Going into Spider-Man: Across the Spider-Verse, I hoped the movie would connect to the larger MCU multiverse. That the characters from Into, Across, and Beyond the Spider-Verse will be available to Marvel in Spider-Man 4 and Avengers movies down the road. All the initial confusion went away as soon as I saw the sequel. I had a way for Spider-Verse 2 to connect to Spider-Man 4 and any other SSU and MCU.
It’s not wishful thinking, either. An insider revealed that Sony consulted with key Marvel writers for Spider-Verse 2. That information should address anyone’s concerns about Spider-Verse 2’s place in the grand scheme. But the same insider also delivered a few exciting updates about the Spider-Man: Across the Spider-Verse‘s potential ties to Spider-Man 4.
Before I proceed, you should know that big Across the Spider-Verse spoilers will follow.
Why I want the Spider-Verse to be part of the MCU multiverse
Into and Across the Spider-Verse are quite possibly the best Spider-Man movies that Sony ever made. It’s all thanks to Spider-Verse 2, really. And I include the MCU Spider-Man movies in the list.
It’s perfectly fine for the Spider-Verse trilogy to exist outside the MCU and Sony’s Spider-Man Universe (SSU). But leaving the Spider-Verse characters behind would be such a waste. That’s why I want to see more of them after Beyond premieres next March. If it can make that release date amid the writers’ strike, that is.
Miles Morales (Shameik Moore) and Spider-Gwen (Hailee Steinfeld) are two such characters, although plenty of Spider-Verse 2 Spider-People would deserve a place in future SSU/MCU adventures. Even a nod in Spider-Man 4 would be great.
The latter can’t be a multiverse movie. Sony and Marvel just pulled that trick with No Way Home. We can’t have another meeting of Spider-People so soon. But it doesn’t have to be a multiverse film for a connection to exist.
Across the Spider-Verse is MCU multiverse canon
Alex Perez said in a Cosmic Circle podcast that Sony talked to Jeff Loveness and Michael Waldron while making Spider-Verse 2. That’s because the Spide-Verse is part of the larger MCU multiverse, even if it doesn’t make sense.
The events in Across the Spider-Verse are MCU canon and might be referenced in live-action movies.
Tom Holland’s Spider-Man did not cameo in Spider-Verse 2, as rumors said, but Perez said they planned to have him in the sequel. Wearing the costume below, not the one Peter makes at the end of Spider-Man 3.
Holland’s Spidey is just one of the variants they had to cut. But these extra Spider-People might appear in Beyond the Spider-Verse next year. And we might have Miles Morales & Co. visit live-action universes from other Spider-Man movies. It’s unclear what those live-action realities will be, however.
Across the Spider-Verse’s big Easter egg is exactly what you think
With all that in mind, there is one big link between Spider-Verse 2 and Spider-Man 4. The live-action Prowler (Donald Glover) that Hobie (Daniel Kaluuya) captured somewhere in the Spider-Verse isn’t a variant of the character we saw in Homecoming. It’s the same character from Earth-616, who might appear in Spider-Man 4.
Perez referred to an older rumor that Sony was testing Glover’s Prowler costume. He assumed at the time it was production work for Spider-Man 4, which should be a street-level adventure. It turns out that Sony wanted to use the live-action Prowler variant for Spider-Verse 2.
Will we see the Prowler in the next Spidey movie? Nothing is guaranteed at this time. We know the Spider Society is working on grabbing Spider-Man-related villains from realities they don’t belong and sending them back home. That’s what they intend to do with this Prowler version. But that’s not enough to say Spider-Man 4 will have a live-action Prowler in it.
Let’s also remember the recent rumor that said Spider-Man 4 will deliver a live-action version of Miles Morales.
