SPOILER WARNING
With Across The Spider-Verse taking the world by storm, it seems only natural that our unquenchable greed for web-slinging should force us to look ahead to Part Two – Spider-Man: Beyond the Spider-Verse. Ending on such a cliffhanger this time around was a cruel decision from the creators, but as two-part films go, it was executed rather brilliantly.
Let's not pretend this is a Fast and Furious 10 or Dune situation here. Part Two is so eagerly-anticipated because Part One was so relentlessly brilliant. So, without further ado, what do we expect to happen in Spider-Man: Beyond The Spider-Verse?
Delays –
We should probably preface this whole article by predicting that Spider-Man: Beyond The Spider-Verse (2024) already feels more than a little ambitious from the Sony/Marvel team. Let's bear in mind that it took them five years to create their latest masterpiece, while Hailee Steinfeld has admitted she has not recorded a single line for the next movie, and it recently emerged that the Spider-Man chase scene alone took them four years to animate.
None of that points towards a turnaround of less than 12 months for the third film in the trilogy. And, to be honest, none of us really want that. Spider-Man fans would much rather have a painful five-year wait for a piece of cinema history than a rushed one-year job that satisfies nothing more than impatience. Our Spidey senses are tingling for an open-ended delay on this one, folks.
An Ending –
As sad as it may be, the creators have already announced that the third film will be the final Spider-Verse adventure for Miles Morales. Chris Miller stated that Miles' story will have a complete arch by the end of the trilogy, but that is where their adventure with the character in the Spider-Verse will end. Of course, producers and writers lie all the time to keep the mystery alive, but we do very much believe them here.
These animated movies are so unique and incredible to watch play out on the big screen, but they take painstaking time, effort, and money to create, not to mention the fact that you can have too much of a good thing. Of course, we also cannot ignore the possibility that…
Miles Goes Beyond –
The name of the final film in itself implies that Miles Morales is going to travel BEYOND the realms of what we have seen so far in the trilogy. Many fans have already hypothesized that, by the end of the final movie, Miles will be transported to the ‘real world' where he will be able to join up with the MCU proper in live-action form.
This is very much something we can see happening. The very inclusion of Donald Glover only seems relevant if that is a gap they are trying to bridge. Hopefully, if the producers do go down this route, they must tread extremely lightly. The live-action moments in Across the Spider-Verse were fun, but arguably jarring at times.
Having a live-action twist in Beyond the Spider-Verse could undermine the entire trilogy, so we hope to see it as a final post-credit cut scene if it does happen. Animated Miles Morales finds himself wondering whether there are any other Miles' out there who become Spider-Man… cut to the real world and an actor reveal. The screen goes blank. It reads: ‘Miles Morales will return'.
Prowler Turns Good –
As we know, Across the Spider-Verse ended with Miles being held prisoner by an ‘evil' Prowler version of himself. There are two routes the writers could go down here. Either our Miles has to overcome and defeat that darker side of himself or, what may be more likely, is that the Prowler Miles joins forces with his doppelganger to fight against the overarching villain of the movie, Miguel O'Hara.
Gwen Trans Storyline –
This is a theory that has been doing the rounds on social media and seems to check out. The colour scheme used at times in Gwen Stacey scenes matches the trans flag, while their father is seen wearing a trans pin on his police uniform. There is even a trans flag in the background during one of Gwen's bedroom scenes.
It remains to be seen whether this is something the writers outwardly explore in Beyond The Spider-Verse or whether they just continue to hint at it. It may be that a trans storyline is given greater attention in a future Spider-Woman movie.
Miles' Father Survives –
Traditionally, Spider-Man movies have been about a hero forged in pain. In fact, the motif of Across the Spider-Verse is all about how every origin story iteration involves the sacrifice of a loved one.
It appears that becoming the Chief of Police is a poisoned chalice in the Spider-Man world, and Miles' father is hurtling headfirst into that danger with blissful ignorance.
Although in the past death has been used as a tool to advance Peter Parker's character development, it feels as though saving his father aligns with the tone of this Miles trilogy.
Miguel's Story Has Holes –
If one thing is for sure, Miguel O'Hara is the villain of the Spider-Verse at the moment. It is unclear exactly what he is lying about, but there are definitely some porky pies going on, and they aren't coming from Spider-Ham. We already know from the backstory Miguel admitted on screen that he is a desperate man, willing to travel across the multiverse in search of what he deems to be his perfect life.
While loss has influenced many a Spider-Man in a positive way, it seems to have corrupted Miguel. It certainly seems as if the brooding vampire is up to no good and has a plan to serve his own interests, or at least wants to condemn everyone else to the fate he had to suffer.
Then there are those mysterious injections he keeps taking, which do track with his comic-book origin in some ways but could be redeveloped on the big screen. Could it be that Miguel is getting his powers, or at least controlling them, with those injections?
Returning Characters/Actors –
The producers were correct to sideline some of the main characters from Into The Spider-Verse this time around. The whole concept of the Spider-Verse opens up the door to meeting so many versions of our beloved Spidey, then blasts that door off its very hinges. For the trilogy to weigh itself down on five or six main characters through all three films would have been a complete waste.
They kept Miles, Gwen, and Peter B. Parker as the main iterations to carve the storyline around, with an interchangeable supporting cast who each have their own funny quirks. However, with the team that Gwen builds at the end of Across the Spider-Verse, it appears we could see Nicholas Cage return as Spider-Man Noir, John Mulaney as Spider-Ham, and Kimiko Glenn as Peni Parker. This should provide the perfect balance between all the side characters that have been developed across the previous two movies.
Cameos –
Like it or not, there are probably going to be cameos in the final Spider-Verse film. Considering we had Donald Glover, images of Andrew Garfield and Tobey Maguire, a reference to Tom Holland, and much more in Across the Spider-Verse, we can't see them suddenly switching the tap off next time around.
Of course, there will be plenty of easter eggs, call-backs, and references for Spidey fans of all ages, as we saw during those Spider-Society scenes. If you have a favourite version of Spider-Man, whether it be Lego, cartoon, or popsicle, you stand a good chance of seeing it.
It feels as though there is one big cameo bubbling under the surface with regard to the final film. That could well be some kind of link to an eventual live-action Miles in the MCU, as we discussed earlier. It would feel strange to have included Donald Glover only to end things there, although we really hope they don't overdo the cameos. You can definitely have too much of a good thing.
More Pemberton, Please…
It isn't just the visuals that we can't wait to see back in Spider-Man: Beyond The Spider-Verse, whenever it does actually hit the big screens, but the audio too. Daniel Pemberton composed such an iconic score for Across The Spider-Verse that it has been exploding on Spotify ever since the film dropped.
Of course, that ramps up the pressure for Daniel ahead of the final movie, but we are confident he can deliver. There really is nothing like watching Spider-Man swing through the city to a great song.
In a recent interview, Pemberton said this about Beyond The Spider-Verse: “Here's the deal with the third film. No one will talk about the third film. For multiple reasons. But also because none of us want to talk about the third film. Everyone on this film is so exhausted from this movie. Because this has been one of the toughest, most intense experiences any of us have ever had. Everyone, across the board… when you watch that movie, you can see the effort that has gone into that film. Every frame. Every sound. Every line. Everyone's exhausted. So there's kind of an informal pact. Do not talk about the third film. Ask me in a month! For sure, I'll talk about it. But right now? I ain't talking about it.”
There we have it! Our top ten predictions for Spider-Man: Beyond the Spider-Verse. Do you agree with our selections? Have we missed any of your biggest predictions? Let us know in the comments below!