The Spider-Man: Across the Spider-Verse trailer impresses with six distinct animation styles

Four years later Spider-Man Into the Spider-VerseMiles Morales is back to save the multiverse with all the other incarnations of the superhero in the highly anticipated sequel, Spider-Man: Through the Spider-Verse. The first trailer just dropped, and it looks like another fun ride that kicks off a 3D world – and hopefully a worthy successor to one of the best films of 2018.

(Spoilers for 2018 Spider-Man Into the Spider-Verse less.)

In the spider verse It was the first computer-animated movie to feature everyone’s favorite superhero – in this case, Miles Morales (Shameik Moore), a teenage graffiti artist of black and Puerto Rican descent. Miles is bitten by a canonical radioactive spider while drawing in an abandoned subway station and develops spider-like superpowers. He stumbles upon a plot by Wilson Fisk/Kingpin (Liv Schreiber) to open portals to parallel universes where Fisk’s wife and son are still alive. In Miles’ world, Peter Parker, aka Spider-Man (Chris Pine), is killed by Fisk, and Miles takes up the mantle of Spider-Man.

Miles ultimately saves the day with the help of incarnations of Spider-Man from other universes, most notably Gwen Stacy / Spider-Man (Hailee Steinfeld). Other versions of Peter Parker were played by Jake Johnson, who reluctantly mentored Miles. Peni Parker/SP/dr (Kimiko Glenn) from a parallel universe inspired by the anime; Nicolas Cage channeling his 30’s best noir Impression of Humphrey Bogart. And my personal favorite, Peter Purker, aka Spider-Ham (John Mulaney). In the post-credits, we meet Miguel O’Hara, aka Spider-Man 2099 (Oscar Isaac), who plays a major role in via spider-verse (Apparently, the crew dubbed the character “Spider-Man from property damage”).

In the spider verse It grossed $375.5 million at the global box office against a production budget of $90 million and won the Oscar for Best Animated Feature—the first non-Pixar film to do so since 2011. Even before the film premiered, word of mouth was sure to please Sony. I started developing the sequel. Ars announced Sam Machkovitch In the spider verse being “easily the best comic in years to warmly embrace the kinds of viewers who know their comic stories front and back, all without scaring off the inevitable kids and new viewers drawn to this incredibly family-friendly adventure.”

Moore, Steinfeld, and Isaac reprise their roles, along with Jake Johnson as Peter B. Parker, Miles’ mentor from the 2018 film; Luna Lauren Vélez as Rio Morales, Miles’ mother; and Brian Tyree Henry as Miles’ police officer father, Jefferson Davis. New characters include Daniel Kaluuya as Hobie Brown / Spider-Punk (a guitarist for a British punk rock band); Issa Rae as Jessica Drew, a pregnant spider-woman from another world; and Shea Wiggum as Gwen’s father, Police Captain George Stacy. According to the official introduction:

Miles Morales returns for the next chapter in the Academy Award-winning Spider-Verse saga, Spider-Man: Through the Spider-Verse. After reuniting with Gwen Stacy, his friendly, full-time Brooklyn neighborhood Spider-Man journeys across the multiverse, where he encounters a team of Spider-People tasked with protecting their very existence. But when the heroes clash over how to deal with a new threat, Miles finds himself pitted against the other spiders and must redefine what it means to be a hero so he can save the people he loves most.

One of the highlights of the new trailer is the six distinct animation styles used to flesh out each incarnation of Spider-Man – a largely intentional creative choice. For example, Gwen’s house (Earth-65) has the look and feel of Impressionist watercolors, with colors changing in response to Gwen’s emotions. (It’s been described as a “3D mood ring.”) We also get a glimpse of Earth-50101 (aka “Mumbattan,” which connects Manhattan and Mumbai).

The primary villain this time around is Spot (Jason Schwartzman), his body covered in interdimensional portals designed to look like “living ink spilled or splattered onto a comic artist’s drawing”. Jorma Taccone, who voiced the Green Goblin in the 2018 movie, returns in the sequel as Vulture, with a Renaissance look inspired by Leonardo da Vinci’s drawings.

The trailer begins with a conversation between Miles and his mother, as she awkwardly tries (and fails) to properly use the teen slang of the day. “I’ve been taking care of this little boy for many years, making sure he’s loved, and that he feels like he belongs wherever he wants to be,” says Rio. But she worries that “they”—possibly the embodiment of other web-slingers—won’t look out for Miles the way his family wants. She makes him promise that he will never forget where he came from.

It’s Gwen who draws Miles into this new adventure, which involves a group of incarnations of Spider-Man fighting in some kind of interdimensional space. Apparently, not all of them are “good guys.” There aren’t a lot of details about the plot, but the Stan Lee animated movie alone makes this trailer worthwhile whet our appetite for the movie.

Spider-Man: Through the Spider-Verse In theaters June 2, 2023. We can’t wait. Another sequel is already in the works, along with a spin-off featuring the Steinfeld and Rae incarnations of Spider-Woman, as well as the character Cindy Moon/Silk.

Listing image from YouTube/Sony Pictures