Two prominent scenes in Spider-Man: Across the Spider-Verse were the result of last-minute decisions for the award-winning Marvel movie. Miles Morales made his return to the big screen in 2023 for Spider-Man: Across the Spider-Verse, as he continued his heroic journey involving the larger multiverse. With the arrival of new characters in Spider-Man: Across the Spider-Verse came different alliances and threats for the teenage hero.
As major as Spider-Man: Across the Spider-Verse was, it didn’t avoid the concept of having to tweak the film prior to opening in theaters. While it is common for superhero and comic book movies to alter the final product, it has not always led to the best result. However, in the case of Spider-Man: Across the Spider-Verse, it may have been one of the strongest decisions by the creative team.
Every Spider-Man Universe That Appears In Across The Spider-Verse
Spider-Man: Across the Spider-Verse takes Miles Morales and Gwen Stacy to many different universes, as the multiverse plot brings some big surprises.
Spider-Man: Across The Spider-Verse Had Two Drastic Last Minute Changes
In a new Collider interview, Spider-Man: Across the Spider-Verse directors Joaquim Dos Santos, Kemp Powers, and Justin K. Thompson shed more light on the Spider-Verse movie and some of the last-minute changes they made before the film arrived in theaters. Kemp Powers opened up on how Donald Glover’s big cameo as the live-action Prowler hadn’t been finalized until a few weeks before the movie was released. In preview screenings, the movie instead “had, like, a South Park-style cardboard cutout of Donald Glover. He was like, “Hai, I’m Donald Glover,” and he was just like a flappy head, and everyone was cracking up.”
There was also a pivotal last-minute scene that was added for the Spider-Man: Across the Spider-Verse ending – namely, the crucial scene showing Spider-Woman assembling her own team to save Miles. Thompson revealed that in one screening, they had the movie end with Miles captive, which led to audience members actually booing the final shot. The team “quickly scrambled and brainstormed and realized. We went back and watched The Empire Strikes Back again, and said, “How did Empire Strikes Back do it?” And we realized, “Oh, they gave you hope at the end.”
Why Spider-Man: Across The Spider-Verse Needed Its Final Changes
To say that Spider-Man: Across the Spider-Verse did the right thing and added those final changes is an understatement. In the case of Glover’s Prowler cameo, the idea of a cardboard cut-out with just a mimicking actor would have been incredibly silly, even for this movie. To have Glover actually suit up and engage with an alternative version of his nephew is way more memorable and also shows the great crossovers that can happen between animation and live-action, which is currently almost entirely unexplored territory for the superhero genre.
On a similar note, if Spider-Man: Across the Spider-Verse ended without a glimmer of hope for the titular hero, it’d have been a massively melancholy note to end on. Given the wait for Spider-Man: Beyond The Spider-Verse‘s release may be some time, seeing Gwen and some familiar faces set out to save Miles at least leaves audiences with a less grim cliffhanger. Hopefully, the changes made to Spider-Man: Across The Spider-Verse will pay off even more satisfyingly when the third installment hits the big screen.
Spider-Man: Across the Spider-Verse
Miles Morales returns in Spider-Man: Across the Spider-Verse, the sequel to Spider-Man: Into the Spider-Verse. With his identity still safe but “grounded” by his parents, Miles Morales is visited by his friend from another dimension, Gwen Stacy. Inviting him on a new adventure, Miles jumps at the opportunity but is seemingly accosted by an unknown assailant on his journey. Miles and Gwen will unite with new and old Spider-Heroes to face a villain of immeasurable power.
- Director
- Joaquim Dos Santos , Kemp Powers , Justin K. Thompson
- Release Date
- June 2, 2023
- Writers
- Dave Callaham , Phil Lord , Christopher Miller
- Cast
- Shameik Moore , Hailee Steinfeld , Oscar Isaac , Jake Johnson
- Runtime
- 120 Minutes
- Franchise(s)
- Spider-Verse , Spider-Man
Key Release Dates
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