Spider-Man: Across the Spider-Verse continues to round out its fabulous cast with the latest member, Daniel Kaluuya. The actor will join Shameik Moore, Hailee Steinfeld, and Jake Johnson, who starred in the first film. In addition, Oscar Isaac, Issa Rae, Brian Tyree Henry, Jorma Taccone, Luna Lauren Velez, and Rachel Dratch also appear in the anticipated sequel.
Across the Spider-Verse will pick up where its predecessor left off, following Miles Morales as he travels through multiverses, joining forces with Gwen Stacy and a new team of Spider-People to face off against a powerful villain. The first movie, Into the Spider-Verse, was a massive hit in 2018, winning an Oscar for Best Animated Feature Film and reaching nearly $385 million at the box office. Sony will look for an even bigger payday the second time around, as audiences can't wait to see the magnificent story and signature art style that helped make the first movie a success.
Kaluuya will play a new role not seen in the initial film, as he takes on Hobart 'Hobie' Brown/Spider-Punk, according to The Hollywood Reporter. The Spider-Man variant is a relatively new character for Marvel, first introduced in 2015 as a homeless teenager who helps the oppressed citizens of New York. However, this won't be Kaluuya's first time with Marvel, as the actor appeared in 2018's Black Panther as W'Kabi.
Unfortunately, we've yet to see his character's return in the MCU, as he's likely been imprisoned following his betrayal of T'Challa. Kaluuya was initially set to appear in the upcoming sequel, Black Panther: Wakanda Forever, however, he was forced to miss out on the film due to scheduling conflicts with Jordan Peele's Nope. So Marvel fans can expect to see the return of Kaluuya in a Marvel property when he appears as Spider-Punk in Spider-Man: Across the Spider-Verse, with a release date planned for June 2, 2023.
Spider-Man: Into the Spiderverse Introduced a Ton of Web-Slinging Variants
Spider-Man: Into the Spider-Verse made a splash in 2018 due to the beautiful animation and the vast number of Spider-Man variants. The film was one of the first to dive into the Multiverse head-on, as Miles Morales met several versions of himself across his journey. During the 2-hour run time, Morales met Peter B. Parker (Jake Johnson), Spider-Ham (John Mulaney), Spider-Man Noir (Nicolas Cage), and Peter Parker (Chris Pine), to name a few.
Across the Spider-Verse should be no different, as fans can expect to see plenty of new Spider-variants from the comics alongside Miles Morales, Peter B. Parker, and Spider-Punk. Oscar Isaac will play Miguel O'Hara, aka Spider-Man 2099, which is just one of many new characters fans will see on the big screen. Audiences have waited for the follow-up for nearly five years, and fans are ready to swing back into the Spider-Verse in June 2023.