Having so much buzz surrounding the film, there was no doubt a sequel would eventually be in development.
Although fans still have to wait almost another year, there's no better time to discuss the bits of information released already (especially with the MCU's live-action Spider-Man: No Way Home introducing the multiverse). While many details of the upcoming sequel are still under wraps, this is what is currently known so far about Into The Spider-Verse 2.
Creators and The Release Date?
Garnering so much success after it the first film's initial release, Sony announced a sequel in November 2019 with a release date of April 8, 2022. Animated pictures can take a greater amount of time to develop (especially a film that contains this type of groundbreaking animation), making that 4-year gap seem like a long wait, and due to the COVID-19 pandemic, that date was pushed even further back. So now, fans can expect Miles Morales and the rest of the crew to swing back into action on October 7, 2022.
While duo Phil Lord and Chris Miller are returning to write and produce the film (producing alongside Avi Arad and Amy Pascal), new directors Joaquim Dos Santos, Kemp Powers, and Justin K. Thompson hopped on to direct in April 2021. Kemp's most recent work as a co-director and main writer for Pixar's Soul should have plenty of fans excited for what's to come next in this universe/s. The trio is replacing the original film's other 3 directors.
Cast
What the first film did so well was balancing so many characters and making each of them have some sort of arc throughout the story. From Miles Morales learning to form his own identity and understand the responsibility that comes with being a hero to Peter B. Parker's disheveled version of Spider-Man and dealing with the ramifications of his past while also being a mentor to Miles, they all feel so fleshed out. It makes sense that the sequel will continue to have emotionally resonant characters, but for the returning cast, Shameik Moore's Miles Morales and Jake Johnson's Peter B. Parker are both onboard along with Hailee Steinfeld's Gwen Stacy. And while the other spider-people returned to their universes, it'd be no surprise if they are featured in the sequel as well.
In an interview with Total Film (via ScreenRant) back in 2019, Rodney Rothman, co-director of the first film, teased that Doctor Octopus' character/villain could return. "In the end, we found the movie played fine without us tagging every single possible thing. But we definitely think of Liv as someone who is not gone from the story, and who in many ways, is our most powerful bad guy. She's manipulating a lot of things to achieve her own grand ambitions."
For notable additions, Issa Rae joined the cast in June 2021 and it appears Oscar Isaac's Spider-Man 2099 will play a role in the sequel. His character was hinted at again when an announcement that the sequel was one year closer to its release date was tweeted back in January.
Upcoming Trailers?
Now for what every fan is craving. There's a lot of buzz circulating around this year's Spider-Man: No Way Home (which still is forcing anxious fans to speculate when a trailer will drop) and the Venom: Let There Be Carnage trailer that dropped in August. And knowing Marvel will want to take its time to focus its attention on its upcoming releases, it seems that fans won't be getting a full trailer of Spider-Man: Into the Spider-Verse 2 anytime soon. But hey, with the multiverse being introduced in Spider-Man: No Way Home, maybe there could be some sort of tie-in to the Spider-Verse sequel.
Plot
In terms of plot, the film is set to focus more on the relationship between Morales and Gwen Stacy. This relationship being developed will eventually set up the Spider-Women spin-off that was announced in November 2018 which will feature Steinfeld's Spider-Gwen and Rae's Spider-Woman. As mentioned before, it's unclear what type of role Spider-Man 2099 will play, but expect it to be a prominent one.
Though taking its time, it looks like Spider-Man: Into the Spider-Verse 2 will swing back for another worthy story filled with thrilling action, impactful characters, and impressive animation.