Spider-Man: Into the Spider-Verse star Jake Johnson has now revealed that he is close to confirming a deal that would see him return as the beer-gut brandishing Peter B. Parker in the upcoming sequel. While the actor has revealed in the past that he was unsure whether there would be a role for the alternate wall-crawler in Spider-Man: Into the Spider-Verse 2, it seems that things have taken a turn towards the positive, with Johnson revealing that, should things work out, Peter B. Parker will be back.

"I've been working on a contract. I believe Peter B. Parker is making a return."

Introduced in 2018's animated Oscar winner, Spider-Man: Into the Spider-Verse, Peter B. Parker is an endearingly dishevelled, jaded version of the Marvel superhero, who reluctantly becomes mentor to Miles Morales when he is suddenly dragged into another dimension. Directed by Bob Persichetti, Peter Ramsey, and Rodney Rothman from a screenplay by Phil Lord and Rothman, the first Into the Spider-Verse throws audiences in a shared multiverse, with the story following Miles Morales as he becomes the new Spider-Man after being bitten by a radioactive spider, and the death of his world's Peter Parker, joining other Spider-People from various parallel universes to save New York City from the Kingpin.

While Jake Johnson is not yet fully confirmed to be making a return, the actor cannot wait to see what the writers have come up for the sequel. "I don't know/ I haven't seen it! All I know is that I heard nothing for the longest time and I was very sad," Johnson said. "I really loved playing Peter B. Parker. I would like to know what happens with Peter B. Parker. I think the way his journey ended in the first movie was very open-ended. So, when I got word that they were working on a deal or figuring it all out, I thought I truly can't wait to see what the writers came up with."

Details of Spider-Man: Into the Spider-Verse 2 are being kept under wraps, but according to Chris Miller and his fellow producer Phillip Lord, countless other versions of Spider-Man could factor into the project. "I think there's a bunch [of possible characters], and I don't want to say too much because there's a wide breadth of characters that are coming out of the Spider-Man universes now." Miller previously explained. "And it's really fun to be able to sort of think about plucking ones that you haven't seen before or have something interesting thematic to say."

The highly anticipated follow-up will once again take place within the madness of the multiverse, with reports claiming that the movie will focus more on the relationship between Miles Morales and Gwen Stacy AKA Spider-Woman, played by Shameik Moore and Hailee Steinfeld respectively. Spider-Man: Into the Spider-Verse 2 is being directed by Joaquim Dos Santos, Kemp Powers, and Justin K. Thompson from a screenplay by David Callaham, Phil Lord, and Christopher Miller, with actress Issa Rae having recently been added to the web-slinging roster as Jessica Drew AKA Spider-Woman.

Spider-Man: Into the Spider-Verse 2 is scheduled to be released on October 7, 2022. This comes to us from The Movie Dweeb.