TV & Movies

Beyond the Spider-Verse directors tease “unexpected, thrilling” sequel

Cameron Frew
Miles Morales and Miguel O'Hara in Spider-Man: Across the Spider-VerseSony Pictures

Spider-Man: Beyond the Spider-Verse, the third and final part of the Miles Morales trilogy, will be an “unexpected, thrilling” sequel, according to the directors.

Coming five years after its Oscar-winning predecessor, Across the Spider-Verse opened in cinemas to rave reviews. “It had a tough act to follow, but manages to raise the stakes, both in style and the sheer amount of Spider-People,” we wrote.

Some viewers may have left the cinema feeling frustrated over its huge cliffhanger, but this has been known for more than a year; the second and third films were originally titled Part 1 and 2.

Now, the wait is on for Beyond the Spider-Verse, and the movie’s co-directors have opened up about what to expect from the last steps of Miles’ journey. Spoilers to follow…

Beyond the Spider-Verse directors tease what to expect from sequel

Across the Spider-Verse ends with Miles in a sticky spot: he’s trapped in Earth-42, an alternate version of his own world that’s mostly the same… except there’s no Spider-Man, and this universe’s Miles has turned to a life of crime as The Prowler.

In a new interview with Variety, co-directors Joaquim Dos Santos, Kemp Powers, and Justin K. Thompson spoke about Miles having to deal with a “major, not-so-simple-to-solve problem in the third film.”

“It was really important to have this thing where Miles wants to save his dad, but then he’s faced with this Pottersville version of a world that was created because of this thing that happened to him,” Powers said, referencing what happened to It’s a Wonderful Life’s Bedford Falls without George Bailey.

“It’s not going to be as simple as him wanting to just escape this world. He’s going to try to do right by people who he feels he’s done wrong by, and that just felt more potentially emotional and unpredictable as we go into the third film. It complicates his mission in a way that we hope people find unexpected and also thrilling.”

“The multiverse provides us with these sort of sliding doors,” Dos Santos added.

“It allows us to ask these questions like the head games you play with yourself: ‘If I had done this, instead of that, what happens? How does my life turn out?’ You get to see those things play out on screen.”

In terms of actual specifics, you’re out of luck: the directors and writers are staying mum about the threequel. “To quote Chris Miller: ‘Anything is possible’ is the best way we can answer. We’re just so relieved to have this story done in a way that we’re proud of,” Powers said.

Spider-Man: Across the Spider-Verse is in cinemas now. Check out our other coverage below:

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