Outside of the MCU, Sony Pictures is looking to expand mightily with its cache of Spider-Man-centric movies. One of the most successful in this endeavor was 2018's Spider-Man: Into the Spider-Verse, the adventure starring Miles Morales that became one of the best animated films ever made. Now, all eyes are looking forward to the long-awaited sequel, Spider-Man: Across the Spider-Verse.
The first trailer for this sequel premiered in December 2021 as fans got a look into how Miles would reunite with Hailee Steinfeld's Gwen Stacy and explore the Multiverse more fully. Throw in an eventual battle with Oscar Isaac's Spider-Man 2099 after his live-action Marvel debut in Moon Knight, and Sony has one thrilling web-slinging adventure on its sticky hands.
Nearly four years after the first movie made its impressive mark on the Spidey legacy, Across the Spider-Verse was initially set to release in October, leaving only 6 months until the return to the Spider-Verse. Now, that date has changed, leaving many disappointed and waiting even longer for this highly-anticipated sequel.
Spider-Verse Sequels Face Unfortunate Delays
Sony announced that Spider-Man: Across the Spider-Verse Part I has been delayed from October 7 of this year to June 2, 2023. Additionally, Part II, which was tentatively set to release in 2023, will now debut in theaters on March 29, 2024.
Additionally, Dakota Johnson's Madame Web had its official release date set for June 7, 2023.
Sad Times for Animated Spider-Man Fans
There's no easy way to say that this news is a tough blow for Spider-Man fans, especially considering that Into the Spider-Verse is almost universally beloved in the superhero movie community.
The first movie wound up not only winning the Academy Award for Best Animated Movie but also became one of the highest-rated movies ever on Rotten Tomatoes at 97%. Across the Spider-Verse has plans to expand that story to incredible levels, and it's a shame that fans will have to wait another eight months to see what it brings.
Sony could be holding back on releasing it to make sure all the animation and visuals live up to expectations, especially since those visuals were so highly touted in the original film. This also still keeps the rights to the character at Sony thanks to the film releasing less than two years after Spider-Man: No Way Home, giving the studio a bit of extra flexibility.
No matter what the reasoning is behind this move, the second dip into Sony's animated Spider-Verse remains high on fans' wishlists in terms of hype and anticipation. Hopefully, after the past couple of years were filled with almost nothing but release dates being pushed back, this will be one of the last to happen for some time.
Spider-Man: Across the Spider-Verse will now release in theaters on June 2, 2023. Part II will then debut on March 29, 2024.
