One of the directors behind Spider-Man: Across the Spider-Verse spoiled the film's ending as it readies for its theatrical debut.
Spider-Verse 2 is mere weeks away, as the animated epic looks to follow up on the success of the 2018 original, Into the Spider-Verse.
The film is set to be "a love story" set amongst the Multiversal shenanigans of Shamiek Moore's Miles Morales and Hailee Steinfeld's Spider-Gwen.
However, not all will be resolved, as Across the Spider-Verse serves as the middle chapter of this story, setting up the grand finale in next year's Beyond the Spider-Verse.
A Major Spider-Verse Spoiler Revealed
Spider-Man: Across the Spider-Verse co-director Kemp Powers revealed a major spoiler for the ending of the upcoming animated sequel
Powers, to SFX Magazine (via GamesRadar), said the film will "end on a bit of a cliffhanger," being a "satisfying tee-up for what’s coming in the third film:"
“Across The Spider-Verse is a movie on its own, but it definitely ends on a bit of a cliffhanger. I think it’s a good cliffhanger. We hope that it’s a satisfying tee-up for what’s coming in the third film, because you want people to be excited about what’s coming next."
He remarked that it "helps that we knew going in that this was part two of a three-part story," so they could "tackle it a bit differently" when it came to resolving the story in Spider-Verse 2:
“And it helps that we knew going in that this was part two of a three-part story. Since you already know that that third story is guaranteed, you can tackle it a bit differently. That being said, there’s a lot of key characters in this film, and there’s a story in this film that has an arc of its own that we needed to complete.”
The Spider-Verse filmmaker then compared the upcoming film to the cliff-hanger seen at the end of Star Wars Episode V: The Empire Strikes Back, saying that he hopes "this is our Empire:”
“I was very satisfied after 'The Empire Strikes Back.' And hopefully, this is our 'Empire.'”
This is not the first time this Empire comparison has come up. Writer-producer on Across the Spider-Verse Christopher Miller recently revealed to Empire Magazine that people who have seen the film "have told us that it feels like The Empire Strikes Back of the Spider-Verse franchise:"
“People who’ve seen 'Across'… have told us that it feels like The Empire Strikes Back of the 'Spider-Verse' franchise. “It shows you worlds you haven’t seen, and it’s an emotional story that ends in a place where you need to see the third one. So, yeah: this is our 'Empire.'”
The Empire Strikes Back of the Spider-Verse
While a cliffhanger ending for Across the Spider-Verse is not all that surprising, seeing as a third movie was already on the cards, what is shocking is that those involved in the film are so openly spoiling the fact that there is a cliffhanger.
It is almost a sign of the confidence these creatives must have in their film to be publicly brandishing the fact that this movie is going to "[end] in a place where you need to see the third one."
If Beyond the Spider-Verse is the Endgame of the franchise, then Across will surely serve as the Infinity War. And fans know how that movie ended.
What is also interesting is all these Empire comparisons being thrown about. That is a lofty statement to compare one's self to not just one of the best sequels ever but one of the best movies ever.
If there is a team that could live up to those standards though, the people behind one of the most beloved animated films of all time, Into the Spider-Verse, feel like they could do it.
And perhaps this Empire comparison goes a little deeper than just the quality and cliffhanger nature of the ending. Empire is also one of the darkest Star Wars films, so maybe Spider-Verse 2 will venture into some tonally dark territory as well.
In a conversation from last fall with The Direct, former Across the Spider-Verse animator Ere Santos revealed he (and much of the team) think this is "not a kid's movie," and maybe an Empire-esque narrative milieu could have something to do with that.
Spider-Man: Across the Spider-Verse comes to theaters, cliffhanger ending and all, on Friday, June 2.
