For over 60 years, the pages of The Amazing Spider-Man and its various other Marvel spinoffs have been home to some of the best superhero storytelling of all time. From the days of Stan Lee in the ’60s to today’s creators like Dan Slott, here are our picks for the 10 greatest creative team runs of the friendly neighborhood Spider-Man of all time.

10. J.M. DeMatteis with Sal Buscema, Spectacular Spider-Man #178-203 (1991-1993)

Writer J.M. DeMatteis is perhaps most famous for his comedic take on DC’s Justice League, but he also wrote a relatively brief but fantastic run on The Spectacular Spider-Man, from issues #178-200. This was after he wrote the epic Kraven’s Last Hunt storyline in 1987. During his 26-issue run, which lasted from 1991 to 1993, he and artist Sal Buscema told one of the best stories ever involving Harry Osborn and his descent into becoming the Green Goblin, which culminated in issue #200 of Spectacular Spider-Man. It was one of the very few gimmick covers of the ‘90s that actually had a good story behind it. Add in the introduction of the villain Vermin, some X-Men, and this run deserves its status as one of the best.

9. Peter David with Rick Leonardi, Spider-Man 2099 #1-44 (1992-1997)

Peter David has defining runs on several iconic comic book characters, including the Hulk, X-Factor, and for DC, Aquaman. But he also had a pretty defining run for Spider-Man. It’s just the Spider-Man that wasn’t Peter Parker. In 1992, Marvel tasked David with creating a new, futuristic Spider-Man with Spider-Man 2099. This wall-crawler was Miguel O’Hara, the half-Mexican/half-Irish hero who was the first not Peter Parker ongoing character to be called Spider-Man in 30 years.

Together with artist Rick Leonardi, David inverted almost everything about Peter Parker’s Spidey. Miguel was wisecracking out of costume, totally mute as Spider-Man, and so on. His web shooters were organic and not mechanical (something Sam Raimi would later use). The run only lasted 46 issues and four years, but judging from the character’s renewed popularity thanks to Across the Spider-Verse, it’s fair to say David’s run had a long-lasting impact.

8. Todd McFarlane, Spider-Man #1-16, (1990-1991)

Todd McFarlane became an instant superstar in the comics world when he illustrated David Michelinie’s Amazing Spider-Man run in the late ‘80s. His versions of Spidey and Venom became iconic, so much so that Marvel gave him his own Spider-Man title to both draw and write—despite his inexperience as a writer at the time. So in 1990, McFarlane launched Spider-Man #1, which sold an incredible 2.5 million copies. Marvel would break that record a year later with a certain team of mutants.

McFarlane’s writing was a bit over the top, especially by modern standards, but his overall storytelling was undeniably entertaining. It was exactly what the audience craved at the time. His darker take on villains like the Lizard, Kraven, and Hobgoblin redefined the look of those characters. The crossovers with Wolverine and Ghost Rider were very ‘90s, but also very fun. This is one of the shorter runs on this list, but also one of the most iconic. McFarlane’s run only lasted 16 issues as he left Marvel in 1992 to form Image Comics, yet its impact was huge.

7. Dan Slott, with Humberto Ramos and Ryan Stegman, The Superior Spider-Man #1–33 (2013-2014)

Dan Slott has been one of the most prolific Spider-Man writers of the 21st century. But although he’s written plenty of iconic Peter Parker stories, his best Spider-Man run was actually about Otto Octavious, a.k.a Doctor Octopus. In Slott’s Superior Spider-Man series, Peter Parker’s body is taken over by the consciousness of Doc Ock, who takes over Peter’s life and decides he can be a better Spider-Man than his old enemy ever was. Although he does try to do the right thing as Spider-Man, more or less, he’s still arrogant and insufferable. Nevertheless, it was all fun as heck to read. The art by folks like Humberto Ramos, and Ryan Stegman was also always top-notch. Otto was Spidey for less than two years, but it was a memorable two years.

6. Jeph Loeb and Tim Sale, Spider-Man: Blue #1-6, (2002-2003)

In the late ‘90s, the creative team of Jeph Loeb and the late Tim Sale produced one of the greatest Batman stories of all time, The Long Halloween. A few years later, from 2002 to 2003, they re-teamed to tell a story about Peter Parker and his great lost love, Gwen Stacy. In the mini-series Spider-Man: Blue, Peter Parker recounts the events of Amazing Spider-Man #40-48. This modern retelling includes Sale’s incredible renditions of characters like Kraven, the Lizard, the Rhino, and the Green Goblin. And, of course, Gwen Stacy and Mary Jane Watson. Blue is only six issues long, but it still stands as one of the most heartfelt and beautifully written and illustrated Spider-Man stories of all time.

5. Gerry Conway with Gil Kane and John Romita, The Amazing Spider-Man #111-149 (1972-1975)

Following up the legendary run of Stan Lee, which lasted a decade, would have been an unenviable task for any writer. But Gerry Conway took big swings in his Amazing Spider-Man run, which lasted from 1972 to 1975. Conway’s stories were enhanced by some gorgeous art by Gil Kane and Spidey veteran John Romita. It was during Conway’s run that fans met the villainous Jackal and his cloning operation (this would matter a lot 20 years later).

Conway’s MJ became a more fully fleshed-out character. She wasn’t just the “out of his league” supermodel anymore. Oh, and Conway’s run also introduced the world to the Punisher. You may have heard of him. Most importantly though, Gerry Conway bucked all known comic book conventions at the time with one shocking act. He did this by killing off Peter Parker’s longtime girlfriend Gwen Stacy. The repercussions of this are still being felt in the Spider-Man titles today.

4. David Michelinie with Todd McFarlane, Erik Larsen, and Mark Bagley, Amazing Spider-Man 296-352, #359-388 (1987-1994)

In the late ‘80s, Spider-Man was still Marvel’s best-selling solo character, but some excitement had fallen away from Peter Parker. Then, writer David Michelinie took over writing duties in 1987. This was shortly after Peter Parker married MJ, and he focused on the high-stakes soap opera of their lives. During his seven-year run on Amazing Spider-Man (second longest-run after Stan Lee) he worked with some of Spidey’s best-ever artists. Names that became iconic, like Erik Larsen, Mark Bagley, and Todd MacFarlane. And together, they made comics magic. Highlights of his run include the introduction of villains Venom and Carnage. Luckily, he bailed from writing duties right before the infamous Clone Saga, so his run remains untainted.

3. J. Michael Straczynski with John Romita Jr., Mike Deodato, and Ron Garney, Amazing Spider-Man Vol. 1 #500-545, Vol. 2 #30-58 (2001-2006)

At the same time Marvel was injecting new life into teenage Peter Parker in the Ultimate Spider-Man titles, the comics publisher had to figure out what to do with the adult Peter in the 616 universe. They brought in Babylon 5 creator J. Michael Straczynski, who made Peter a school teacher. He teaches at the very same place others bullied him as a kid, Midtown High School. Straczynski wrote adult Peter and MJ better than anyone in years and did so by adding a level of sophistication largely absent in the late ‘90s stories.

He also introduced lasting elements to the mythology like Morlun, a villain who hunts spider-totems across dimensions. That’s a huge influence on the Spider-Verse mythology in the animated films. Sadly, his run also revealed a sordid retcon of Gwen Stacy and Norman Osborn, but nobody’s perfect. The main artists for this run were Mike Deodato and John Romita Jr. The latter’s work on this run made him stand with his father as one of the definitive Spidey artists of all time. Straczynski’s run ended with the much-hated undoing of the Peter Parker and MJ marriage. However, that was an event Marvel editorial forced on him. We don’t hold it against him.

2. Brian Michael Bendis, with Mark Bagley, Stuart Immonen, Sara Pichelli, Chris Samnee, David Marquez, and Pepe Larraz, Ultimate Spider-Man #1-160, Ultimate Comics Spider-Man #1-27 (2000-2011)

During the late ‘90s, Marvel was in trouble creatively and financially. The company emerged out of bankruptcy in the early 2000s, knowing it had to take drastic measures to gain new readers. Marvel conceived the Ultimate line, which involved fresh modern takes on classic characters. Writer Brian Michael Bendis reintroduced Peter Parker and his supporting cast as 21st century teens in Ultimate Spider-Man. And from issue one, the dialogue and characterization were absolutely top-notch. The kids felt real in a way mainstream comics characters hadn’t in a long time.

The reinvented versions of Spidey’s villains often surpassed the originals as well, particularly Norman Osborn. Bendis and artist Mark Bagley did over 100 issues together. Actually surpassing Stan Lee’s run, Bendis continued the title with artists Stuart Immonen, David Lafuente, and Sara Pichelli, with whom he co-created Miles Morales, one of the biggest contributions to come from the Ultimate Spider-Man line. Between Peter Parker and then Miles, this run heavily influenced Spider-Man’s portrayal in other media. This run was an absolute game-changer, surpassed by only one other.

#1. Stan Lee with Steve Ditko, John Romita, John Buscema, and Gil Kane, Amazing Fantasy #15, Amazing Spider-Man #1-100 (1962-1971)

“With great power, comes great responsibility.” This was the only run that could have ever taken the top spot. While Stan Lee co-created almost all the most iconic Marvel Comics heroes, without a doubt his 100-issue run of The Amazing Spider-Man was his best work. With artists like Steve Ditko (Spidey’s co-creator) and later, John Romita, Lee introduced everything that forms the core of what Peter Parker is to this very day. Name a classic Peter Parker personality trait or trope, and chances are it came from Lee.

Lee’s stories introduced 90% of the most iconic Spider-Man villains, like Green Goblin, Doc Ock, Sandman, Mysterio, Kraven, and so many more, not to mention most of the most well-known members of Spidey’s supporting cast. Stan Lee’s run on Amazing Spider-Man lasted a full decade, and it remains the bible from which all following Spider-Man runs on this list pulled from. Simply put, no other Spider-Man run could likely ever take the top spot. Stan Lee and his collaborators broke the mold.

The post The 10 Greatest Spider-Man Comic Book Runs of All Time appeared first on Nerdist.

Marvel’s Spider-Man 2 took the world by storm upon release, and like any good Marvel narrative worth its salt, it’s chock full of teasers for the future and many Easter eggs. If you weren’t excited about the idea of a third Spider-Man game from Insomniac for PlayStation 5 before, you will be after all of these hints of what’s to come. Let’s break down those Marvel’s Spider-Man 2 post-credits teases and cameo appearances.

Marvel’s Spider-Man 2 Hints at Doc Ock’s Return and the Green Goblin

In the mid-credits scene of Marvel’s Spider-Man 2, we witness the return of Doc Ock himself, Dr. Otto Octavius (William Salyers), the first game’s Big Bad. After the Venom symbiote is removed from Harry Osborn, his father, Norman, appears, blaming both Spider-Men for hurting his son. Afterward, Norman arrives at the supervillain prison called the Raft, hoping to learn the Spider-Men’s identities from Dr. Octopus. But Doc Ock keeps his secrets and tells Norman, “We all have to experience loss.” When Norman Osborn sees that Otto Octavius has been writing something in a journal, he asks “What are you writing?” to which Dr. Octavius answers ominously, “The final chapter.”

In an interview with Entertainment Weekly, The game’s co-creator Bryan Intihar, said of the Marvel’s Spider-Man 2 mid-credits scene, “I can tell you that scene, in some way, has always been the plan since day one. We knew that the second game would end with that kind of scene.” As for the appearance of Spider-Man’s biggest nemesis of all, the Green Goblin, it’s been teased since the first game, where we saw Norman’s pumpkin bombs and prototype mask. But the Green Goblin persona has yet to appear in the Marvel’s Spider-Man games. “We’ve literally discussed Green Goblin at every game,” Intihar says. “If you bring him in, it’s kind of like Venom. There are very, very big expectations. So, you want to make sure if you’re going to do it, you’re going to deliver on it.” If Marvel’s Spider-Man 3 is indeed the grand finale, expect to hear a familiar cackle.

Marvel’s Spider-Man 2 Introduces the Spider Heroine Silk

The second Marvel’s Spider-Man 2 post-credits scene introduces yet another popular arachnid hero to the mix. As we learned throughout the game, Miles Morales’ mom, Rio Morales (Jacqueline Pinol), mentions that she’s begun dating again after her husband’s death. In the final Marvel Spider-Man 2 post-credits scene, we learn who that someone is. Rio introduces her new beau Albert Moon to Miles. But also tagging along is Albert’s daughter Cindy Moon, who waves in the background.

As Marvel Comics fans know, Cindy Moon is a superhero herself, known as Silk. The very same spider that bit Peter Parker also bit her on that field trip. She kept her powers secret until adulthood, unlike Peter. But the introduction of Silk adds another member of the Spidey family to Marvel’s Spider-Man game’s universe. Even though the team considered adding in Spider-Gwen, the game’s co-creator Jacinda Chew said, “Cindy Moon is a character that has so much possibility because she’s not as well known. We were like, ‘Let’s just do something different.'”

Marvel’s Spider-Man 2 Hints at Spider-Man 2099

Also, the game looks to connect to the wildly popular Spider-Verse films. This should come as no surprise, as the Insomniac Spider-Man appeared in Across the Spider-Verse. In one of the game’s side missions, we see Peter and Miles try to round up some rogue Spider-bots. Miles’ buddy and tech expert Ganke (Griffin Puatu) sends you to an alleyway where a portal opens up. A portal in the familiar hexagonal style of Multiverse travels from the Spider-Verse films. Here is where we see the character of the assassin Delilah, who in the comics has fought Spidey. After examining the Spider-bot, she remarks, “If Miguel comes looking for these, tell him, ‘Finders keepers.'” This Marvel’s Spider-Man 2 Miguel mention can only allude to Miguel O’Hara, better known as Spider-Man 2099. Hey, it’s not just the MCU that’s “all connected.”

Marvel’s Spider-Man 2 Features a Mini Firefly Reunion

Oh, and blink and you miss it, but the game had a small Firefly reunion. Actors Nathan Fillion and Alan Tudyk play two dudes wearing cat mascot suits and Spider-Man masks christened Bodega Cats in Marvel’s Spider-Man 2. These two have an argument outside a bodega. Both Fillion and Tudyk came in for the relatively small roles just because they are huge fans of the Marvel’s Spider-Man game franchise. And the two, who are both no strangers to voice-over acting, recorded their Marvel’s Spider-Man 2 cameos in one weekend.

With all these teases and reveals, including the ones mentioned above and some others teasing Carnage and Chameleon, here’s hoping that a Marvel’s Spider-Man 3 game from Insomniac isn’t too many years away.

The post Here Are the MARVEL’S SPIDER-MAN 2 Post-Credit Reveals and Easter Egg Cameos appeared first on Nerdist.

We love horror here at Nerdist, but we were kids once too. Not every kid watches A Nightmare on Elm Street at eight years old. Some of us watched regular old cartoons. But, those of us who grew up in the ’80s and ’90s can tell you some of those were scary as hell too. Everyone just wanted to terrify children back then. D’ose were da days. To that end, members of the Nerdist team have delved into their own kinder-fears to give you examples of episodes of cartoons that traumatized us.

We should point out, we’re pretty much leaving out anything that was inherently terrifying. Like Courage the Cowardly Dog, for example. That sh*t was designed to be scary every week. Picking an episode of this would be too easy. Anyway, without further ado.

Rocko’s Modern Life – “To Heck and Back”

To immediately contradict the above, it’s entirely possible Rocko’s Modern Life, Nickelodeon’s fourth Nicktoon which premiered in 1993, was in fact meant to terrify kids. The show, about a Wallaby’s foibles of daily existence, has some of the creepiest and most grotesque imagery this side of Ren & Stimpy. However, I don’t think anything was as nightmare fueling from that series as “To Heck and Back,” the second cartoon of the eleventh episode of the series. In it, Rocko’s best friend Heffer Wolfe (a cow) chokes to death on a chicken bone and as Rocko tries in vain to save him, has a truly disturbing trip to Heck where he meets the avatar of death itself, named Peaches.

It’s not merely that Heffer dies (he has Xs for eyes!) but it’s that Peaches at the end takes off his black hood to reveal his head is made of cow udders and sprays milk everywhere. It’s one of the most vivid memories I have of this entire show, because it scared the poop out of me. – Kyle Anderson

Spider-Man and His Amazing Friends – “The Bride of Dracula!”

Saturday morning cartoons in the ‘80s loved using classic monsters, but always watered them down to a ridiculous degree. One of those times was when Dracula popped up on Spider-Man and His Amazing Friends and hypnotized Angelica Jones into becoming his bride. He didn’t even know she was the superhero Firestar, he just had a thing for redheads. He might not have picked her if he knew was a living sun. Oops.

In the episode, Vlad takes her to Transylvania, where his Frankenstein and werewolf henchman fight Spidey and Iceman who come to save her. The idea that Drac might just randomly pop into a school dance and choose you as his victim is actually pretty scary when one is nine years old. And his werewolf henchman Bruno was actually scarier to any kid than Dracula, and stuck in my mind longer. Sadly, Dracula doesn’t bite anyone, but at least he’s not as lame as Super Friends Dracula, who turned people into vampires with eye beams. -Eric Diaz

Rugrats – “Under Chuckie’s Bed”

As a late ‘80s baby and ‘90s kid, Rugrats was a huge part of my cartoon lineup. I loved watching those silly babies with large heads go on ridiculous adventures. But one journey I didn’t love was when Chucky made his transition from a crib to a big boy bed in “Under Chuckie’s Bed.” I was long out of the crib stage at this point. However, I still had some serious anxiety about monsters lurking in every shadow of my room, including under my bed. And watching A Nightmare on Elm Street while living on Elm Street didn’t bolster my confidence about sleeping in a bed alone.

Hearing a voice call out to Chuckie, attempting to bribe him into the darkness under his bed with candy gave me chills. Of course, Angelica makes it worse with her story about Barnaby Jones, in which we see Barnaby getting pulled into the abyss in a very It-like fashion. Sure, Chuckie’s monster was only a sweater in the end but the possibility of ending up like Barnaby loomed in my mind. – Tai Gooden

Yu-Gi-Oh! – “Evil Spirit of the Ring”

At its heart, Yu-Gi-Oh! has some truly excellent horror bones. After all, the main conceit of the show is that its characters are basically getting possessed by ancient spirits all of the time. Even the friendlier ones don’t exactly always ask permission. But no character brings the creeps and chills quite like Yami Bakura. And that’s why his introductory episode is the one that makes this list. While other Bakura episodes of Yu-Gi-Oh! are arguably scarier, like his eyeball-filled Battle City duel with Yami Yugi or his graveyard-set, zombie-ridden encounter with the aptly named Bones, this episode is the most quintessentially creepy and also has a great feeling of Halloween.

For starters, “Evil Spirit of the Ring” takes place in the Shadow Realm and involves characters getting their souls sent to a graveyard where they’re chased by the Grim Reaper and see their names on gravestones. And on top of that, Yu-Gi-Oh’s main gang get to play dress up during this episode in true Halloween style. They’re transformed into monsters on the playing field and literally become their favorite cards. It’s horrifying from the perspective of their experience, but also a lot of fun. Taken together, this eerie episode of Yu-Gi-Oh! summons not only evil the spirit of the Millennium Ring but also the spirit of tricks and treats. – Rotem Rusak

Scooby-Doo on Zombie Island

I’m gonna cheat a little here and pick the movie Scooby-Doo on Zombie Island. While not technically an episode of the television show, this direct-to-video horror classic made regular appearances on Cartoon Network throughout my childhood and left a lasting impact on my love of all things spooky. With a more serious and genuinely scary tone than the previous adventures of Scoobert-Doo and company, Zombie Island was an essential piece of gateway horror that felt exciting and dangerous and is undoubtedly responsible for spawning many lifelong fans of the genre. – Alison Mattingly

Beetlejuice – “Laugh of the Party”

As a kid I thought the Beetlejuice animated series was the greatest thing on TV, I just couldn’t articulate why. My child analysis was mostly limited to saying, “It’s really funny!” Now, as an adult with an expanded vocabulary and greater media literacy, I realize young me nailed it. If you want to see why go back and watch the show’s delightful first Halloween episode, “Laugh of the Party.” It features Beetlejuice attempting to throw a real-world Halloween bash using Neitherworld aides. Predictably that leads to a hilarious disaster.

The episode, like the entire show, totally holds up thanks to the cartoon’s timeless comedic sensibilities. The series blended silly and smart humor via absurdist gags, memorable characters, and clever wordplay. That was all anchored by the genuine friendship between Lydia and the Ghost with the Most. Their partnership made every party, even ones with Halloween monsters running amok, worth attending. -Michael Walsh

BONUS: Turbo Teen

I can’t pick a single episode of this bizarre 1984 series (which I saw later in the ’80s) because the entire thing is messed up. I’m all for things changing into other things in cartoons. Hell, Transformers was my absolute jam. Even people turning into animals, or animals turning into human-like things. I loved all of it. So why, then, was Turbo Teen so upsetting? Well, have you seen it?! It’s about a teenager who has the power to turn into a car. He’s not mechanical, mind you. He can just turn his body into a sports car. The transformation sequence, which they showed ad nauseum in every episode, is almost more harrowing than the similar scene in An American Werewolf in London.

I mean, just look at this monstrosity!

His face turns into the car’s grill! His friends sit inside him! That’s as gross as it gets. – Kyle Anderson

The post Cartoon Episodes From the ’80s and ’90s That Scared Us as Kids appeared first on Nerdist.

What is canon and what is not to the MCU has been a topic of fervent fan debate for years. Is Agents of S.H.I.E.L.D., which referenced the events of Avengers, actual MCU canon? What about the former Netflix shows like Daredevil, which also made mention of Avengers like Captain America and Thor? Well, we now have an answer to that question from the guy in charge, Kevin Feige. In his introduction to the book Marvel Studios: The Marvel Cinematic Universe—An Official Timeline, he wrote the following:

On the Multiverse note, we recognize that there are stories—movies and series—that are canonical to Marvel but that were created by different storytellers during different periods of Marvel’s history. The timeline presented in this book is specific to the MCU’s Sacred Timeline through Phase 4. But, as we move forward and dive deeper into the Multiverse Saga, you never know when timelines may crash or converge (hint, hint/spoiler alert).

FYI, our own Editor-in-Chief Amy Ratcliffe cowrote that book.

So, in short, everything utilizing Marvel characters, whether produced by Marvel Studios or not, is part of a branched timeline in the overall Marvel Multiverse. Some we already knew about. The original Sam Raimi Spider-Man films, and the Marc Webb Amazing Spider-Man films? No Way Home confirmed them as Multiverse canon. Dr. Strange in the Multiverse of Madness confirmed Patrick Stewart’s Professor X, and Deadpool 3 is set to canonize Hugh Jackman’s Wolverine. Even if these are variants of the Fox X-Men films, it indicates all those movies are also Multiverse canon.

Also, with clips of Tobey Maguire and Andrew Garfield’s respective Peter Parkers in Across the Spider-Verse, not to mention the appearance of Donald Glover in his MCU role as the Prowler in that film, those animated films also exist in the overall MCU Multiverse tapestry. Will movies like Ang Lee’s Hulk, Sony’s Ghost Rider films, and others get included in Avengers: The Kang Dynasty or Secret Wars? Well, Jennifer Garner as Elektra in Deadpool 3 suggests it’s all on the table now. Heck, why not Howard the Duck? Stranger things have happened.

Right now, the MCU is the highest-grossing film franchise of all time. By a lot too, with $29 billion dollars total. By contrast, the #2 slot goes to the Star Wars franchise, which is a distant second at $10 billion. But if the MCU now includes pre-Marvel Studios films? Oh man, then does that number ever go up. The mutant franchise at Fox adds $10 billion to that sum. The non-MCU Spider-Man films? About $8 billion total. Even the Fantastic Four films have collectively made $800 million. Throw in a couple of Blade films, we’re talking about a franchise that has made some $50 billion dollars. Easily the biggest success story in Hollywood history. And a record we’re likely never going to see surpassed in our lifetimes. In the meantime, we’re just excited to see Hugh Jackman take on Tobey Maguire while Deadpool just laughs at them both.

The post Kevin Feige Confirms All Marvel Films and TV Shows Are Part of the MCU Multiverse appeared first on Nerdist.

The Spider-Verse has shown “anyone can wear the mask.” It’s a beautiful sentiment, but let’s face it, the odds a radioactive spider grants us super arachnid powers is probably close to zero. (Yes, “probably.” We refuse to give up all hope.) That doesn’t mean we can’t experience what it’s like to be a friendly neighborhood hero, though. We can be a beloved webbed-slinger in video games, and the next chance we’ll have to do that will expand our horizon—and our wardrobe. Three new trailers for Marvel’s Spider-Man 2 reveal a ton of drama and many foes, a full closet worth of incredible Spidey-suits, and an even bigger map to explore.

Villans Are Everywhere in Marvel’s Spider-Man 2 Slightly Spoilery Launch Trailer

It’s almost time for the web-slinging to begin. And in Marvel’s Spider-Man 2 launch trailer, we’re thankful for our team of Spidey heroes because there sure will be many villains for them to fight. Beware, though, this new trailer is slightly spoilery.

Kraven, Lizard, and Venom all take a starring role in this upcoming game, and we can see their full strength in Spider-Man 2‘s latest look. But we also get a couple of surprises. The nefarious Spider-Man villain Sandman appears in this trailer, and he is absolutely terrifying (and enormous). Not to mention we see Mister Negative fighting Miles. Any spider-donning hero in Marvel’s Spider-Man 2 better watch out.

A synopsis released with the trailer shares:

Spider-Men, Peter Parker and Miles Morales, return for an exciting new adventure in the critically acclaimed Marvel’s Spider-Man franchise for the PS5 console. Nine months after the events of Marvel’s Spider-Man: Miles Morales, we find Miles still enlisting Peter’s help, but when the mysterious symbiote appears, Peter and Miles’ relationships are put to the test. Peter begins to change as he gains symbiote powers, and Miles, Mary Jane, Harry, and the rest of the friend group must help Peter while also facing the impending threats from a cast of new villains like Kraven, Lizard, Sandman, and Venom!

We can hardly wait.

MANY New Spider-Man Suits Are on the Horizon

The second new trailer from Insomniac Games and PlayStation for Marvel’s Spider-Man 2 highlight the game’s Digital Deluxe edition. This promo features the many, many, many suits players can opt to use in the game, which will see “Peter Parker and Miles Morales face the ultimate test of strength inside and outside the mask as they fight to save the city, each other and the ones they love, from the monstrous Venom and the dangerous new symbiote threat.”

The game will include the following options for Spidey-ware:

• 5 unique Miles Morales suits
• EnC0ded Suit design by Kris Anka
• Biomechanical Suit design by Jerad Marantz
• Tokusatsu Suit design by Julia Blattman
• Agimat Suit design by Anthony Francisco
• Red Spectre Suit design by Sweeney Boo
• 5 unique Peter Parker suits o Aurantia Suit design by Raf Grassetti
• Apunkalyptic Suit design by Jerad Marantz
• Tactical Suit design by Joel Mandish
• Stone Monkey design by Victoria Ying
• 25th Century Suit design by Anthony Francisco

Pre-ordering Marvel’s Spider-Man 2 will also get a few more suits. Those who buy it ahead of its October 20 release will nab an Arachknight Suit for Peter with three color variants and a Shadow-Spider Suit for Miles that also comes with three color variants. Pre-orders will get an early unlock Web Grabber gadget.

Is that…too many suits? No, no, that’s not a thing. We truly need all the suits. Especially since we’ll have even more places to show them off.

Marvel’s Spider-Man 2 Reveals Expanded NYC Gameplay Map

Marvel’s Spider-Man 2‘s last new trailer, narrated by Insomniac Games’ Senior Creative Director Bryan Intihar, shows the expanded map players will encounter in the game.

Peter and Miles’ open-world adventures will let them go to their respective home burrows, Queens and Brooklyn. Those long-overdue additions to Marvel’s Spider-Man 2 will double the original release’s New York City’s map. And how will you traverse so much ground fast enough to save the day? With new web wings that will help each Spider-Man zip through the air.

These new Marvel’s Spider-Man 2 trailers provide even more insights into the new aspects players will find in the game. But the most important one remains the same. It will let us wear the mask. Many, many, many versions of the mask.

Originally published on September 15, 2023.

The post Launch Trailer for MARVEL’S SPIDER-MAN 2 Reveals More Villains, Venom, and Lots of Drama appeared first on Nerdist.

When you’re swinging through the skyline of New York City and running on the side of buildings, you probably need some amazing footwear. Well, as Stan Lee was fond of saying, you’re in luck, True Believers! Via Marvel, we’ve learned Adidas is joining forces with Sony Interactive Entertainment, Marvel, and Insomniac Games to create the Adidas Peter Parker Advanced Suit and Venom collection, featured in the latest installment of Marvel’s franchise video game series, Marvel’s Spider-Man 2, which arrives October 20 for the PlayStation 5 console. You can check out an image gallery of the new shoes below.

Click To View Gallery

This new collection showcases Peter Parker’s Advanced Suit, right as the Venom symbiote overtakes it. The Marvel’s Spider-Man 2 collection includes a large selection of Spidey-inspired footwear and apparel. These include Ultraboost J and Ultra 4D sneakers, the Adizero 12.0 football cleat, sweatshirts, and even compression tights. Adidas made this collection to appeal to both gamers and athletes, and of course, everyone who is both. Also, look out for some Adidas-branded products featured in-game. The regular folks on the ground in New York mainly wear these, but maybe you’ll see a super person or two wearing them as well.

This is not the first time there’s been an Adidas collaboration with the Spider-Man and Sony brands. Back in 2020, at the time of the release of Marvel’s Spider-Man: Miles Morales, Adidas came out with a special red and black pair of Superstar shoes in honor of the game. But this new Venomized shoe is just that much cooler. When you wear them, make sure you let everyone know you did not, in fact, step in black tar. The Peter Parker Advanced Suit and Venom collection will be available to purchase from October 20 via the Adidas app, online, in stores, and in selected retailers.

The post Adidas Is Releasing ‘Venomized’ Shoes to Celebrate MARVEL’S SPIDER-MAN 2 appeared first on Nerdist.

In April 2022, Sony announced a new Spider-Man spinoff movie for their Sony Marvel universe, El Muerto. This movie was meant to focus on Marvel’s super-powered wrestler, anti-hero El Muerto. It was announced to star award-winning singer and rapper Bad Bunny at the time. Especially exciting was the prospect of El Muerto marking the first time a Latino actor would lead a Marvel film. However, the movie has faced some difficulties in becoming a reality since then. In June, Sony removed this Spider-Man spinoff from its release calendar. And most recently, Bad Bunny shared he would no longer star in El Muerto.

Speaking to Vanity Fair about the movie, Bad Bunny, whose full name is Benito Antonio Martínez Ocasio, noted, “I don’t know what to say,” when asked about the El Muerto role, offering that it was a “delicate” situation. The publication’s write-up alluded to an awkward pause. Ultimately, Bad Bunny’s publicist concluded, “Obviously, it’s out.”

Bad Bunny’s exit from El Muerto sounds like sad news for both the star and fans of the character. The actor’s on-screen skill combined with his WWE training made him perfect for the Marvel role. According to Entertainment Weekly, the actor even said, “I love wrestling. I grew up watching it, and now I’m a wrestler. That’s why I love this character. I think it’s the perfect role [for] me. It will be epic.”

Though El Muerto, whose real name is Juan-Carlos Estrada Sanchez, is not a particularly well-known comic character, the Sony movie seemed like a great opportunity to let him shine in a bigger way.

The good news is that, while removed from Sony’s release calendar, El Muerto remains in development with Jonás Cuarón as its director. While we would have loved to see Bad Bunny in the lead role of the Marvel film, we hope that, after the studios are willing to pay their actors fairly, ending the current SAG-AFTRA strike, we’ll see the movie move forward.

The post Bad Bunny Will No Longer Star in Sony’s SPIDER-MAN Spinoff Movie EL MUERTO appeared first on Nerdist.

Blue Beetle, starring Xolo Maridueña as the titular character, is a delightful adaptation of the DC Comics legacy superhero. But much like the Jaime Reyes version of Blue Beetle from the comics drew inspiration from many previous superheroes in print, so does that cinematic version find its inspiration in some great superhero media. Mostly films, but also some television. Here are some key superhero films and one TV series which likely influenced Blue Beetle director Angel Manuel Soto in one way or another.

Iron Man (2008)

When one thinks of superheroes who wear high-tech suits of armor, the first character anyone thinks of is usually Iron Man. And while Jaime Reyes’ suit isn’t metal per se, it’s definitely a form of armor. The scenes in the film where he’s learning how to fly under the Scarab’s power, and making plenty of mistakes along the way, recall similar scenes from the first Iron Man film. Not to mention the scenes of sheer joy and wonder at what the suit can do. Obviously, it’s not a one-for-one. Unlike Robert Downey Jr.’s Tony Stark, Jaime Reyes didn’t create his own suit. But the scenes in Blue Beetle evoke many of the same feels as Iron Man.

Spider-Man: Homecoming (2017)

It’s hard to think of any teenage or college-age young superhero and not think of Spider-Man. Every costumed teen with an ordinary family and struggling with ordinary problems, like getting a job and paying bills? In some way, they are all descendants of Peter Parker. But of all the Peter Parkers in film and over the years, it seems Jaime is most influenced by the MCU’s Spidey (Tom Holland). Simply because that Spidey is unique, in that he has a high-tech suit he doesn’t quite understand. All thanks to Tony Stark. Scenes in Blue Beetle where Jaime is talking to Kahji Dha, the Scarab’s sentient AI, recall similar scenes in Homecoming where Peter is carrying on conversations with the suit’s AI named Karen. And just trying to figure out how the darn thing works.

Shazam! (2019)

When Jaime Reyes can’t get the Scarab to obey his commands by asking nicely, he literally jumps off the roof of a building. Knowing full well the Scarab will protect him and give him the Blue Beetle armor. Sound familiar? It’s similar to the first Shazam!, when Billy Batson (Asher Angel) jumps off a roof, transforming into a hero mid-air. But of course, there are more similarities to Shazam than just that. After all, Billy and Jaime are two young men who out of nowhere have incredible ancient power thrust on them. And both have to step up to become the latest in a long line of heroes. No magic word for Jaime to say, but the similarities are there.

Venom (2018)

On the surface, Marvel’s antihero Venom and DC’s Blue Beetle don’t have a lot in common. But of course, Venom is an alien lifeform that attached itself to reporter Eddie Brock (Tom Hardy) and forms a symbiotic relationship with him. Eventually, the symbiote and Eddie begin to share their thoughts becoming interdependent on the other. With the Scarab Kahji Dha, Jaime Reyes forms a symbiotic relationship of his own with a mysterious alien presence. While we wouldn’t describe the Scarab as “alien goo” like Venom, when the suit overtakes Jaime is more like some kind of living liquid than just armor plating going up like Iron Man. That is definitely some Venom influence.

Batman Beyond (1999-2001)

Not all the influences on Blue Beetle are live-action movies. There’s a healthy dose of the animated series Batman Beyond in there too. In the 1999-2001 animated series, ordinary teenager Terry McGinnis stumbles upon the Batcave of the now-retired Bruce Wayne. It’s a cobwebbed, dusty place filled with relics of Batman’s crime-fighting days. He ultimately takes on the mantle of Batman—whether he’s trained and ready or not. When Jaime Reyes steps into the dusty old secret bunker of Ted Kord under his mansion, it instantly recalls Terry McGinnis finding the Batcave and all its wonders in Wayne Manor. That both Terry and Jaime are inheritors of a heroic legacy with cool flying suits is just the cherry on top.

Blue Beetle is currently playing in theaters everywhere.

The post The Cinematic Superhero Influences of BLUE BEETLE appeared first on Nerdist.

Spider-Man: Across the Spider-Verse made an impact when it arrived in theaters in June. It shook up the box office while continuing the striking storytelling and animation from Into the Spider-Verse (at a cost, however, because animators alleged harsh working conditions). The film explores the next chapter of Miles Morales’ story, which stretches across the multiverse. While it’s still about Miles, Across the Spider-Verse focuses on Gwen Stacy as well. You can watch the first 10 minutes of Across the Spider-Verse below—10 minutes that follow Spider-Gwen.

This preview comes with the home release of Across the Spider-Verse and sets the stage for the emotion ahead. Like Miles, or any of the Spider-Mans we meet in comics, Gwen wrestles with her dual identity. She goes through life as Gwen Stacy but also as Spider-Gwen. Her father is a cop who disregards masked vigilantes. Gwen’s life unfolds on separate paths. And like any version of Spider-Man, Gwen loses someone close to her: her best friend Peter Parker. Then her dad blames the “Spider-Woman” for Peter’s death. These opening scenes of Across the Spider-Verse depict the loss in Gwen’s recent past and how she’s struggled since.

Did we mention Spider-Man: Across the Spider-Verse is a very emotional movie? We can’t wait to see what happens next in the third installment, Beyond the Spider-Verse. Though originally slated for March 2024, Sony removed the film from its release calendar. We’ll likely see a new release date when AMPTP steps up to pay striking actors and writers fairly.

In the meantime, you don’t have to stop watching after these gorgeous 10 minutes. Spider-Man: Across the Spider-Verse is available to buy on digital.

The post Watch the First 10 Minutes of SPIDER-MAN: ACROSS THE SPIDER-VERSE appeared first on Nerdist.

Sony Pictures’ Spider-Man Universe is ever-expanding. Coming up very soon is Kraven the Hunter. Sony’s Kraven the Hunter film has been in the works for some time now, but it has finally turned a corner. With Aaron Taylor-Johnson as Kraven, suiting up for his third different superhero project, we know we’re in for… something. Here’s everything we know about Sony’s Kraven the Hunter movie.

Title

The film is named Kraven the Hunter, after its central character.

Kraven the Hunter’s Plot

In the original Marvel Comics, Sergei Kravinoff is born into an aristocratic Russian family. He becomes a world-famous international big-game hunter, who tries to catch the ultimate and elusive prize: Spider-Man. The villain first shows up in The Amazing Spider-Man #15 (1964). The Stan Lee/Steve Ditko creation is a founding member of the Sinister Six. Later stories show witch doctor Calypso giving Kravinoff an herbal potion, granting him enhanced speed and senses that match those of a wild jungle cat.

In Kraven the Hunter, it seems like we’ll get an origin story for the Spider-Man villain. Take a look at the movie’s official trailer below.

Unlike Venom, the character of Kraven has never had a shelf life outside of being a Spider-Man villain. So it’s hard to see how they are going to create a narrative around the character that doesn’t involve the wall-crawler in some form. There is no news of Tom Holland appearing in the movie so far.

Kraven the Hunter will unsurprisingly be Sony’s first R-rated Marvel movie. As Aaron Taylor-Johnson eloquently noted at Sony’s panel at CinemaCon 2023, “Will it be rated-R? F**k yes, it will be rated R.”

Behind the Scenes

A Most Violent Year’s J.C. Chandor is directing a script from Art Marcum, Matt Holloway, and Richard Wenk, with Avi Arad, Matt Tolmach, and David Householter producing.

Kraven the Hunter’s Cast

The upcoming film is anchored by Aaron Taylor-Johnson, who is playing Kraven the Hunter. Joining him are Russell Crowe, Ariana DeBose, Fred Hechinger, and Alessandro Nivola. Crowe will play Kraven’s father. Meanwhile, Nivola will play classic Spider-Man villain Rhino, and Hechinger will act as Kraven’s brother, Chameleon. DeBose will play Calypso.

Additionally, Deadline reports that Christopher Abbott will join Kraven the Hunter. Although unconfirmed, the publication shares that Abbot will play the film’s main villain, the Foreigner. In the comics, Foreigner is a Spider-Man villain with the ability to induce hypnotic trances. Otherwise, it is his skills in martial arts and mastery of weaponry that makes him a threat. As we learn more about Kraven the Hunter‘s plot, we will see how this character comes to exist on the screen.

Kraven the Hunter’s Release Date

Kraven the Hunter will now arrive in theaters on August 30, 2024.

Originally published on May 26, 2021.

The post Everything We Know About the KRAVEN THE HUNTER Movie appeared first on Nerdist.

Five years later and I’m still in awe of how good and complete a Spider-Man story the PlayStation Spider-Man game is. A thorough experience all around, but add the three-part DLC and the spinoff game Miles Morales and you’ve got one of the best Spidey stories in any non-comic medium. Because of that, the hype for the sequel has been off the charts. Happily, we now know the Spider-Man 2 game will officially release on October 20. A story trailer, released at San Diego Comic-Con, shows more of what’s ahead.

The Marvel’s Spider-Man 2 gameplay footage released with the announcement (below) begins with Peter—now sporting a brand new black-goo suit. Hmm, wonder what that can be all about. He tries to stop the Kraven cronies from hunting Dr. Curt Conners, who has become fully, monstrously Lizardish.

We get to see some of Spider-Man’s new Venom skills before we swap to Miles. He now has a very good sense of his own powers. Stealth will still play a part in the new game, and one can hope they’ve upgraded the AI of the thugs to make it a bit more sporting. Not long after, Miles, Peter, and Miles’ friend-and-guy-in-the-chair Ganke control a drone as they chase down Conners and try to keep him (and everyone else in NYC) out of Kraven’s crosshairs.

As with the first Spider-Man game, a large amount of plot and character comes during dialogue during gameplay. Here we learn that Conners’ research is integral to helping with Harry Osborn’s condition. If you’ll remember, the end of the first game showed Harry deep in the throes of a debilitating disease. No way that will turn him into Green Goblin. Can’t imagine it will.

Those of us who know the Spider-Man mythos know the black suit and Peter’s gruffer attitude will lead to some problems for his loved ones. However, he’s not likely to remain John Goo for very long. And while Sony has confirmed the game will not be two-player co-op, we have full faith that Miles Morales will provide the player with plenty of opportunities to save Petey Pie.

Marvel’s Spider-Man 2 will be out on October 20, 2023.

Originally published on May 24, 2023.

Kyle Anderson is the Senior Editor for Nerdist. You can find his film and TV reviews here. Follow him on Instagram and Letterboxd.

The post MARVEL’S SPIDER-MAN 2 Sets Release Date, Trailer Showcases Kraven, Venom, and More appeared first on Nerdist.

Spider-Man: Across the Spider-Verse did much more than leave us with one of the biggest cliffhangers of all-time. The animated adventure introduced us to more Spider-People than we could possibly count. In fact, a handful of them are now integral to Miles Morales’ story. One of them is Pavitr Prabhakar, an Indian Spider-Man from Earth-50101 who lives in Mumbattan. Who can forget that epic scene of Miles, Gwen, Hobie, and the very dashing Pavitr teaming up to save his home from the Spot? We cannot wait to see what they will all do together in this final fight to save many universes from the Spot’s expansive attack. Thanks to the film’s resounding success, Pavitr is getting his own epic five-issue Marvel comic adventure in Spider-Man: India.

Spider-Man: India is written by Nikesh Shukla with Adam Kuber and Neeraj Menon crafting its artwork and Abhishek Malsuni as the comic’s penciler. Here’s a quick description of what’s going down with Pavitr Prabhakar’s Spidey: 

SPIDER-MAN: INDIA RETURNS! Just in time for his big role on the silver screen, Spider-Man: India returns for his first miniseries in almost twenty years! Pavitr Prabhakar is back, fresh from “The End of the Spider-Verse” in his own universe’s Mumbai. But things aren’t exactly simple. There’s a science professor promising results, activating people’s “lizard brain” along with a ruthless businessman who may be more than he seems… Don’t miss the break-out Spider-Character of 2023!

Sounds like a blast, indeed! It is super exciting to see a crop of new stories featuring diverse Spider-Mans, especially ones that we are now getting to see on the big screen. We cannot resist a wild standalone adventure, especially one involving lizard strangeness. Spider-Man: India’s first issue is already out in the world and quickly sold out. But never fear; this friendly neighborhood Spider-Man’s first issue is getting a reprint just in time for its second issue. In fact, we have some incredible preview panels for Spider-Man: India #2 to share with you.

Click To View Gallery

Spider-Man: India #2 swings to stands on July 26, so grab your copy (along with the first issue, of course!) and get ready to dive back into Pavitr’s world.

The post SPIDER-MAN: INDIA Comic Miniseries Takes Pavitr Prabhakar on a Thrilling Adventure appeared first on Nerdist.

Spider-Man: Across the Spider-Verse, and to a lesser extent Spider-Man: No Way Home, have both exploded the Spider-Man mythos in wild new directions. Nothing is off the table now when it comes to Spidey movies. So we think Sony and Marvel should start thinking outside the box. There are plenty of weird, off-the-wall Spider-Man tales that would make for amazing films, in both animation and live-action. Here are some wild chapters from Spider-Man’s comic book history that just might work (or be hot messes). But we’d love to see them try!

The Six-Armed Spider-Man

One of the earliest of the “weird” Spider-Man stories came in Amazing Spider-Man #101-102, in a Stan Lee-written tale where Peter Parker decided to take a serum to remove his powers, which caused him so much grief over the years. Instead, they cause him to mutate into a more spider-like being with six arms. While this story only lasted two issues, it was adapted into a memorable episode of the ’90s Spider-Man cartoon. And there are some wild What If…? stories where Six-Armed Spider-Man is actually proven to be better, and even defeats Thanos! All because he had a few more extra limbs. We dare you to make that movie, Sony and Marvel.

The Superior Spider-Man (Doc Ock Spidey)

For over a year in the comics, Peter Parker was dead. Not in body, just in mind. And his mortal enemy Doctor Octopus took over his physical form and retained his memories. And after experiencing all the pain and sacrifice Peter went through, he had an epiphany and became a hero. He was still an arrogant jerk, however, declaring himself the “Superior Spider-Man.” But in some ways, he really did a better job at being Peter Parker than the real Peter Parker, even creating a huge business empire, Parker Industries. Superior Spidey briefly popped up in Across the Spider-Verse, but he deserves his own movie.

Spider-Man and the X-Men

In the Marvel universe, the X-Men are mutants, and Spider-Man, famously, is not. He got his powers from that infamous spider bite, and doesn’t have an X-gene. But in the Spider-Man and the X-Men limited series, Wolverine asks Peter Parker, who recently taught at Midtown High, to teach ethics at the Jean Grey School for Gifted Youngsters (the renamed Xavier School). While there, he investigates a traitor at the school, and has to deal with super-powered students who don’t have much respect for their teacher, Mr. Spider-Man. Corporate logistics might make this one impossible, but what a fun animated film this would make.

Spider-Island

In the two Spider-Verse films, as well as in No Way Home, we’ve learned that there are an infinite number of variants of Spider-Man across the Multiverse. But what if everyone on the island of Manhattan suddenly got spider powers too in just one reality? That’s the premise of Spider-Island, a 2011 storyline that had Peter Parker suddenly dealing with a New York where everyone has his spider powers, but not his moral compass. This one is probably too wild for live-action, but it would make for an incredible animated Spider-Man movie.

Spider-Man vs. Dracula

When you think of Spider-Man, you don’t usually think of gothic monsters like vampires (Morbius notwithstanding). Dracula seems like a more natural enemy for someone like Batman. But back in 1974, in Giant-Size Spider-Man vs Dracula, Peter Parker took on the Lord of the Vampires himself. Well, except he really didn’t? In that comic, written by the great Len Wein, the two never even fight. They just happen to be on the same ship at sea for reasons. Luckily, in more recent times, in the YA book Ultimate Spider-Man: Spider-Man vs. Dracula, he really fights the legendary bloodsucker and his undead armies with the help of S.H.I.E.L.D. We say adapt that one and forget the original.

The Spectacular Spider-Ma’am

Why have a Spider-Man, when you can have a Spider-Ma’am? Yes folks, there is a Spectacular Spider-Ma’am, and she is Aunt May herself. In an issue of What If…? from 1980, Spider-Ma’am was introduced in a story where her nephew Peter forgot his lunch at home. So May rushed to the science demonstration field trip to give to him, and she was bitten by that pesky radioactive spider instead. She made a costume and set out to do stunts to support her family, but ended up fighting the villain Leap-Frog. We can’t tell you how down we’d be for this as a movie. An Aunt May movie was once seriously discussed. This is the only one we want to see.

Cosmic Spider-Man

What if Spider-Man was a cosmic god? That’s not a What If…? story; for a time, that actually happened in the pages of Marvel Comics’ main continuity. For a brief few issues, Peter Parker gained the might of the so-called “Uni-Power,” and became Captain Universe. When a professor at Empire University had a machine in his lab overload and unleash the mysterious Enigma Force, it surged through Peter Parker’s body, giving him the cosmic Uni-Powers. Man, what are the odds of being in two lab accidents that give you super powers? As the new host for this ultimate power, he became Cosmic Spider-Man. It didn’t last long, as the power left him for a new host. But a movie where Spidey gets suddenly as strong as Galactus? Sign us up.

The post These Weird SPIDER-MAN Stories Would Make for Wild Movies appeared first on Nerdist.

Moviegoers haven’t exactly been fond of watching living vampires. However, in 2022, Sony announced it was expanding its Peter Parker-free live-action Spider-Verse. The studio was getting back into the ring with another Spider-Man baddie. Bad Bunny was cast as the super-powered Marvel wrestler El Muerto in this Sony solo antihero film. However, according to Variety, El Muerto has now been removed from Sony’s release schedule.

The film had an initial release date of January 12, 2024, but now its release date is unknown. We’re crossing our fingers that it gets a new one sooner rather than later. When it does release, El Muerto will mark the first time a Latino actor will lead a Marvel film.

As to what we do know about El Muerto, Benito Antonio Martínez Ocasio, most commonly known by his stage name Bad Bunny, will play the title character of this Marvel movie. Additionally, Jonás Cuarón, the son of Alfonso Cuarón, will direct the movie. And, according to The Wrap, Blue Beatle writer Gareth Dunnet-Alcocer is writing El Muerto‘s script.

El Muerto, whose real name is Juan-Carlos Estrada Sanchez, is not an especially famous Spider-Man comic book character. He made his debut in 2006’s Friendly Neighborhood Spider-Man #6. Yet he’s only made two appearances in the comics’ main Earth-616 timeline. But we can’t wait to see how Sony will bring the character to life.

Sony seemingly couldn’t have made a better choice for the role than Bad Bunny (Bullet Train). The performer’s own interests intersect perfectly with El Muerto’s story. El Muerto is a title and set of powers the character inherits from his family via a wrestling mask. He even faced off with Spider-Man in the squared circle. (El Muerto is way tougher than Bonesaw McGraw.) Sony says Sanchez will be on the verge of getting those powers in the film. And Bad Bunny doesn’t need much training for the part. He’s worked with the WWE previously. And he gave what many consider the greatest celebrity wrestling performance in company history.

And if you can earn the respect of wrestling fans, turning a minor comic book character into a star shouldn’t be that hard. Maybe just don’t wrestle any living vampires.

Although we don’t know when exactly El Muerto will release, we’ll be keeping our eyes open for new developments.

Originally published on April 26, 2022.

The post Bad Bunny’s SPIDER-MAN Movie EL MUERTO Removed From Sony Release Calendar appeared first on Nerdist.

One of the most prolific and legendary artists to ever work for Marvel Comics has left us. John Romita Sr. has sadly passed away at the age of 93, on June 13. The news arrived via Twitter, in a post from his son John Romita Jr., himself an art legend at Marvel Comics. The elder Romita was especially famous for taking over art duties on The Amazing Spider-Man, redefining Peter Parker’s look. This was after Spidey’s co-creator Steve Ditko left the title. During his time with Spidey, he introduced several of his co-creations to the lore, like the Kingpin and Peter Parker’s future wife, Mary Jane Watson. Stan Lee asked Romita to draw “the most beautiful girl you can imagine” when creating MJ. Romita delivered on that promise in just one iconic panel.

In addition to his five-year run on The Amazing Spider-Man, Romita also co-created the characters of Wolverine, Luke Cage, and the Punisher. Technically Jack Kirby and Steve Ditko co-created the bulk of the classic Marvel heroes and villains. But by the early ’70s, Romita was the chief architect in how Marvel’s characters looked in merchandising. John Romita became the go-to guy when you needed images of Marvel’s pantheon of heroes drawn in heroic poses. In fact, during this period, John Romita Romita would serve the role of Marvel’s art director.

John Romita was born in Brooklyn, New York in 1930, the son of Italian immigrants. By 19, he was already working as a comic book artist. He would then find success drawing romance comics aimed at a female audience. In 1966, he got hired by Marvel, to draw their relatively low-selling series Daredevil. But after eight issues, Stan Lee hired him to take over for Steve Ditko when he left The Amazing Spider-Man.

During Romita’s time, he put his experience with romance comics to good use. He made Peter Parker more handsome, like a soap opera lead. He became a character MJ Watson would believably fall for. During Romita’s Spider-Man tenure, the title would go from Marvel’s second best-selling title to their biggest seller.

If you were a Gen-X kid growing up in the ’70s and ’80s loving Marvel Comics, then the art of John Romita was the way you perceived the Marvel characters. From calendars to plastic cups to posters to lunchboxes, it was Romita’s renditions that were on almost every piece of merchandising during this era. The Marvel “House Style” ultimately wasn’t Jack Kirby or Gil Kane or any other prolific artist, it was Romita’s. The heroic pose of Spidey standing in the center of his web was an image every kid knew back in the day. Most kids didn’t know who drew it, but it was the distinctive touch of John Romita. Although Romita mostly retired for the last several decades, he drew the occasional issue or cover for Marvel, reminding younger readers that he still had it. His contributions to the art form of comic books will not be forgotten.

The post Iconic Comic Book Artist John Romita Has Passed Away, Age 93 appeared first on Nerdist.

Everyone loves Miles. The web-slinging teen is back in our lives with Spider-Man: Across the Spider-Verse and will return once again next year in Beyond the Spider-Verse. We absolutely adore Miles Morales in his animated form, but many fans have been wondering if the character will make a live-action debut in the near future. Well, according to Variety, producer Amy Pascal says that a live-action Miles Morales movie, a Spider-Woman animated film, and Spider-Man 4 are in the works. Tom Holland also chimed in on what upcoming movies might hold.

Fellow producer Avi Arad hinted that the Spider-Woman film will actually come sooner than most fans are expecting. That makes a lot of sense considering things are going well with the current animated franchise. Pascal also said that a fourth Spider-Man movie with Tom Holland and Zendaya is in the works, noting “Are we going to make another movie? Of course, we are.” Tom Holland also echoed the sentiment, noting, “It’s (Spider-Man 4) is a collaborative process. The first few meetings were about, ‘Why would we do this again?’ And I think we found the reason why. I’m really, really happy with where we’re at in terms of the creative.” But Holland also noted, “But I’m also a little apprehensive about it. There’s a bit of a stigma about the fourth one in all franchises. I feel like we hit a home run with our first franchise and there’s a part of me that wants to walk away with my head held high and pass the baton to the next lucky kid that gets to bring this character to life.”

Either way, things are currently slow due to the WGA strike. That is, of course, going to affect pretty much any plans they have for the foreseeable future. It could be a couple of years or five years before any of this stuff happens… if it happens at all. Corporations do change their minds, whether we like it or not. But hopefully, we’ll see traction for all our Spider-People.

And even more hopefully, Sony will give Miles what he deserves, which is to exist in every form with lots of adventures for fans to enjoy. For now, let the speculation on who would absolutely crush a live-action Miles Morales movie begin.

Originally published on May 31, 2023.

The post Live-Action Miles Morales Movie, SPIDER-MAN 4, and More Are in the Works appeared first on Nerdist.

One of the scene-stealing Spider-people in Spider-Man: Across the Spider-Verse was Spider-Punk, voiced by Daniel Kaluuya (in his second Marvel role after Black Panther). While characters like Miles Morales, Gwen Stacy, and Spider-Man 2099 are Spider-People who have had many series of their own to their name, Spider-Punk is a more recent Spider-Man creation with a much shorter comic book resume. But he has had quite the journey so far, even before ever hitting it on the big screen. Here’s the Marvel Comics history of Hobart “Hobie” Brown, also known as the Spider-Punk.

In terms of the many spider folk we saw in Across the Spider-Verse, Spider-Punk is among the newer Spider-Man variants we meet. He first appeared in 2015—in the Marvel Comics event Spider-Verse. This, of course, inspired the first Spider-Man: Into the Spider-Verse film. Created by longtime Amazing Spider-Man writer Dan Slott, he was originally designed by artist Olivier Coipel to be the Spider-Man of the UK. But Slott changed his mind, as he felt the UK deserved a Spider-Man that was more than just a tribute to ’70s punk rock icons the Sex Pistols. But he loved the design, so the character was reimagined, and thus was born Marvel Comics’ Spider-Punk. 

The Origin of Spider-Punk, the Spider-Man of Earth-138

Unlike Peter Parker, Hobart Brown was living on the street as an unhoused youth on Earth-138. But as was often the case for his multiversal spider brethren, a spider bit him. This one mutated as part of President Norman Osborn’s toxic waste dumping. He gained powers that were identical to the 616 universe’s Peter Parker. A punk kid or not, Hobart was still a gifted scientist and invented his web shooters. But none of this stopped him from playing the guitar and being in a punk band. Thereby making him officially cooler than 616 teenage Peter Parker.

Becoming a punk rock-inspired Spider-Man, Spider-Punk led the subjugated citizens of New York against Osborn’s V.E.N.O.M. troops. While Peter Parker and Miles Morales had a strict anti-killing code, Spider-Punk was understandably a bit harder-edged. Although he, too, had a soft spot for his universe’s Gwen Stacy, “until she croaked,” he often said. Spider-Punk killed the Norman Osborn of his Earth during a riot by repeatedly bashing him with his guitar. (Dang, Spidey). Once Osborn died, this world’s Spider-Man unmasked himself to the rioting crowd, who now viewed Spider-Punk as a revolutionary icon.

Joining His Fellow Web Warriors

During the Marvel Spider-Verse comic book event, Spider-Punk was recruited by Superior Spider-Man, who was Doc Ock in Peter Parker’s body, to join an army of arachnid heroes. Hobie became a part of the so-called Web Warriors in big spider-hero-centric events like Spider-Verse and, later, in Spider-Geddon. And he quickly rose to the pack of most prominent Spider-Man variants among the group. Not an easy task, when we’re talking about dozens, if not hundreds, of webslingers. Spider-Punk even fought notorious Marvel villains like Red Skull and even Kang and lived to tell the tale.

Spider-Punk in His Own Series at Last

Finally, in 2022, Spider-Punk got his own mini-series, Spider-Punk: Battled of the Banned, from writer Cody Ziglar and artist Justin Mason. In the recent Ultimate Spider-Man cartoon series, Spider-Punk made his first non-comic book Marvel appearance. They gave him a cockney accent, despite the fact that the comic character was from New York City. That new character detail stuck, and the Daniel Kaluuya version of Spider-Punk we meet in Across the Spider-Verse is a Brit as well. Despite the odds, the original conception of the character as a citizen of the U.K. won out in the end.

Spider-Punk in Across the Spider-Verse

In Across the Spider-Verse, Hobie was one of the spider heroes that befriends Gwen Stacy, and forms a bond with her. She even stays with him sometimes on Earth-138B. Although technically a part of the Spider-Society, Hobie, being a bit of an anarchist, plays by his own rules. So when Miguel O’Hara declares that Miles Morales must be contained before saving his father, possibly disrupting reality, Hobie eventually sides with Miles. At the end of the film, we see him as part of the team recruited to help Miles escape from Earth-42. With Hobie no doubt getting even more exposure in Beyond the Spider-Verse, we expect Spider-Punk to become as prominent as the other Marvel Spider-People in the mainstream very soon.

Originally published June 1, 2023

The post Who Is Spider-Punk? The SPIDER-MAN: ACROSS THE SPIDER-VERSE Hero, Explained appeared first on Nerdist.

Spider-Man has one of the best rogues’ galleries in comics—formidable and iconic villains like Green Goblin, Venom, and Doctor Octopus. Heck, only Batman has a better set of bad guys. But Spider-Man has got some real D-list baddies too. (The Hypno-Hustler, anyone?) But one of those second-string bad guys, known as the Spot, has a pretty big role in Spider-Man: Across the Spider-Verse. And he’s actually quite powerful. Whether he realizes it or not. But who is this forgotten Spider-Man villain, now movie star? And is the Spot secretly…kind of cool? Here’s the Marvel Comics history of the Spot, one of the most unlikely Spider-Man villains ever to get the cinematic treatment.

The Origin of the Spot, Spider-Man’s Goofiest-Looking Villain

The villain known as the Spot first appeared in Marvel Comics as an unnamed scientist at MIT; he arrived in 1984’s Peter Parker, the Spectacular Spider-Man #97. Writer Al Milgrom and artist Herb Trimpe created him. In the very next issue, they revealed the Spot as Jonathan Ohnn, who worked for Wilson Fisk, a.k.a. the villainous Kingpin. Working for Fisk, they tasked the soon-to-be Spot with trying to replicate the powers of the Marvel hero called Cloak, of the duo Cloak and Dagger. Cloak could create portals out of his own being, and the Kingpin wanted that power for himself. Working late one evening, he thought he cracked the code to Cloak’s dimension. But Ohnn actually wound up in a different dimension, one-half dark and one-half light.

This dimension was filled with various small black portals that opened up into other realities. Ohnn found a way back to Earth eventually by going through one, but many of the small black portals had already attached themselves to his body. He discovered he could use these black holes by throwing them and opening portals. Once returning to Earth, he confronted the Kingpin’s nemesis Spider-Man, declaring himself “the Spot.” Spider-Man laughed right in his face at the dumb name that made him sound like a pet. Spidey soundly defeated the Spot, leaving him humiliated. After all, being able to throw interdimensional portals? WAY cooler than having octopus tentacles or rhino skin. Having Spider-Man beat you, regardless of how powerful you were, must have been downright embarrassing for the Spot.

The Spot’s Marvel Comics Fate

After a few defeats at the hands of Spider-Man, Marvel relegated the Spot to permanent loser status. The character was conceived of as a joke villain, but the fact that they gave him such incredible powers makes it a kind of depressing joke. Since his first Marvel Comics appearance, the Spot continually popped up here and there, usually fighting Spider-Man, sometimes in battle with another hero like Daredevil. Often, the Spot was part of a larger Marvel criminal team, like the Sinister Sixteen, MODOK’s 11, or the Legion of Losers. The fact that he was part of a team with a name like that shows you everything you need to know about how the Spot saw himself.

The Spot’s Powers in the Spider-Man Comics

Despite the dumb name, Marvel’s the Spot was pretty formidable power-wise. With his trademark space warp spots, the Spot could transport himself or any part of his body from one area to another, all over what seemed like an unlimited distance. The Spot is able to do all these things thanks to the dimension that gave him these powers. A dimension he unimaginatively named “Spotworld.” These spots could be small, large, and even suspended in the air. The Spider-Man villain could also change their size at will.

The Spot could even control which portal could lead to Spotworld, and which could open up somewhere else in this dimension. Because of his connection to Spotworld, the Spot learned that he was effectively immortal. This power set technically made him one of Spider-Man’s most formidable Marvel Comics foes. Or at least, it should have. But he’s inflicted less damage on Spider-Man than some weak villains with names like the Looter and The Answer.

The Spot’s Role in Spider-Man: Across the Spider-Verse

Until now, the Spot’s most prominent role outside the pages of Marvel Comics had been in the 1990s Spider-Man: The Animated Series. He appeared in that show in season three’s “The Spot,” and then again in the recent 2017 Spider-Man cartoon. Now, Jason Schwartzman portrayed this loser villain in Across the Spider-Verse. And he’s even Across the Spider-Verse‘s “Big Bad.” The Spot was always the Spider-Man villain with the most potential when it comes to his powers and abilities, and yet he was barely ever used as anything but a punchline.

In Across the Spider-Verse, we learned that this Jonathan Ohnn was a scientist working at Earth-1610’s Alchemax. He transported the radioactive spider from Earth-42 to his dimension, causing the chain of events leading Miles Morales to become Spider-Man. When Kingpin’s Super-Collider was destroyed, Johnathan became corrupted by dark matter, transforming him into the Spot, a villain who can create dimensional portals across space and parallel worlds.

Blaming his current situation on Miles Morales, and fighting him in a rather hilarious sequence early in the film, the Spot became hellbent on revenge for Miles making him something both more (and also less) than human. We’ll find out in Beyond the Spider-Verse if he can succeed when it comes to exacting vengeance on poor Miles, or if he’s truly a joke “villain of the week” or not. Who ever thought that this reject of a bad guy could potentially destroy all reality? The Spot proves even the goofiest bad guy has potential.

Originally published June 1, 2023.

The post Who Is the Spot? The SPIDER-MAN: ACROSS THE SPIDER-VERSE Villain’s Comic History, Explained appeared first on Nerdist.

We knew Spider-Man: Across the Spider-Verse was going to have a lot of Spider-people. That much we saw in the trailers. What we didn’t know is exactly how many were going to be there. Nor did we know in what dimension they’d exist. Not alternate dimensions; physical ones. While the movie as a whole is gorgeously animated, utilizing a number of different styles and types as Into the Spider-Verse did, some Spider-Man cameos are even not animated. Have I been vague enough yet?

Okay, so there are real human people in this movie. Like live-action, real people. One of the pre-release marketing bits revealed the Spot (Jason Schwartzman) popping up in the convenience store from Venom. That’s pretty fun, but without Tom Hardy in it, it’s little more than that. Later, when Miguel O’Hara is trying to convince Miles about the tragedy necessary for timelines to exist properly, we see flashes of various Spider-peoples crying over Uncle Bens or Captain Stacys. This allows the movie to show both Tobey Maguire and Andrew Garfield clips in Across the Spider-Verse. No new footage appears, though, just clips from their respective movies.

But, the biggest, most fun, and potentially universe-collapsing human cameo comes when Miles sees the tubes of villains who’ve hopped dimensions. In one of them, we see a version of the Prowler, aka Miles’ uncle Aaron. Except this one is Donald Glover, the Childish Gambino himself. Yes, Donald Glover appears as a live-action Prowler in Spider-Man: Across the Spider-Verse. Let’s unpack.

This is fun for myriad reasons. First, it hearkens back to the initial groundswell of internet support for Glover to play a live-action Miles Morales several years ago. He’s obviously a bit too old now, but during the Community heyday, he was a favorite. That didn’t come to pass, obviously, but it did eventually lead to Donald Glover’s appearance in a Spider-Man movie. He played an unwilling informant in Spider-Man: Homecoming, named Aaron Davis. Yeah, the Prowler!

So when it comes to Spider-Man: Across the Spider-Verse, you may have noticed, while a lot of different depictions of Spider-Man appear, we only ever get a passing mention of the Tom Holland one and what he did with Doctor Strange. This is, of course, a reference to Spider-Man: No Way Home. This is due to the very weird Marvel Studios/Sony deal. Sony owns Spider-Man film rights, but had to strike a specific deal to have Spider-Man in the MCU. Even the Sony-co-produced movies within the MCU have special dispensation to use the villains. Because Sony owns the rights to the villains and ancillary characters.

The Vulture, as seen in Homecoming, had to hop universes to appear in Morbius. This effectively cuts him off from appearing in further MCU movies. Or at least until it doesn’t anymore. So is the Donald Glover Prowler actually the same Aaron Davis from the MCU’s Spider-Man: Homecoming, or is it just a fun nod to that? The truth is, it doesn’t entirely matter. Donald Glover represents the MCU and the actor’s history with Miles Morales. We know Sony wants to make a Miles Morales live-action Spider-Man movie, so could Glover appear there? Only time and Amy Pascal can say for sure.

In any case, seeing Glover as the Prowler was one of the most enjoyable surprises in Across the Spider-Verse. It was right up there with seeing animated Spectacular Spider-Man and the one from the Insomniac video game universe. One can only imagine what kind of surprises we’ll get in the next movie next year.

Kyle Anderson is the Senior Editor for Nerdist. You can find his film and TV reviews here. Follow him on Instagram and Letterboxd.

The post The Most Surprising Cameo in SPIDER-MAN: ACROSS THE SPIDER-VERSE appeared first on Nerdist.

“Bad things are gonna happen. It makes us who we are.”

Peter B. Parker’s words of comfort to Miles Morales in Across the Spider-Verse turned out to be true in ways no one expected. The movie ended with a shocking revelation that showed how bad things led another Miles down a dark path. In the dimension where a radioactive spider never bit him, Miles became the Prowler. Now that alternate version wants to destroy the hero he never became.

What does that cliffhanger mean for both the film and its sequel, Beyond the Spider-Verse? The existence of Prowler Miles gets to the core of the franchise’s most important and meaningful idea about what really defines us.

Why Is Spider-Man Miles “The Anomaly?”

A radioactive spider bit (the film’s primary) Miles’ in his home dimension of Earth-1610. But that DNA-altering arachnid came from Earth-42 via Kingpin’s Super Collider. That spider—seen glitching prior to biting Miles in Into the Spider-Verse—wasn’t from his world.

That’s why Miguel O’Hara calls Miles “the” anomaly. Miles was never supposed to become Spider-Man. His world already had one, and suddenly getting a second instantly led to tragedy. His dimension’s original Spider-Man (Peter A. Parker) died saving Miles, who only needed rescuing because he’d been turned into a Spider-Man.

That bite had huge ramifications for another universe, too.

Why Did Earth-42’s Miles Morales Become the Prowler Instead of His Uncle?

Because Earth-42’s radioactive spider never bit anyone from its own dimension, that world didn’t get its very own web-slinging superhero. But it still got all of Spider-Man’s villains. A news report revealed the Sinister Six operate with near impunity in a burning city overrun with crime. There is simply no one to stand against them.

While that universe’s Miles didn’t became Spider-Man, he still suffered the way all Spider-Mans do. His dad, a police captain, died rather than his uncle Aaron. (Which indicates Miles-42 was supposed to become Spider-Man.) And without the great responsibility of becoming a superhero, Miles instead followed his uncle into a life of crime. Without his father as a guiding light Miles became the Prowler rather than Aaron.

The two Miles unknown connection ultimately led them to meet face-to-face.

How Did Spider-Man Miles End Up in the Wrong Dimension?

Spider-Man Miles desperately wanted to go back to his home world. Miguel told Miles his father needs to die to ensure the safety of hthat entire universe. Without that “cannon event” reality itself could fall apart, killing everyone. And since Miles is “the anomaly,” Miguel also fears interfering with fate could impact every world.

Miles refused to accept that his father must die. He believes he can “save everyone,” his dad included. (Gwen’s own final encounter with her father indicated he might be right.) To get home Miles jumped inside Miguel’s arachnid transport machine. It sends people back to their own dimension by reading their DNA. Except, Miles’ DNA no longer identifies him as being from Earth-1610. The spider that bit him rewrote his genetic code with its own. That caused the machine to think Miles comes from Earth-42, the spider’s dimension.

That’s how he ended up encountering his still-alive uncle and his evil alternate Prowler self who was never pushed towards greatness. And that difference gets to the most important theme of the film and the franchise, just not in the way it might seem.

What Does Prowler Miles Mean for Across the Spider-Verse?

Like Into the Spider-Verse before it Across the Spider-Verse is about what it means to be Spider-Man. As Peter B. Parker said, “Being Spider-Man is a sacrifice. That’s the job.” Part of that sacrifice, in every universe, involves dealing with the death of someone very close to them. No one becomes Spider-Man without Uncle Ben. Sometimes that role is filled by a different uncle, a best friend, a significant other, or a police captain. In Miles’ world that sacrifice appeared to be his Uncle Aaron, a cautionary tale about how easy it is for a good person to end up being bad. Aaron’s death was clearly important in Miles becoming Spider-Man. It helped unlock something inside of him. Without that loss he might never have taken his “leap of faith.”

A different bad thing that happened to Prowler Miles. Instead of his uncle he lost his dad, and without the great responsibility of being Spider-Man to anchor him, his grief consumed him. Because as much as Spider-Mans are defined by bad things, Peter B. Parker also pointed out they are also shaped by the good things that happen to them. That includes the best thing that happens to them: being burdened with responsibility. Without the good, Miles turned bad.

That’s the main idea of Across the Spider-Verse. The things that happen to us, no matter how painful they might be or how much we wish they didn’t happen, shape who we are. But whether good or bad, the events of our lives don’t define us, it’s how we respond to them. Our choices define who we are. We’re not passive actors in our own lives. We pick the path we’ll walk down. Miles recognized that before he met his evil self. He told Miguel, “Everyone keeps telling me how my story is supposed to go. Nah. I’m gonna do my own thing.”

He’s right. And that’s exactly why Prowler Miles isn’t a hopeless cause, either.

What Will Happen With the Two Mileses in Beyond the Spider-Verse?

Gwen Stacy is putting together a team of Spider-Mans to save Miles. She gathered together their old friends from Into the Spider-Verse along with their new friends. They don’t know they’ll be potentially rescuing Miles from his alternate self. But we don’t know if they’ll even need to.

Prowler Miles can do his own thing, same as Spider-Man Miles. Neither of them have to follow a story others or even fate itself have seemingly written for them. They can tell their own tales with their actions. And maybe getting a chance to see who he could have been will be good enough for Prowler Miles to realize he can be a better version of himself. Just because you’re not a superhero doesn’t mean you have to be a super villain. Like every Spider-Man who has something bad happen to them, he can still choose to be a better person.

Across the Spider-Verse‘s two very different Miles make clear how easy it is for us to go astray. But it also makes clear we decide who we are. Miguel, Jessica Drew, Gwen Stacy, and both Miles each decided who they wanted to be. Same as we all do in our lives, whether we’re a Spider-Man or not.

And that will be true no matter how Beyond the Spider-Verse resolves that cliffhanger.

Mikey Walsh is a staff writer at Nerdist. You can follow him on Twitter at @burgermike. And also anywhere someone is ranking the Targaryen kings.

The post The Meaning of SPIDER-MAN: ACROSS THE SPIDER-VERSE’s Cliffhanger appeared first on Nerdist.

Few Marvel characters exemplify the ‘90s more than Ben Reilly, the Scarlet Spider. He was, in many ways, the epitome of comic book trends of the era. First, the Scarlet Spider was popularized in a major “status quo-shaking” Marvel Comics event. Second, he was an edgier version of an iconic hero. These were key ’90s comics ingredients. Now, Scarlet Spider has made his big screen debut in Spider-Man: Across the Spider-Verse, voiced by Andy Samberg. But who is Ben Reilly, the infamous alternate Spidey? And why were folks so excited to see him return? Here’s the lowdown on Peter Parker’s broody clone, the Scarlet Spider.

The Scarlet Spider’s Groovy ’70s Marvel Comics Origins

The roots of the Scarlet Spider didn’t actually begin in the ‘90s. They went back even further, to 1975. In that year’s Amazing Spider-Man #149, Peter Parker’s college professor Dr. Miles Warren, also known as the Jackal, created a fully grown version of Parker to destroy Spider-Man. Why did he hate Spidey so much? Well, it turned out Dr. Warren was a super creep. He was obsessed with his much younger student Gwen Stacy, whose death he blamed solely on Spider-Man. And he was a brilliant scientist who studied under none other than the High Evolutionary. That association always leads to trouble.

When Gwen died at the hands of the Green Goblin, a death Spider-Man could not prevent, Warren snapped. He developed an alternate persona to deal with his feelings of guilt—the Jackal. As the furry costumed Jackal, he cloned Gwen and Spider-Man, thus learning that the wallcrawler was his other student, Peter Parker. This clone had all of Peter’s memories and was designed to fight and kill his doppelgänger. However, he seemingly died in the very issue they introduced him in. And that would be the last we’d hear of this Spider-Man clone for nearly two decades. It was all meant by writer Gerry Conway as a one-off story, but it ended up creating Marvel Comics’ Scarlet Spider.

Scarlet Spider Returns in the ’90s, Following Comics Trends of Darker Doppelgängers

In the early ‘90s, one of the biggest comic trends was replacing iconic heroes with darker, edgier versions of themselves. In 1992 Superman died, and one of his replacements was the evil Cyborg Superman. Batman’s back was broken, and then the ultra-violent Azrael wore the batsuit. At Marvel, someone remembered the clone from 1975 and had an idea. What if maybe the Spider-Clone didn’t die and had been living in secret for years? Even more tantalizing for Marvel, they teased readers with the notion that this character was actually the Peter Parker we’d been reading about for years, while the newly emerged “clone” was the real thing.

When Marvel brought back the Spider-Clone, they revealed that after his apparent death, he realized he was a mere copy of Peter Parker and not the original. He decided to leave New York and became a drifter wandering America. He bleached his hair blonde and took the name Ben Reilly. Ben after his deceased uncle Ben, and Reilly since it was his Aunt May’s maiden name. He continued his scientific studies, this time under Dr. Seward Trainer (yet another acolyte of the High Evolutionary). He suffered many tragedies during his exile, making him a darker and more bitter version of his (now happily married) genetic twin. But when he learned that his Aunt May was near death, he went back to New York, and revealed his existence to Peter.

Ben Reilly and Peter Parker first resented each other and had an uneasy relationship. There was a good deal of spider-on-spider violence. Eventually, Dr. Trainer performed blood tests on both heroes, only to determine that the Peter Parker fans had been reading about for 20 years at Marvel was the clone, and Ben Reilly was actually the first Peter Parker. Ben then decided to stay in New York City and fight crime under a new name—the Scarlet Spider. Sales soared for the Spider-Man titles during this time, and it seemingly encouraged Marvel editorial to keep the newly coined Clone Saga and Scarlet Spider going for as long as possible. And they did.

Scarlet Spider Becomes Spider-Man and Ben’s Untimely Demise

In late 1995, Marvel decided that Peter Parker and MJ would retire to married life and start a family, and Scarlet Spider would take over as Spider-Man. He was “the real deal” after all. Scarlet Spider became the new friendly neighborhood Spider-Man, taking over all five Spider-Man ongoing books and getting a new costume. Although some fans felt betrayed that the Spidey they’d been following for years was a copy, Ben Reilly persisted. In fact, in the epic Marvel vs. DC crossover event that year, it was actually the Ben Reilly Spidey that fought DC’s heroes, not Peter.

Eventually, after more than two years, sales of the Spider-Man books (and comics overall) began to plummet. Marvel decided it was time to end The Clone Saga and get back to basics. It was revealed that a returned Norman Osborn/Green Goblin—who had at that point been dead for almost 25 years—had been behind everything. He planted fake evidence that Scarlet Spider was the real Peter Parker, as a way of tormenting Peter Parker himself. Ben Reilly died in battle with the Goblin and literally liquified. Thus proving he was the actual clone all along. At the time, people were mostly glad the story was finally over. It seemed no one would miss old Ben.

The Scarlet Spider’s Modern-Day Resurrection

But as we know, nostalgia makes even the worst stories look better. Kids who grew up with The Clone Saga and the Scarlet Spider actually loved that event looking back. By the 2010s, these kids were now adults, and begged Marvel to bring back the Scarlet Spider. In 2015, Marvel finally did. In The Clone Conspiracy, Marvel revealed that the Jackal had collected the DNA of Ben Reilly from his death site and attempted to bring him back, memories and all, 26 times.

The 27th clone was stable and lived, but held traumatic memories of each painful death. Ben freed himself from the Jackal, and resumed a heroic career. At first, he took the name Anubis, after the Egyptian God of Death. Eventually, he took on the name and mantle of the Scarlet Spider once more. And thus, the Scarlet Spider returned to Marvel Comics. ‘90s nostalgia was in full swing. He was the hero of Las Vegas for a time before returning to New York City. Scarlet Spider’s last major storyline was Marvel Comics’ Dark Web, where he became entangled with Marvel’s other most famous clone, Madelyne Pryor, herself a disregarded genetic copy of the X-Man Jean Grey.

The Scarlet Spider Becomes a Movie Star in Across the Spider-Verse

With his appearance in Spider-Man: Across the Spider-Verse, Ben Reilly’s Scarlet Spider finally made it to the big screen. He appeared in the ‘90s Spider-Man: The Animated Series a couple of times, right around the time of his comics heyday. But aside from showing up in the recent Ultimate Spider-Man cartoon series, there were not many appearances by Scarlet Spider outside the comics. With Across the Spider-Verse, that’s finally changed.

In Across the Spider-Verse, Ben Reilly is used as a kind of comedic meta-commentary on the overly angsty Marvel comics of the ’90s. Ben is part of Spider-Man 2099’s squad sent to go after “fugitive spider” Miles Morales. He spends most of his screen time brooding and constantly commenting on his situation, giving voice to an old-school comics thought balloon. His look was very much like the art style of his co-creator, the late Tom Lyle. Will Scarlet-Spider switch sides in Spider-Man: Beyond the Spider-Verse, and choose to help Miles instead of hunting him? We’ll find out when the third chapter hits theaters in 2024.

The post Who Is the Scarlet Spider? The SPIDER-MAN: ACROSS THE SPIDER-VERSE Hero, Explained appeared first on Nerdist.

Just how many Spider-Mans and Spider-People (and Spider-animals!) can we expect to see in Spider-Man: Across the Spider-Verse? Well, the trailers and teasers for the movie gave us some idea that it would be quite a few. And in a recent interview, co-director Justin Thompson gave a more specific number for us to look out for. He said that in the headquarters of Spider-Man 2099’s Spider Society there are “over 600 different spiders” present.

How Many Spider-People Are in Across the Spider-Verse?

More specifically, Thompson noted that the total number of Spider-Mans, Spider-Peoples, and other Spider-Friends in Across the Spider-Verse amounts to “somewhere in the neighborhood of 630-ish.” And out of those, 150 are named Spider-People with unique designs.

That’s an increase from the last count Thompson offered before the movie’s release. Then he told us would see about 280 Spider-People running around in Across the Spider-Verse, but that was before a final count.

Thompson shared at the time:

The exact number? Oh boy, we kept adding, like all the way up until the very end. Honestly, I’m gonna be level with you, we just finished the film, like in the last like two weeks, and I don’t think I’ve had time to pause and actually take a final count. But I think it was about 280 the last time I looked in. Just to be clear, that doesn’t mean specific, unique characters that you might recognize, it might mean variations as well. But if you’re just talking about named characters, then I think there’s probably about 95.

More Spider-People to Come

Whether it’s 95 or 150, that’s a whole lot of characters to name. But the Spider-Man fun won’t stop there. Across the Spider-Verse is only part one of the Spidey mayhem we have coming our way. Spider-Man: Beyond the Spider-Verse will release in 2024. And co-writers and producers Phil Lord and Chris Miller want us to know, they’ve saved some Spider-People to add into the next movie.

Lord notes, “Believe it or not. You thought that you’ve seen every Spider-Person that you could imagine, but not every Spider-Person we can imagine.” Meanwhile, Miller adds, “We saved several!”

Our heads are spinning just thinking about it. Spider-Man: Across the Spider-Verse will feature Spider-Man 2099, Spider-Cop, Spider-Cat, Spider-Jock, Spider-Girl, Spider-Byte, Superior Spider-Man, Spider-Woman, The Bombastic Bagman, Spider-Rex, and many, many more. But we guess they’d all better make some space at the table for new Beyond the Spider-Verse friends.

Spider-Man: Across the Spider-Verse and its many Spider-People and Spider-Mans released on June 2.

Originally published on June 1, 2023.

The post There Are Over 600 Spider-People in ACROSS THE SPIDER-VERSE, with More to Come appeared first on Nerdist.

Spider-Man: Across the Spider-Verse reaffirms that animation is cinema. 

The sequel to the critically-acclaimed Spider-Man: Into the Spider-Verse pushes the boundaries of animation and storytelling to create a movie that’s visually stunning as it is frenetic. In Across the Spider-Verse, Miles Morales (Shameik Moore) has trouble balancing his super-powered duties with his school and personal life. Everyone feels like they know what’s best for him, but ultimately he has an idea of what he wants for himself. However, he doesn’t feel open sharing his identity with his parents Jefferson (Brian Tyree Henry) and Rio (Luna Lauren Vélez). Miles is learning (the hard way) that life comes with sacrifices. 

While having to navigate this, Gwen Stacy (Hailee Steinfeld) comes back into his universe and his life, bringing back nostalgia and connection. To make things more fun, she also comes with a new set of super-powered individuals. This crew includes Jessica Drew/ Spider-Woman (Issa Rae), Pavitr Prabhakar/Spider-Man India (Karan Soni), Hobie Brown/Spider-Punk (Daniel Kaluuya), Miguel O’Hara/Spider-Man 2099 (Oscar Isaac), Margo Kess/Spider-Bite (Amandla Stenberg), Ben Reilly/Scarlet Spider (Andy Samberg), and Peter Parker/Spider-Man (Jake Johnson). Of course, they all happen to be a Spider-Hero from their respective universe—or the Spider-Verse, if you will. But being involved with this new Spider-Crew gets Miles wrapped up in a mission to save not just New York City from supervillain the Spot (Jason Schwartzman), but the entire Spider-Verse from impending disaster.

When Into the Spider-Verse first came out, it not only shocked viewers with the quality of animation, but also its storytelling. Thankfully, both elements return in Spider-Man: Across the Spider-Verse. Its predecessor operated as more of an introduction to Miles and an origin story for him. The sequel builds upon his story by highlighting his evolution as a hero, but also as a teenager.

As we all know, with growth comes growing pains. Ultimately, this film is about growing up, becoming your own person, and not letting anyone write your story but you. Across the Spider-Verse is equal parts coming-of-age tale as it is a superhero film. Many of those coming-of-age elements are highlighted through Miles and Gwen’s narratives.

Both characters are navigating challenges in their relationship with their parent(s) and maintaining their secret identities. Miles juggles his parents’ demands and Gwen is stuck balancing a life without community. There’s conflict with her, specifically when it comes to lying to her father, George Stacy (Shea Whigham), about her secret identity—a lie that could severely alter their relationship. Miles and Gwen’s concerns surrounding their identities are a powerful reflection of real-life hardships that teenagers navigate as they discover who they are. Sometimes, those identities come with the risk of rejection by their parents.

This narrative works as a metaphor for when LGBTQ+ kids “come out” to their parents. Miles shares a moment with his mom that’s similar to coming out as queer. Gwen has a similar scene with her father, but her character and the scene’s coloring is washed in pink, blue, and white, which just so happens to be the transgender flag colors. 

Speaking of identity, Across the Spider-Verse creates a world where everyone can exist, especially as a member of the Spider-Society. Each Spider-Hero comes in a diverse array of races, genders, sizes, and abilities with their own rich character development. Even with an immense character collective, Across the Spider-Verse’s writing and directing still allows for plenty of heartfelt storytelling and moments between these characters. 

The authenticity of New York City’s culture shines on the big screen. The hustle and bustle of the city is perfectly captured as well as the diversity of communities, specifically Black and Puerto Rican enclaves. Through Miles’ relationship with his parents, viewers see what life is like for folks who are Afro-Latino, biracial/multiracial, and/or multicultural. His family shows that there’s no one right way to express your identities. 

From the small bodegas selling beef patties to the massive buildings covered in graffiti spreading throughout the city, Across the Spider-Verse encapsulates the Big Apple’s architectural delights. This film beautifully pulls off the task of recreating dazzling New York City landscapes as well as Spider-Verse versions of the city.

In fact, there’s only one glaring problem with Across the Spider-Verse. It is a tad too long! There’s plenty of ground to cover with various plot points tossed into the air as freely as Spider-Man swings between New York City’s skyscrapers. But while the action and story is jam packed, it’s not overwhelming. 

Overall, Spider: Man Across the Spider-Verse‘s thrilling action sequences, beautiful animation, and robust stories will make MCU fans and general moviegoers get lost in a universe that they may not want to escape.

Spider-Man: Across the Spider-Verse swings into theaters on June 2.

Spider-Man: Across the Spider-Verse ⭐ (4 of 5)

The post SPIDER-MAN: ACROSS THE SPIDER-VERSE Is a Visually Stunning and Frenetic Trip appeared first on Nerdist.

The MCU certainly knows how to build to a big showdown. Ever since the Avengers first got together to take on Loki the franchise has delivered some epic team-ups. Now LEGO will let fans physically build their own big showdown via two new action-packed sets. Both Endgame and Spider-Man are getting their own final battle LEGO collections.

LEGO’s Endgame Final Battle 794-piece set ($99.99) will bring the iconic war with Thanos at the Avengers compound to your own home. The 360-degree set comes with seven minifigs. That includes: Captain Marvel, Okoye, Wanda Maximoff, Shuri, Valkyrie, Thanos, and The Wasp. The collection also features plenty of spots to place the heroes, as well as other fun extras. Among the wreckage you’ll find Captain America’s shield, Thor’s hammer, the Time Stone, and the portal-opening rat that helped save the universe.

While you can put this set on display, it’s designed for play. It stands 11.5-inches high by 8.5-inches wide and 8-inches deep when closed, but it comes with two handles so you can pull it open. That “causes the battleground to expand for even more adventures.”

But LEGO knows no MCU fan would settle for just one epic showdown, which is why the company has also announced another new 360-degree playset. The Spider-Man Final Battle collection ($109.99) celebrates the last clash in No Way Home in cool LEGO style. And yes, that means it has separate minifigs for each the film’s three Spider-Mans: Tobey Maguire, Andrew Garfield, and Tom Holland. Joining them are figures for Electro, Doctor Strange, Green Goblin, Ned, MJ, and Doc Ock.

The characters are just the start of the fun with this set measuring 7-inches high, 8-inches wide and 8.5-inches deep. It also has “three minifigure supports for midair action. It also has a removable roof that opens up to show Sandman’s hand. And there’s “a flip-open rear access to a portal and a soft web element to envelop minifigures.”

Both sets are designed for ages 10 and up. Each will be available later this summer on August 1. But while you have to wait to get your hands on them, you don’t have to build a bunch of other sets before they come out. Only the MCU has to do that before it reaches its final battles.

The post LEGO Celebrates MCU Showdowns with SPIDER-MAN and ENDGAME Final Battle Sets appeared first on Nerdist.

Miles Morales and many, many other Spiderfolks are hitting our screens soon in Spider-Man: Across the Spider-Verse. And, when fans think of the AfroLatino teenage hero, they instantly think of Miles Morales’ signature style, especially his shoes—Air Jordan 1 sneakers, to be exact. To celebrate more Miles Morales on the big screen, Nike has put the new Air Jordan 1 High Next Chapter shoe out in the world. This Spider-Man: Across the Spider-Verse pair puts a spin on the ones that Michael Jordan himself wore when he played with the Chicago Bulls, adding some leather and suede in the mix.

Check out the new Miles Morales Across the Spider-Verse sneakers below.

And, of course, there’s the clear nod to Spider-Man with graphics near the ankle that will make you want to soar above the city. These Jordans would look super awesome with Box Lunch’s Miles Morales baseball jersey or jacket. But if you’re trying to flex in these Miles Morales sneakers, then you’ll have to cough up some serious cash. This pair of Js is already sold out on Nike’s website but resell sites like StockX are there for you… at a cost, of course. Should you go for them? Well, it depends on how badly you want to have a pair of sneakers inspired by the adventures of Miles Morales. Either way, watching Miles swing through NYC and whichever other universes he ends up in will inspire the hero in all of us. So lace up your shoes and get ready, Spider-Man: Across the Spider-Verse releases on June 2, 2023.

The post These Miles Morales Air Jordan 1 Sneakers Are Superhero Worthy appeared first on Nerdist.

We’re about to head into the Spider-Verse like never before. Spider-Man: Across the Spider-Verse promises a bigger Spidey adventure than we’ve ever seen on our screens. We’re talking about meeting hundreds of different Spider-People in many incredible worlds; all brought to life in varied and awe-inspiring animation styles. But, of course, at the heart of it are the characters we’ve grown to know and love and a very human set of fears and relationships. It’s Miles Morales that’s our true hero. And there’s nothing like a little closet cosplay to show your love for your favs. BoxLunch‘s latest Spider-Man: Across the Spider-Verse collection wants you to bring some of the movie’s magic into your universe as it celebrates our Brooklyn-friendly neighborhood Spider-Man.

Click To View Gallery

Take a look at some pieces from the collection above, and, of course, keep your eyes peeled. You never know when an Easter egg may have snuck into a design. It’ll also be good practice because Across the Spider-Verse is sure to be chock full of references and subtle details at every turn.

You can check out the full Spider-Verse collection on BoxLunch. Spider-Man: Across the Spider-Verse releases in theaters on June 2.

The post Celebrate Miles Morales and Co. with ACROSS THE SPIDER-VERSE BoxLunch Collection appeared first on Nerdist.

The 1990s gave kids some of the very best action-adventure cartoons ever. I say this not only as an action-figure-buying ’90s kid, but as a consumer of all manner of animated media. Sure, a lot of them were just lengthy toy adverts, but they were no less exciting and deep. While Warner Bros. Animation’s Batman: The Animated Series stands as the very best of this crop of shows, which ushered in the DC Animated Universe, Marvel had a whole bumper crop of cartoons in the decade. Without those, as Nerdist‘s Eric Diaz posits, we wouldn’t have the MCU as we know it.

But not all of the ’90s Marvel cartoons are created equal! And it’s up to me (according to me) to rank all of them, from worst to best. It’s a more varied list than you might expect. Luckily, if you want to watch any of these, they’re all on Disney+ now.

9. The Avengers: United They Stand (1999-2000)

You very well might be saying to yourself, “What is this show?” And that’s not unreasonable. By the time the show debuted on Fox Kids, interest in these kinds of animated shows had started to wain. I actually didn’t know The Avengers: United They Stand existed until very recently. It consists of only a single, 13-episode season and, uhh, there’s kind of a reason it didn’t last beyond that.

For the series, the makers used largely the roster from the ’80s West Coast Avengers: Ant-Man and the Wasp led the team, while other members included Scarlet Witch, Wonder Man, Vision, Falcon, Tigra, and Hawkeye. A solid lineup, certainly. However, the characterizations of most of these characters just feels very off, especially Hawkeye who is supremely self-serious and angry. In order to compete with WB’s Batman Beyond, the series takes place in a non-specific future and all of the Avengers have borderline sci-fi costumes. It also doesn’t help that the animation was not nearly on the level of other shows at the time. It looks cheap and feels it.

8. Fantastic Four Season One (1994-1995)

Just like how the Fox movies never quite nailed its take on Marvel’s First Family, so too did the syndicated animated series have trouble finding its tone. So much so that its two seasons may as well be two separate shows. And so that’s how I’ve delineated them!

Now, your mileage may absolutely vary on this choice, but the first season of the Fantastic Four animated series just really doesn’t work for me. Despite having a very respectable roster of villains and storylines, the tone is way too goofy. It feels at times much more like a sitcom than an action-adventure show, and that also holds for the animation style. Much swimmier and more elastic than the other “realistic” shows in the lineup. Hell, just watch the first episode where Gary Owens plays a talk show host interviewing the FF about how they got their powers. It’s just not great.

7. Spider-Man: Unlimited (1999-2001)

Remember what I was saying about the above Avengers series trying to be like Batman Beyond? Well that was the second attempt. The first attempt was much more overt, and more successful. In a particularly weird twist, Peter Parker from our present gets flung into a dystopian Counter-Earth and resumes his Spider-Manning with different versions of his villains while also aiding in the war between the humans and the Beastials.

This is a very weird cartoon, surely, and it felt like they were trying to do Spider-Man 2099 without doing anything that that comic did. The result is a radically different, while still at times painfully repetitive, take on the Spider-Man story. The designs are pretty good and Spider-Man having a nanotech suit is pretty neat, but it all feels a bit grimdark for no reason and was definitely trying too hard to ape Batman Beyond. This one also only lasted 13 episodes, but had a huge gap in the middle of airing.

6. The Incredible Hulk (1996-1997)

This is the just-okayest cartoon on the list, in my humble opinion. The Incredible Hulk might arguably have the best, smoothest animation of any of the shows, but its formula is a particularly tired one, even for only 21 episodes. It follows everything you’ve probably assumed; Dr. Bruce Banner is on the run from the U.S. military and General Thunderbolt Ross, his Hulk side too dangerous to be left alone. Along the way, as Banner/Hulk destroys millions of dollars worth of government property, he also helps people and fights some heavy hitting villains, such as Abomination, Doctor Doom, and the Leader. It’s all very bog standard.

The second season, which is only eight episodes, saw a full-time team-up with Jennifer Walters/She-Hulk and the plots became a bit sillier. While the quality of the series never really dipped during its run, it never quite hit the heights of series further down the list either. The best part of the whole thing was probably Lou Ferrigno, who played the Hulk in the ’70s live-action series, voicing the Hulk here. And we got some fun crossovers with other UPN series of the bunch. But yeah, it’s fine, nothing more.

5. Fantastic Four Season Two (1995-1996)

Both the Fantastic Four series and another one we’ll get to in a moment had drastic retooling in their second seasons. I’ve already said how much the overt comedy of the first season didn’t work for me. The second, however, I think is a legitimately good show. It still keeps the fun and exuberance you want from a Fantastic Four show, but it takes its topics, and characters, much more seriously.

While the first season had introduced the big FF villains Doctor Doom and Galactus in multi-episode arcs, the second season did much more with both of them, plus introduced Daredevil, Black Panther, and the Inhumans. I was fully prepared to put both seasons of this show pretty low on my list, but after my recent rewatch, I have to bump this one up. It’s a good season. Not perfect, but it does justice to the characters which, again, seems very hard to do for some reason.

4. Iron Man (1994-1996)

I would argue—and I might not even need to do it that emphatically—that when the Iron Man movie came out in 2008, an entire generation only really knew him from this two-season cartoon. Despite him being one of the most important Marvel Universe figures, he’d not really gotten much push outside of comics since the mid-’60s with the terrible “animated” series. It’s certainly how I knew about Tony Stark, Rhodey, Hawkeye, Mandarin, and a dozen or so other Marvel heroes and villains.

This is another series that got a drastic revision between its first and second season, but while the second season is better than the first (which I’ll get to in a minute), I actually like both seasons well enough to put them comfortably here on the list as a whole. The first season is a bright kind of villain-of-the-week series, with Tony, Rhodey, and a number of other heroes working together to fight bad guys. Each episode is standalone and the resolutions are neat and tidy. The second season sees Tony dealing with a season-long injury, upgraded armor, and serialized storytelling. It’s much more serious and has a darker look to boot.

Definitely personal biases showing, but I thought this show was incredible when I was a kid, and it’s the reason I like War Machine as a character so much. Sure, Iron Man was the main character, but War Machine was the real badass.

3. Silver Surfer (1998)

I knew this show existed at the time, but I never watched it as a kid. It wasn’t until the early days of quarantine back in 2020, when I was looking for something to watch to take my mind off of everything, that I finally watched the 13-episode Silver Surfer cartoon. Boy, do I both wish I’d watched this at the time, and that I’d been millions of people so that they could have kept making it. I was so impressed by this series—which followed Norrin Radd from family man on the planet Zenn-La to Herald of Galactus to galaxy-roaming cosmic hero. The cel-shading look really made the space adventures pop, even if it retained the limited mobility of some other series of the time.

Not only that, but in only 13 episodes we got a bevy of other Marvel Cosmic characters. Galactus, of course, but also Thanos, Adam Warlock, Gamora, Drax, Nebula, Pip the Troll, Beta Ray Bill, Ego the Living Planet, and Uatu the Watcher. Legitimately the only negative thing I can say about it, other than its abbreviated length, is its CGI is a bit dated. Big whoop.

2. Spider-Man: The Animated Series (1994-1998)

The top two are pretty much no-brainers; the only real question is the order. It’s definitely down to a question of preference, but in either case, no one can dispute the quality and influence of Spider-Man on future superhero shows. This series, especially on rewatch, feels so packed with story, character, and action that you could easily double the seasons just to fit in everything. The story of college student Peter Parker and his never-ending fight against New York City’s billion villains made a major impression on me as a young and burgeoning comic fan, and this series gives you just about everything you could hope for, with a couple of network-mandated caveats.

Spider-Man wasn’t allowed to punch anyone, for fear kids would emulate it. Instead, he only kicks or swing-kicks, or throws things using his webbing. I never noticed as a kid. Another weird mandate was that Morbius (you know, the Living Vampire) was not allowed to drink blood. He instead sucked “plasma” out of people using a lamprey-like sucker in the palm of his hand. It’s weird more than anything. Also what’s Blade doing if he’s not hunting vampires? I dunno, man.

At any rate, the Spider-Man series followed its villain-of-the-week first season with a series of very lengthy serialized adventures. By the end of the show’s surprisingly consistent five-season run, we got everything from Secret Wars to Spider-Verse precursors, and all the villains you could imagine. It’s a great show, just great.

1. X-Men: The Animated Series (1992-1997)

Come on, did you think it could be anything else?! The first, the best, the reason the rest of the ’90s cartoons got a chance. X-Men may not have the animation quality of some of the other shows on the list—and heaven knows the last season looks pretty darn bad—but not a more iconic show exists in the canon. Utilizing the then-mega-popular Jim Lee redesigns and adapting a ton of Chris Claremont’s classic comics arcs, X-Men gave us mature stories and characters dealing with heavy, real-world allegories and a complex, unfolding narrative.

Honestly, I’m not sure what more I can say that hasn’t already been said by a million other people. I’ll just say, the same way Kevin Conroy’s voice rings in my head when I read a Batman comic, the Canadian voice cast of X-Men: TAS rings when I read any X-title. Especially Lenore Zann as Rogue, Cal Dodd as Wolverine, Cedric Smith as Professor X, and John Colicos as Apocalypse. For whatever reason, those are the ones that remain unchanged in 30 years.

It’s not perfect, but it’s perfect, ya know?

Kyle Anderson is the Senior Editor for Nerdist. You can find his film and TV reviews here. Follow him on Instagram and Letterboxd.

The post Every 1990s Marvel Animated Series, Ranked appeared first on Nerdist.

The Marvel Cinematic Universe is full of larger-than-life figures doing the impossible. The fate of entire worlds often depends on Avengers and Guardians. Sometimes the entire multiverse does. Earth’s greatest heroes aren’t just mighty, they’re also really freaking funny. The franchise has been making us laugh from its very first film. But which one stands as the most hilarious? Here’s every MCU movie ranked, from the unfunniest to the most hysterical.

32. Captain America: The Winter Soldier

You’re already mad, but you shouldn’t be! While this might be a fan favorite, that’s not because it makes you laugh. The most humorous moment comes at the very beginning of the movie, when Cap repeatedly passes Sam during a run together. It’s a great first meeting between the two characters, and it’s definitely a great bit. But when that’s your funniest scene, your movie isn’t exactly a laugh riot. If anything, the fact it doesn’t need a ton of comic relief is a testament to how good the movie is.

31. The Incredible Hulk 

Maybe I’m a bad person for saying this, but I laugh every time Hulk kicks Tim Roth around that tree. The bigger problem (than my own sense of humor) is that moment qualifies as one of the few times the movie manages to conjure any chuckles. Bruce Banner jumping out of the plane and not immediately transforming into the Hulk is a great sight gag. But even that is improved upon in a Thor: Ragnarok callback. Of the many issues this film has, one of its biggest is how unfunny it is. Which is weird since its main character is a giant green rage monster. (At least they eventually figured that out.)

30. Black Panther: Wakanda Forever

It’s incredible Ryan Coogler was able to deliver any laughs in a movie as inherently somber as Black Panther: Wakanda Forever, which had to deal with Chadwick Boseman’s death. But Dominique Thorne’s Riri Williams helped add some much needed levity. This film might be funnier than we’re giving it credit for, but when we think about it, “humorous” is not one of the first thoughts that comes to mind.

29. Captain America: The First Avenger

Between tiny Steve Rogers, young Howard Stark, Peggy Carter, and confusion over fondue, this might be the most charming movie in the MCU. It’s not what you would describe as funny though. Even Cap’s unfortunate pageant montage isn’t great comic relief, because it’s pathetic the Army turned their greatest soldier into a propaganda tool.

28. Eternals

Marvel’s introduction of the Eternals served as a dark reminder that mankind has long been its own worst enemy. In a movie that told an intimate personal story of family and friendship that spanned millennia. It still managed to slip in some laughs, though. Especially thanks to the flashy Kingo and his valet Karun. And like any family, the group managed to find humor in making fun of one another, for some much needed relief in a somber and darker MCU entry.

27. Thor: The Dark World

The second Thor movie, often listed near the bottom of MCU movie rankings, is definitely funnier than people remember. As always, Thor has some good lines, Darcy is still around, and an unhinged Dr. Selvig running through Stonehenge naked is an obvious winner. But overall, this film, with its super serious and super lame villain, isn’t exactly a howler. Way too often, it veers—no pun intended—too dark. Okay, maybe a little pun intended.

26. Doctor Strange in the Multiverse of Madness

Any Sam Raimi movie is going to have some laughs, and Doctor Strange in the Multiverse of Madness certainly did. From Stephen Strange snark and Pizza Poppa punching himself, to Zombie Strange’s meat puppet exploits and the comedy genius known as Wong, the franchise’s first horror film provided some comic relief to help ease the constant tension. But it’s hard to laugh when your movie features a grieving Scarlet Witch murder spree that centers on her hopes to kill a child. Pedicide is just not funny in any universe. Nor is seeing some of our favorite characters so miserable.

25. Captain Marvel

A young, more trusting Nick Fury interacting with a “cat” deserves special recognition. As does Ben Mendelsohn’s Talos, one of the funniest characters in the entire franchise. And we’ll always enjoy watching Carol Danvers destroy everyone to a great ’90s soundtrack. But while Captain Marvel has plenty of charm, comparatively speaking it’s just not as funny as most MCU movies.

24. Iron Man 2

It’s impossible to have Iron Man around and not laugh some of the time. Plus, Sam Rockwell is hilarious in all of his scenes. And we always love having Happy on board. That said, most of this film is about Tony Stark being a raging a-hole because he’s dying. No other MCU movie makes us dislike its hero more, which limits how much we can enjoy him when he’s attempting to be humorous. Whiplash’s obsession with his bird always makes us laugh though.

23. Black Widow

One of the MCU’s more intimate and inherently sad (it’s Natasha’s post-Endgame farewell) installments still has its funny moments. The franchise really knows how to get laughs from bickering siblings. Even in the midst of a high-speed chase. It’s Florence Pugh’s Yelena and David Harbour’s Red Guardian who do most of the heavy comedic lifting here. And they carry it well. But on the whole the film is more somber than most Marvel movies, so it can’t rank that high.

22. Doctor Strange

Surprised by this low ranking considering Stephen Strange is basically magic’s answer to House? Don’t be. The movie is pretty light on laugh-out-loud moments. Most of the humor comes from clever quips and misunderstandings. Mads Mikkelsen gets the biggest laugh when he gets Strange’s name wrong. Not exactly vintage Chris Rock, you know? Meanwhile, Dr. Strange’s hilarious second MCU appearance in Infinity War shows just how much funnier he could have been here.

21. Thor

Old-school dumb Thor is always funny. And he was never dumber than in his first film, when he got to play an oblivious stranger in a foreign world. One of the movie’s strengths is how it embraces its inherently ridiculous nature, which is based on an actual god showing up on Earth. As a result there are plenty of funny moments throughout. None better than the diner scene where Thor discovers coffee. Plenty of characters get to shine as well, including Darcy. (I’m #TeamDarcy. Always have been and always will be. WandaVision showed why.) As well as Natalie Portman’s Jane Foster and the always great Dr. Selvig. (Note: No bonus points for Chris Hemsworth’s blonde eyebrows. Only intentionally funny things count for this list.)

20. Avengers: Age of Ultron

Marvel cast James Spader as a sarcastic, mad genius robot who hates Tony Stark. We should really appreciate that much more than we do. The second Avengers movie might not have matched its predecessor overall, but it was still full of humorous lines and scenes, including one of the most memorable in the entire franchise: when everyone tried picking up Thor’s hammer. The God of Thunder’s fear as Captain America gave it a go is still one of the funniest moments of the MCU. Plus, this movie gave us the classic “language” bit.

19. Shang-Chi and the Legend of the Ten Rings

A dead mom, a sad dad, and estranged siblings caught in a tragic family drama that could destroy not one but two worlds is not necessarily the best setup for comedy. But Shang-Chi does what the best Marvel movies do by finding humor even amid heartbreak and giant dragon fights. It also helps that Awkafina’s Katy is one of the funniest sidekicks in the franchise. And Sir Ben Kingsley’s Trevor is back for more ridiculous fun. (This time without any disappointed Mandarin fans.) Plus the always hilarious Wong pops in for some scene-stealing moments, especially the best karaoke performance ever.

18. Ant-Man and the Wasp: Quantumania

The third Ant-Man film inexplicably left some of the franchise’s funniest characters on the sideline. Fortunately it made up for some of that lost comedy with characters like Veb and M.O.D.O.K. They helped keep Quantumania from being too serious even if it’s the most intense movie of the three. That combo is ultimately while it ends up near the middle of this list.

17. Guardians of the Galaxy Vol. 3

The MCU’s funniest group delivered one of the franchise’s darkest films in their third and final ride together. James Gunn’s farewell to Marvel Studios featured some truly upsetting scenes and devastating moments. In anyone else’s hands that would have led to this being near the bottom of the list, but the Guardians can’t help but make us laugh even during their most emotional moments. Drax and Mantis in particular kept this entry from being too somber.

16. The Avengers

Marvel’s first big team-up still ranks as one of the studio’s very best. Not because it’s especially funny though. Cap’s “I understood that reference” is a highlight. As is Hulk’s “fight” with Loki. And with so many funny characters, many interactions are imbued with a lightheartedness that helps maintain the movie’s energy throughout. It’s consistently clever and full of great one-liners. But it’s not loaded with as much pure laugh-out-loud comedy the way many later films in the franchise are.

15. Iron Man 3

Unlike in Iron Man 2, Tony is once again likable in Iron Man 3. As a result he’s inherently much funnier. His interactions with his unlikely kid partner are all great. Plus, Happy’s new job as head of security lets him be extra ridiculous at the start. And the payoff to the Mandarin is among the most humorous surprises in the MCU. (Well, at least to non-comic readers.) This might be War Machine’s most comical performance too, which is really saying something since he’s always funny.

14. Black Panther

The delightful Shuri steals the comedy spotlight, with her new “sneaker” invention ranking as the most hilarious line. But she’s not the only funny part of the movie. M’Baku and the Jabari Tribe barking at Everett Ross is genuinely amazing. The jokes about T’Challa “freezing” all land perfectly. And every scene with Andy Serkis’ madman Klaw makes us smile. No one would say this movie is funnier than it is dramatic, but that’s a testament to how well it pulled off both elements.

13. Spider-Man: No Way Home

Like every movie that features Tom Holland’s Peter Parker, No Way Home had plenty of laughs. In fact, this one had three times as much thanks to all of the Spider-Mans who showed up. Normally that would be a perfect comedic recipe for a much higher spot on this list. Especially when you add in the laughs Ned, MJ, Doctor Strange, Wong, and all those villains added to the film too. But this is also one of the saddest entries in the entire MCU, with one of the saddest deaths and saddest endings. You can’t make an audience cry this much and crack the funny top ten.

12. Captain America: Civil War

This might be the only movie in the entire MCU that qualifies as a tragedy, but it has so much comic relief you laugh just as often as you feel terrible. Why is the big fight at the airport arguably the single best sequence in the franchise? Because in addition to being an amazing action set piece, it has more than a dozen genuinely hilarious moments. Spider-Man and Ant-Man alone would be enough to make this film one of the funniest. And yet our favorite interactions might be the animosity Sam has for Bucky. We love hearing “I hate you.”

11. Ant-Man

Paul Rudd’s Scott Lang is as sharp and funny as Tony Stark, while also being as charming and lovable as Steve Rogers. That combo makes him one of the most endearing heroes in the franchise. When you combine him with the great visuals of epic battles taking place on a wooden toy train set, sincere interactions with ants, and the kookiest sidekicks around—led by the long-winded Luis—it’s hard to believe this doesn’t rank higher.

10. Iron Man

The MCU’s first movie really set the template for the entire franchise. It gave us a hero who manages to be hilarious while also kicking ass. This original Iron Man balances its very serious dramatic elements, which includes the beginning of Tony’s PTSD, without sacrificing humor. Happy and Tony are still one of Marvel’s funniest twosomes. And Gwyneth Paltrow never gets enough credit for how consistently hilarious Pepper Potts is too.

9. Spider-Man: Far from Home

Peter Parker’s second solo MCU movie dealt with some pretty heavy issues about grief and responsibility. That didn’t stop the film from being hysterical. It features Ned’s brief vacation fling, Peter’s awkward attempts at romance (and accidental attempt at a drone strike), literally everything Zendaya’s MJ does or says, and Happy becoming an overwhelmed de facto dad. Not to mention all of the humor of dusted teenagers returned from the Snap, or the two teachers who took them to Europe a few months later. I mean, this movie has J.B. Smoove, and he’s maybe the fifth or sixth funniest character. And we didn’t even mention Samuel L. Jackson playing Talos pretending to be Nick Fury.

8. Thor: Love and Thunder

From Russell Crowe’s Zeus and giant screaming goats, to the Guardians of the Galaxy and a God of Thunder lacking self-awareness, to Korg’s unique perspective, to sentient weapons with jealous issues, Thor: Love and Thunder might have more jokes, gags, and silliness than any other film in the franchise. And you know you’re successfully mining every aspect of your film for humor when your creepy god butcher is making us laugh while performing as the universe’s scariest clown for a group of children hostages. But despite all the laughs in this very silly film, Jane Foster’s beautiful story of bravery adds way too much gravitas for this to make the top five.

7. Ant-Man and the Wasp

Even funnier than the first Ant-Man, this sequel boasts even better visuals that maximize the potential silliness of Hank Pym’s technology. And any film that stars Paul Rudd as a charming hero is going to make us laugh. But let’s be honest, Michael Peña’s Luis alone is enough to get into the top 10. We’d watch an entire movie of him recapping all the other movies.

6. Avengers: Infinity War

You’d think watching half of the MCU’s heroes fade to literal dust would be too much of a downer to land Infinity War so high on a funny list, but when you start considering how often you laughed during the most ambitious crossover ever, it’s impossible to deny it’s genuinely hysterical. The Guardians are at their funniest interacting with Thor, while Doctor Strange, Tony Stark, and Peter Parker form the best improv group in the universe, and Bruce Banner has the worst case of performance anxiety ever. Plus, in the midst of the biggest fight in MCU history, we get Captain America and Groot exchanging pleasantries.

5. Spider-Man: Homecoming

One complaint about previous live-action Spider-Man movies is that they didn’t really capture how freaking funny Peter Parker really is. But that’s not a problem in Homecoming. Tom Holland’s friendly neighborhood Spider-Man is hilarious, as is his friend Ned, Zendaya’s Michelle, his debate team coach, Hannibal Buress’ gym coach, and, of course, Happy Hogan and Tony Stark. Plus the school PSAs from that familiar “war criminal” are truly amazing. (Oh, so you forgot about Captain America’s cameo, did you?)

4. Guardians of the Galaxy Vol. 2

As weird as it sounds, there might be too much comedy in Guardians of the Galaxy Vol. 2. That’s about as nit-picky as you can get, we know. Especially because if you think about what you might cut it’s some of the funniest scenes in the film. There are so many great bits and characters here, including the naïve newcomer Mantis and Baby Groot that this would rank in the top five if we only judged it based on Drax.

3. Avengers: Endgame

Endgame is intense, hopeful, epic, and sad. But the movie also packs an incredible comedic punch. There’s “Lebowski” Thor. Professor Hulk and his tacos, selfies, and dispirited fake smashing. Scott Lang’s confusion over how time travel works in movies is meta perfection. As is all of the inherent comedy of the time heist. You doesn’t love seeing that “idiot” Peter Quill dancing without hearing his music? “That is America’s ass” will always make us laugh. As will hearing Cap whisper, “Hail Hydra.”

2. Guardians of the Galaxy

Try to list the five funniest moments from Guardians of the Galaxy. It’s impossible. So is attempting to list the 10 funniest. In fact, you probably need 30 spots before you’d feel okay leaving something off the list, that’s how many great gags, jokes, and scenes it packs. This is one of the funniest action or superhero movies ever made, and in many ways it reset the standard for just how hilarious an MCU film can be.

1. Thor: Ragnarok

Korg, Miek, Hulk acting like a big baby, Valkyrie, and Jeff Goldblum as the demented Grandmaster are just some of the many reasons the movie is relentlessly and absolutely hysterical from start to finish. Thor: Ragnarok isn’t just the funniest Marvel movie; it’s one of the funniest films of the 21st century. It will take one truly hysterical MCU film to knock it out of the top spot.

Well, unless they give Darryl his own movie. And now that’s he’s officially canon in the MCU, that’s more possible than ever.

Featured Image: Marvel Studios

Originally published on July 9, 2018.

The post Which Is the Funniest MCU Movie? All 32 Films Ranked appeared first on Nerdist.

The Marvel options on Disney+ are about to expand. Several Spider-Man films and Venom will arrive on Disney+ this spring—most of them as early as April 21. This move, a result of a deal between Disney and Sony, makes it easier to catch up on the world of Marvel films in one place, though most of the Spider-Man movies aren’t part of the MCU. That said, Spider-Man: No Way Home did bring Tobey Maguire’s and Andrew Garfield’s Peter Parkers into the Marvel Cinematic Universe. Disney+ released the below video to mark the occasion.

Here’s which Spider-Man movies will be available when on Disney+ in the US:

• Spider-Man (2002) – Available April 21, 2023
• Spider-Man 2 (2004) – Available April 21, 2023
• Spider-Man 3 (2007) – Available April 21, 2023
• The Amazing Spider-Man (2012) – Available April 21, 2023
• Spider-Man: Homecoming (2017) – Available May 12, 2023
• Venom (2018) – Available May 12, 2023

Disney also said that, “Additional titles from Sony Pictures’ film and television library are expected to premiere on Disney+ in the US later this year.” We suspect that means Venom: Let There Be Carnage, Morbius, and maybe the Spider-Verse films.

The post SPIDER-MAN and VENOM Are Coming to Disney+ appeared first on Nerdist.

It’s often seemed like the impossible dream for comic book movie fans. An honest to goodness cinematic Marvel/DC crossover event. While it may currently seem like a pipe dream, in a recent interview former Marvel creative and current DC Studios head honcho James Gunn admitted “I’d be lying to say we haven’t discussed it.” Yes, it would be years away. But it’s now at least something we can speculate about it. But what would our dream big-screen MCU/DCU projects even be? These are the ones that would be comic book movie nirvana for us.

Side note: We’re only talking about characters and not the current actors portraying them here. Simply because by the time this happens, if it ever even happens, who the heck knows who will be playing any of these roles. We’ll probably be on our fifth live-action Spider-Man and our hundredth live-action Batman by that point.

Justice League/Avengers

If we could only have one come true, it would be this one. The one that would blow the barn doors off of movie theaters, the Justice League vs. the Avengers. In the comics, this series was literally 20 years in the making. Because the two most iconic teams in their respective universes had to be a bigger-than-life experience and worth the reader’s money. And it was. JLA/Avengers gave us everything; billionaire playboy heroes Iron Man and Batman butting heads, and expert hand-to-hand fighters Captain America and Batman testing each other’s mettle. The God Thor vs. the Goddess Wonder Woman. Hawkeye and Black Widow vs Green Arrow and Black Canary.

The 2004 comic book event series, drawn by the legendary George Perez, was ultimately worth the long wait. And we hope any movie version would be the same. We’re not sure who they would fight, however. It would have to be a villain so big, it takes the biggest powerhouses in two universes to stop them. Maybe they literally take on the Gods of Olympus or something? All we know is that if we don’t get an image of Superman using Thor’s hammer and Cap’s shield to make one last stand against the bad guys, we will demand our money back.

X-Men/Teen Titans

We don’t know what form either the live-action X-Men or the Teen Titans will take in their respective cinematic universes, once they inevitably show up. But we know that sooner or later, both super teams of angsty young heroes will be a part of the action in the DCU and MCU. In the comics, the best Marvel/DC crossover event was easily 1982’s Uncanny X-Men/New Teen Titans. Not only did it feature both team lineups in arguably their most iconic versions, but they fought off Dark Phoenix and Darkseid together. It was the definition of epic in the comics, and would make for one of the most epic comic book movies of all time.

Batman/Spider-Man

On the surface, Batman and Spidey don’t have a ton in common. One has no powers, one does. One lives modestly in Queens, the other in opulence in Gotham City. One barely cracks a smile, the other one cracks jokes constantly. But both heroes were forged in pain and loss. Neither would be who they are if not forged in tragedy, and lost a parental figure (or in Bruce’s case, his actual parents). Because of that loss, their fight will never end. This one thing would form a strong bond between them. Plus, it would be fun to see Batman constantly annoyed at Spider-Man’s constant quipping. Our dream villain team up for this movie? Well, it’s gotta be Joker and the Green Goblin, right? So much villainous cackling, it might be overwhelming.

Batman/Daredevil

Another Batman team-up, and one we wouldn’t see in any Justice League/Avengers crossover. Simply because Matt Murdock isn’t traditionally an Avenger. But both heroes are the kind who prowl their cities at night, stalking criminals and striking terror into their hearts. And they both love to brood. It’s just a natural fit for a crossover. Marvel’s Man Without Fear has actual powers, and DC’s Dark Knight doesn’t, but we’re not sure he’d win in a fight against the Batman. Even if they don’t battle, these two together, fighting mad mob bosses and taking on ninja hordes, would be the moodiest superhero movie ever. But we’d be there on day one.

Superman/Captain America

Although we imagine a Superman/Captain America meeting would happen in some sort of Justice League/Avengers crossover film, we still want something with just the two of them. Because these two are their respective universe’s idealistic boy scouts, whose unwavering morality defines them. Plus, we want a time travel story where the Man of Steel travels back in time to World War II, where he helps Steve Rogers punch some Nazis. Think of how culturally therapeutic a movie like that could be. Hey, maybe the movie ends with them merging into one being, “Super Soldier.” That’s a thing that actually happened once in the ’90s.

The post Our Dream DC/Marvel Cinematic Crossover Projects appeared first on Nerdist.

How do you try and top one of cinema’s best superhero movies, an Oscar-winning film that changed animation forever? You don’t just go “into” the Spider-Verse. You go “across” it. That’s where you’ll find even more versions of everyone’s favorite friendly neighborhood arachnid. But while the latest trailer for Spider-Man: Across the Spider-Verse has us ready to jump back into the multiverse, not every Spider-Man will be happy to see Miles Morales show up. Fortunately for him, he still has friends to help him face the inescapable responsibility of being Spider-Man.

We thought it was impossible for anything to get us more hyped for this movie. We were wrong. This trailer just did it. Not only does it have a chance to be more exciting than the original, but it also looks like it might be more emotional, too. What exactly is going on? And why is a big scary version of Spider-Man out to get Miles? Here’s the Across the Spider-Verse‘s official synopsis from Sony:

Miles Morales returns for the next chapter of the Oscar-winning Spider-Verse saga, Spider-Man: Across the Spider-Verse. After reuniting with Gwen Stacy, Brooklyn’s full-time, friendly neighborhood Spider-Man is catapulted across the Multiverse, where he encounters a team of Spider-People charged with protecting its very existence. But when the heroes clash on how to handle a new threat, Miles finds himself pitted against the other Spiders and must redefine what it means to be a hero so he can save the people he loves most.

That’s the nice thing about going across the Spider-Verse and not just into it. Sure, you might find even more enemies, including some just like you. But you’ll also find plenty of friends, both old and new, to help you.

Spider-Man: Across the Spider-Verse comes from directors Joaquim Dos Santos, Kemp Powers, and Justin K. Thompson. It stars Shameik Moore, Hailee Steinfeld, Oscar Isaac, Jake Johnson, Issa Rae, Brian Tyree Henry, Luna Lauren Velez, Rachel Dratch, Jason Schwartzman, Shea Whigham, Daniel Kaluuya, Jorma Taccone, and Karan Soni. Spider-Man: Across the Spider-Verse swings into theaters June 2, 2023.

The post SPIDER-MAN: ACROSS THE SPIDER-VERSE Trailer Asks Miles for a Sacrifice appeared first on Nerdist.

With big movie franchises that go on for years and years, viewing order can be a tricky proposition for viewers just getting into it. Where to start? It’s certainly not always in release order. And with the Marvel Cinematic Universe, with some 30 movies and countless TV shows at this point, it becomes absolutely daunting. So how should you watch the MCU in full? Well, don’t fret, we’re here to help. In today’s Nerdist Now, Hector Navarro gives us the very best MCU Phase One viewing order. And we promise you, it’s not what you think it is. You can take a look at the videos right here:

Most folks see Iron Man as the way to start, since it came out first, in 2008. Yup, Iron Man is now 15 years old, believe it or not. However, 2011’s Captain America: The First Avenger largely takes place in the early ’40s, so many fans think the viewing order should start there. But recent developments have changed things. In our opinion, the original Sam Raimi Spider-Man trilogy is the place to start. After all, those films (along with the Amazing Andrew Garfield Spidey films) have now been retconned into the official Marvel Multiverse timeline by No Way Home. They are part of MCU canon now and absolutely should count in your watch.

However, given that logic, why not the first X-Men from 2000? After all, Patrick Stewart showed up in Doctor Strange in the Multiverse of Madness as Professor Charles Xavier. While that may be true, he’s not the same Charles Xavier from the Fox X-Men films, but a variant. So, until the OG movie X-Men pop up in the MCU (In, say, Avengers: Secret Wars) the Raimi Spider-Man gets first place in the MCU timeline. We realize that all that may change in a few years, though. There are other fun timeline tidbits sprinkled throughout this video. Do you know that Iron Man takes place two years after it hit theaters? Now you do!

MCU Phase Two Watch Order

But don’t stop there, Phase Two of the MCU also needs to be watched, and it has an order all its own. All Hail the King, for instance, cannot be missed, but we’re willing to bet its not on most people’s to watch list. We’ll even guide you through which episodes of Agents of S.H.I.E.L.D take place when! (It’s no easy science.)

Phase Three Watch Order

From there, it’s time to embark on Phase Three. There’s a lot to consider when watching this phase of the MCU, especially the Netflix Marvel series. Here’s how the MCU makes the most sense.

Phase Four Watch Order

And now it’s time to conclude our tour of the MCU with some of the latest entries into the universe. As we head into Phase Five, you can rest easy knowing, you’ve seen it all.

As Kevin Feige is always fond of saying, “it’s all connected.”

For the interested, here is the best way to watch phase one of the MCU in list form:

MCU Phase One Watch Order List:

SPIDER-MAN (2002)

SPIDER-MAN 2 (2004)

SPIDER-MAN 3 (2007)

IRON MAN (2008)

IRON MAN 2

A FUNNY THING HAPPENED ON THE WAY TO THOR’S HAMMER (MARVEL ONE-SHOT)

THOR

THE INCREDIBLE HULK (2008)

THE CONSULTANT

CAPTAIN AMERICA: THE FIRST AVENGER

AGENT CARTER (2015)

AGENT CARTER (MARVEL ONE-SHOT)

THE AVENGERS

ITEM 47

THE AMAZING SPIDER-MAN (2012)

MCU Phase Two Watch Order List:

IRON MAN 3

ALL HAIL THE KING

AGENTS OF S.H.I.E.L.D. (FIRST SEVEN EPISODES)

THOR: THE DARK WORLD

AGENTS OF S.H.I.E.L.D. (EPISODES EIGHT THROUGH SIXTEEN)

CAPTAIN AMERICA: THE WINTER SOLDIER

AGENTS OF S.H.I.E.L.D. (EPISODES SEVENTEEN THROUGH TWENTY-TWO)

THE AMAZING SPIDER-MAN 2

GUARDIANS OF THE GALAXY

I AM GROOT SEASON ONE EPISODE, “GROOT’S FIRST STEPS”

DAREDEVIL (SEASON ONE)

JESSICA JONES

AGENTS OF S.H.I.E.L.D. (SEASON TWO, EPISODES ONE THROUGH NINETEEN)

AVENGERS: AGE OF ULTRON

AGENTS OF S.H.I.E.L.D.  (SEASON TWO, EPISODES TWENTY THROUGH TWENTY-TWO)

DAREDEVIL (SEASON TWO)

LUKE CAGE (SEASON ONE)

IRON FIST

THE DEFENDERS

AGENTS OF S.H.I.E.L.D. (THIRD SEASON, EPISODES ONE THROUGH NINETEEN)

“WHIH NEWSFRONT” (YOUTUBE)

ANT-MAN

MCU Phase Three Watch Order List:

“WHIH NEWSFRONT” (SEASON TWO, SETS UP CAPTAIN AMERICA: CIVIL WAR)

CAPTAIN AMERICA: CIVIL WAR

AGENTS OF S.H.I.E.L.D. (SEASON THREE, EPISODES 20 THROUGH 22)

SPIDER-MAN: HOMECOMING

BLACK PANTHER

INHUMANS

AGENTS OF S.H.I.E.L.D.: SLINGSHOT. (WEB-SERIES ON YOUTUBE)

THE PUNISHER (SEASON ONE)

CLOAK & DAGGER (SEASON ONE)

AGENTS OF S.H.I.E.L.D. (FOURTH SEASON)

JESSICA JONES (SEASON TWO)

LUKE CAGE (SEASON TWO)

IRON FIST (SEASON TWO)

DAREDEVIL (THIRD SEASON)

CLOAK & DAGGER (SEASON TWO)

DOCTOR STRANGE

RUNAWAYS (ALL THREE SEASONS)

THE PUNISHER (SEASON TWO)

JESSICA JONES (SEASON THREE)

GUARDIANS OF THE GALAXY VOL. 2

I AM GROOT (SEASON ONE, EPISODES TWO THROUGH FIVE)

AGENTS OF S.H.I.E.L.D. (SEASON FIVE, EPISODES ONE THROUGH EIGHTEEN)

THOR: RAGNAROK

AVENGERS: INFINITY WAR

ANT-MAN AND THE WASP

AGENTS OF S.H.I.E.L.D. (FIFTH SEASON, EPISODES NINETEEN TO TWENTY-TWO) 

CAPTAIN MARVEL

VENOM (2018)

AGENTS OF S.H.I.E.L.D. (SIXTH AND SEVENTH SEASONS)

HELSTROM

AVENGERS: ENDGAME

MCU Phase Four Watch Order List:

LOKI

WHAT IF…?

WANDAVISION

ETERNALS

SHANG-CHI AND THE LEGEND OF THE TEN RINGS

THE FALCON AND THE WINTER SOLDIER

THOR: LOVE AND THUNDER

SPIDER-MAN: FAR FROM HOME

THE DAILY BUGLE (SEASON ONE, YOUTUBE)

VENOM: LET THERE BE CARNAGE

SPIDER-MAN: NO WAY HOME

THE DAILY BUGLE (SECOND SEASON, TIKTOK)

MORBIUS

THE DAILY BUGLE (THIRD SEASON, TIKTOK)

STRANGE IN THE MULTIVERSE OF MADNESS

HAWKEYE (FIRST THREE EPISODES)

BLACK WIDOW

HAWKEYE (EPISODES FOUR, FIVE, AND SIX)

MOON KNIGHT

MS. MARVEL

SHE-HULK: ATTORNEY AT LAW

BLACK PANTHER: WAKANDA FOREVER

THE GUARDIANS OF THE GALAXY HOLIDAY

WEREWOLF BY NIGHT

Originally published on January 26, 2023.

The post How to Watch the MCU in Order: Phases One Through Four appeared first on Nerdist.

In a surprise report, it appears Sony is developing a Spider-Man: Noir live-action series for Prime Video. This would be the second Spider-Man-related live-action show for them, following their announcement of Silk. Given how popular this relatively obscure Spider-Man variant became after the release of Spider-Man: Into the Spider-Verse, and one great Nicolas Cage voice performance, it makes sense.

However, the biggest change for this live-action Spider-Man iteration is that, unlike the comics, he won’t be Peter Parker under that mask. Or under that stylish hat. But we’re here to explain why that may not really matter in the long run. But first, a brief history of Spider-Man Noir in the comics.

The Marvel Comics History of Spider-Man Noir

Before 2018’s Into the Spider-Verse, Spider-Man Noir only had a few appearances. He first popped up in a gimmicky publishing initiative by Marvel in 2009, titled as Marvel Noir. They took versions of some of their well-known heroes, like Iron Man and Luke Cage, and put them in a pulpy, 1930s hard-boiled setting. Each received a four-issue mini-series. Yet it was Spider-Man that stood out. David Hine and Fabrice Sapolsky, and artist Carmine Di Giandomenico, created that first series. Artist Marko Djurdjevic designed that distinctive costume. Of the six initial Marvel Noir titles, only Spidey and X-Men got a follow-up mini-series.

This version of Peter Parker leaned hard into all the pulp fiction detective story tropes of the era. Not just the detective stories, but also the high adventure stories from pulp magazines that heavily influenced Indiana Jones. In fact, this Peter Parker got his powers in 1932 when he ventured into a warehouse with stolen artifacts, and a mysterious ancient spider-idol cracked, unleashing mystical spiders on him. All that’s missing to go full Indy is a giant boulder. Becoming “the Spider-Man,” he looks out for the little guy in an era when the poor and downtrodden were more stomped on than ever. His Uncle Ben was murdered by criminals before he ever got powers, so he vowed to continue the fight in his name.

The Key Differences Between Classic Spider-Man and Spider-Man Noir

The origin story of Spider-Man Noir is certainly similar to classic Peter Parker in some respects. He’s from New York City, had an Aunt May and an Uncle Ben, and gained cool spider powers. But, the other differences are more than just cosmetic. And we don’t just mean the time period shift. This Peter Parker was a full-grown adult, eliminating a lot of the adolescent drama that makes classic Spider-Man Spider-Man. That’s a big one.

Most importantly, this Peter got his powers from an ancient spider-god, and not a science mishap. He was also an investigative reporter and not a photographer. And he definitely was not cracking-wise all the time like mainstream Peter. He’s much more Batman-esque in his approach to fighting crime. In fact, he even killed occasionally, a line “our” Peter never really crossed. There are enough changes to make him Peter Parker in all but name. So why not change the identity under the mask too?

Is the Peter Parker Name Even Important?

Peter Parker as a character remains a precious asset to Sony, not to mention Marvel Studios. The latter is not involved in this production, we should add. They probably wanted to limit the appearance of any character named Peter Parker in live-action. Especially since post-Spider-Man: No Way Home, they have three Peter Parkers swinging around, likely to return. But we feel a good workaround would be to make Spidey Noir a Parker, or Parker family adjacent, just not Peter Parker.

Spider-Man Noir: Peter’s Grandpa?

Given that the time period of the series will be the Great Depression, it could be fun to make this Spidey a young version of Peter’s grandfather. In 60 years of Spider-Man comics, we know next to nothing about Peter Parker’s grandparents, except for the name of his mother’s father, William Fitzpatrick. It would be a deep-cut reference to make Spider-Man Noir into William, a character who would have presumably been in his prime during that time. And it would still keep ties to the Parker family and legacy.

Of course, as Miles Morales and others have proven, one doesn’t need to be Peter Parker to be Spider-Man. As Stan Lee famously once said “anyone can wear the mask.” So if they choose to make him completely unrelated to Peter, that’s fine too. He’s already substantially different enough as a character that it wouldn’t really matter. In the end, it’s not the Parker legacy that makes Spider-Man Noir so memorable. It’s the look and the attitude. And one killer fedora.

The post Why Live-Action Spider-Man Noir Doesn’t Need to Be Peter Parker appeared first on Nerdist.

As we know, there are so, so many Spideys out in the world. It was a delight to see a few of them together in Spider-Man: Into the Spiderverse, including Spider-Man Noir. The older and frankly worn out monochromatic hero from the 1930s is certainly an interesting take on the character. Now, Spider-Man Noir is getting his own live-action series at Prime Video. It could be yet another win for Amazon’s streaming service.

According to Variety, the show will be set in its own universe and will not center around Peter Parker. The show will, however, take place in the 1930s and will presumably stick with the character’s black and white format. We can’t wait to see how a Spider-Man Noir series plays out. It will likely take a while before we learn anything else about this venture, but in the meantime fans can begin all the speculation. 

The post A Spider-Man Noir Live-Action Series Is Coming to Prime Video appeared first on Nerdist.

Wednesday is one Netflix’s most popular shows ever. News of its renewal for season two a surprise to no one. There’s a lot to love about it, maybe most of all Wednesday’s awkward dance scene in episode four. It’s one of the most talked about moments of the series, so how did it take us so long to notice that it bears a striking resemblance to another dark dance number? Yes, we’re talking about the infamous Spider-Man 3 jazz club sequence. Tobey Maguire’s Peter Parker feels both confident and emo after his brush with Venom. And of course the only way to express himself is to hip-thrust and finger-snap his way around town. The mashup video below imagines Wednesday Addams and Peter Parker dancing together instead of on their own and it’s pitch perfect.

It tracks that an emo Peter Parker and a slightly happier Wednesday Addams have something in common when it comes to their dance moves. Though she would never be caught dead uttering “Now dig on this” while strutting her stuff. Peter, on the other hand, just can’t help himself. While he gets down to the James Brown song “People Get Up and Drive Your Funky Soul,” Wednesday’s rug-cutting is set to “Goo Goo Muck” by The Cramps. The mashup above instead bops to a remix of Lady Gaga’s “Bloody Mary.” The song became a fan favorite for those emulating Wednesday’s dance on social media, including a TikTok of Mother Monster herself trying out the moves.  

We may never rid ourselves of the memory of Spider-Man 3‘s infamous gyrations. And now Wednesday will likely go down in the same history book. Both inspire the masses. There have been many fan edits of the cringey Spidey dance over the years. There’s a dance-off with Matt Smith’s character in Morbius and even a stop-motion version of it. 

Melissa is Nerdist’s science & technology staff writer. She also moderates “science of” panels at conventions and co-hosts Star Warsologies, a podcast about science and Star Wars. Follow her on Twitter @melissatruth.

The post Wednesday Addams and Emo Peter Parker Dance Off in This Ridiculous Video appeared first on Nerdist.

You know you’ve got an effective trailer with instant pop culture impact when there is an immediate LEGO fan-made version right away. And that’s what’s happened with the first Spider-Man: Across the Spider-Verse trailer, which just got a LEGO-ized version by the folks at the YouTube channel LEGOMe_TheOG. They replicated the whole trailer’s original dialogue track in its entirety. And the visuals received the classic Minifigure treatment. Just how do Miles Morales, Spider-Gwen, and all these spider-people climb walls and spin webs with LEGO hands and no digits?? Watch the full video below and find out.

There are so very many Spider characters in the original trailer. So this is one LEGO fan film that just had to be a hard one to figure out. There are a LOT of random Spider folks in this one. After all, even we had to go over the trailer with a fine toothcomb to figure out which wall-crawler was which. And we are some old-school Spider-Man fans here who know our Marvel lore. And we know there are some Spider heroes (and probably villains) still hidden in that trailer. Kind of like a superhero Where’s Waldo? book.

LEGOME_TheOG has a lot of other pop culture parody videos on their channel that are pretty delightful. They’ve recreated the iconic “high ground” battle moment between Obi-Wan and Anakin Skywalker from Revenge of the Sith. Also, the often-parodied “Martha moment” from Batman v Superman. And, of course, we see a few other Marvel-related ones. Including one showing Reed Richards getting a much better deal at the hands of Wanda in Doctor Strange in the Multiverse of Madness. You can check out the rest of their LEGO videos by heading over to the LEGOME_TheOG channel.

Spider-Man: Across the Spider-Verse swings its way into theaters on June 2.

The post ACROSS THE SPIDER-VERSE Fan Trailer Sees Miles Get LEGO-ized appeared first on Nerdist.

The Hypno-Hustler is one of the most obscure, not to mention ridiculous, Spider-Man villains out there. And he is often ranked as one of the worst too. Despite sharing a creator with the man who gave the world Rocket Raccoon, Bill Mantlo. And yet, this musical criminal is going to be the subject of a live-action movie, starring none other than Donald Glover. The news comes straight from The Hollywood Reporter. But just who the heck is this obscure Spider-Man villain? We’re here to explain it all to you.

Hypno-Hustler, the Disco Devil

The Hypno-Hustler was one of many attempts during the peak of the late ‘70s Disco music craze to try to cash in on the phenomenon. (the other, far more famous example, is the mutant Dazzler). After Saturday Night Fever, everyone from Mickey Mouse to Count Chocula was cutting a Disco album, so Marvel wanted in on some of that action. Hence, the Disco-themed villain Hypno-Hustler made his debut in Peter Parker, the Spectacular Spider-Man #24 way back in 1978.

The Hypno-Hustler’s real name was Antoine Desloin. He was the lead singer of a Disco musical group called the Mercy Killers. They were scheduled to headline at a popular nightclub called “Beyond Forever.” But the club’s manager caught the Hypno-Hustler robbing his safe, so Desloin used his high-tech hypnotic equipment on the manager. He had a guitar that could emit hypnotic soundwaves, and also had some boots that spewed out knockout gas. He even had retractable knives in the soles. Later up on stage, Hypno-Hustler and the Mercy Killers used their hypnotizing equipment on the audience in order to rob them all. And it would have all gone according to plan, if not for that meddling wallcrawler.

A Fateful Encounter on the Dance Floor

As luck would have it, Peter Parker was dancing away at the club on that fateful night. And so, the friendly neighborhood Spider-Man was there to challenge the Hypno-Hustler. In the brawl, Spidey discovered that the Hypno-Hustler’s headphones protected him from his own hypnotic sounds, rendering him immune. Spidey then took his headphones off, therefore causing him to become a victim of his own hypnosis. In traditional Spidey fashion, Peter left Hypno-Hustler all webbed up for the police to take into custody. Interestingly enough, they introduced a Disco-themed villain who used music to hypnotize and steal on the Lynda Carter Wonder Woman TV series that same year.

Not Exactly an A-List Spider-Man Rogue

Hypno-Hustler did not exactly become one of Spidey’s recurring villains after this encounter. Within a year of his introduction, the Disco bubble burst. By the end of 1979, the terms “Disco Sucks” and “Dead as Disco” were on everyone’s lips. Everything pertaining to this genre instantly became tacky and passe. Thus, the Hypno-Hustler, with his all-silver costume and period-specific hairdo, seemed like an instant relic of a pop culture fad gone by. He has appeared a handful of times in the decades since. Usually as a background character cameo as the butt of a joke. He sadly did not survive the implosion of Disco like his fellow cash-in character Dazzler did. We last saw the Hypno-Hustler at a Vil-a-Non meeting for reformed villains.

We imagine Donald Glover will be able to have a ton of fun with a character like Hypno-Hustler. Especially if he makes the film an homage to the glorious excess of the Disco era. Maybe they make the movie a throwback period piece. Or maybe it takes place in the modern day, at a retro-themed nightclub. If we get a Spidey dancing cameo, that would make it all worth it. As long as Donald Glover wears a very close reproduction of the original Hypno-Hustler costume and embraces the absurdity, we’re here for it.

The post Spider-Man’s Groovy Disco Villain the Hypno-Hustler, Explained appeared first on Nerdist.

It is truly the age of Spider-Man… Or is it the age of Venom? During its 2021 PlayStation Showcase, PlayStation showed fans a tantalizing first look at Marvel’s Spider-Man 2 game. The Spider-Man games have been a huge success to this point, allowing fans to embody both Peter Parker’s Spidey and Miles Morales. Now it looks like they’ll be teaming up against a familiar frenemy, Venom.

The trailer opens on a dark New York Street with our two Spideys taking care of business as usual. But not all is well in the world and something dark is lurking in the shadows. A creepy voice hovers over the trailer saying:

For as long as I can remember I have looked for an equal. One who could push me, one who could surprise me, one who could even beat me, yet all I found is disappointment. Will one of you finally give me what I desire?

And an equally creepy voice, one that no doubt belongs to Venom answers, “Yes. We will.”

Well, double the Spider-Men must surely mean double the foes to fight. It certainly sounds like there are two different baddies talking to one another in this first look. But who does the first voice belong to? We vote Kraven the Hunter. But anyone could be Venom’s better? (worse?) half at this point. We won’t know for sure until later. Other than the villain tease and the look at our two heroes teaming up, information is pretty scarce. But we’re very ready to learn about the gameplay, story, costumes, and more this game will surely offer.

For now, what we do know is that Marvel’s Spider-Man 2 will release in fall 2023. That might seem like a long way from now, but this first glimpse is so good, we’re getting excited anyway.

Originally published on September 9, 2021.

The post First Look at Marvel’s SPIDER-MAN 2 Reveals Venom and More appeared first on Nerdist.

Engineer and YouTube star Jake Laser scaled a 400-foot-tall building in his homemade Spider-Man suit. On top of that, he also managed to beat a real Spider-Man to the top. David Elson, the stunt double for Tom Holland, also completed the feat of strength and engineering in the end, but was a few minutes behind Laser. A Marvel stunt team including Martin De Boer, Benedict Cumberbatch’s stunt double and the stunt coordinator for Avengers: Endgame, oversaw the race. It’s a real-life action sequence.

Laser’s video of the Spider-Man suit build includes more details about the suction cups and air pumps involved in his Spidey suit. He did scale a smaller building back then, but he wasn’t racing the clock or anyone else. This time around, the stunt left him exhausted and slightly burned. The suit needs some repairs before it can leap back into action.

The JLaservideo YouTube channel also shows off his other Spider-Man suit that shrinks to fit the user. He’s even constructed functional Doc Ock arms. There’s other wild builds inspired by the Marvel Cinematic Universe as well, like Shuri’s silent sneakers from Black Panther and a version of Thor’s hammer that shoots lightning. Most recently, he built an Iron Man suit that flies to him on command.

Laser doesn’t necessarily make the whole endeavor look easy, but the stunt was undoubtedly even more taxing than it looked. And based on the video above, it looks like he will have to do the climb at least one more time. MrBeast, one of the most popular YouTubers, originally challenged him to complete the race but then things fell through. Members of his team didn’t make it more than a few stories up the building before tapping out. Now it’s back on in a rematch.  

Melissa is Nerdist’s science & technology staff writer. She also moderates “science of” panels at conventions and co-hosts Star Warsologies, a podcast about science and Star Wars. Follow her on Twitter @melissatruth.

The post YouTuber Wears a Homemade Spider-Man Suit and Races Tom Holland’s Stunt Double Up a Building appeared first on Nerdist.

It’s been over four years since Miles Morales (Shameik Moore) entered the mainstream consciousness as the 21st-century friendly neighborhood wall-crawler in Spider-Man: Into the Spider-Verse. The 2018 animated film broke new ground in several ways. And it even won Best Animated Feature at the Academy Awards. Now, the long-awaited sequel is finally near, and at last, we have the first full trailer for Spider-Man: Across the Spider-Verse in our hands. You can watch the trailer, which also showcases Hailee Steinfeld as Gwen Stacy, and Oscar Isaac as Spider-Man 2099, right here:

As we can see from the trailer, Across the Spider-Verse is taking the innovative animation style from the first film and cranking up the dial several notches. Instead of just one style of animation, we see several, presumably one for every different world of the Spider-Verse.

In this first Across the Spider-Verse trailer, we don’t yet get a good look at the film’s bad guy, the Spot. But he’s voiced by none other than Jason Schwartzman. Co-director Kemp Powers has confirmed that the Spot is also the villain for film three, Beyond the Spider-Verse. The former “joke villain” from the comics isn’t going to be that much of a joke after these two movies. And we can’t wait to see him in action.

In addition to all the trippy visuals, the film is looking to maintain the emotional focus on Miles Morales. Judging from the recent trailer, it will especially put the spotlight on his relationship with his family, and, of course, with himself and the kind of person he wants to be in the world. Spider-Man: Across the Spider-Verse‘s synopsis shares more about what we can expect from the movie.

Miles Morales returns for the next chapter of the Oscar®-winning Spider-Verse saga, Spider-Man: Across the Spider-Verse. After reuniting with Gwen Stacy, Brooklyn’s full-time, friendly neighborhood Spider-Man is catapulted across the Multiverse, where he encounters a team of Spider-People charged with protecting its very existence. But when the heroes clash on how to handle a new threat, Miles finds himself pitted against the other Spiders and must redefine what it means to be a hero so he can save the people he loves most.

Across the Spider-Verse will see many returning cast members from the first film, aside from those previously mentioned. These include Jake Johnson (Peter B. Parker), Brian Tyree Henry (Jefferson Davis), Luna Lauren Vélez (Rio Morales), Issa Rae (Jessica Drew/Spider-Woman), and Daniel Kaluuya (Spider-Punk). Shea Whigham is also part of the cast as police captain George Stacy, Gwen’s father. And we’re sure we’re in for some other surprise multiversal cameos.

Spider-Man: Across the Spider-Verse hits theaters everywhere on June 2, 2023.

The post SPIDER-MAN: ACROSS THE SPIDER-VERSE’s Emotional First Trailer Is Here appeared first on Nerdist.

These days every season is Spidey Season. Not only did we recently see Spider-Man: No Way Home launch into theaters with multiversal shenanigans … But now another Spider-Man gem is taking center stage. Spider-Man: Into the Spider-Verse‘s sequel Spider-Man: Across the Spider-Verse and its second part Spider-Man: Beyond the Spider-Verse are heading our way. Spider-Man: Across the Spider-Verse may feel like a bit of a mouthful to say at first. But it’s one long title we could not feel more excited to see. Into the Spider-Verse‘s sequel has so far released its first trailer and shared some aspects of its plot. Now, we even know who the villain will be in this upcoming movie.

Spider-Man: Across the Spider-Verse‘s Villain

In a tweet thread from The Annecy International Animation Film Festival, Sony, we got to hear who the next Spider-Verse villain will be. In Across the Spider-Verse, Miles Morales will face down The Spot.

Meet The Spot, Miles Morales’s most formidable foe yet, as debuted at #AnnecyFestival. He is voiced by Jason Schwartzman. 🕳 See him in action in Spider-Man: Across the #SpiderVerse, in theaters June 2, 2023. pic.twitter.com/9V1fzvlR6A

— Sony Pictures Animation (@SonyAnimation) June 13, 2022

Jason Schwartzman will be voicing the spot in the upcoming Spider-Verse movie. And The Spot will be
“Miles Morales’s most formidable foe yet.” He certainly looks intimidating. And like he may be able to travel through multiverses, which is never a good thing.

Sony Pictures Animation revealed more about the Spot’s powers:

Spot’s whole body is covered in interdimensional portals (made to feel like “living ink”) that can send him anywhere he wants to go. He can also make these portals appear out of thin air to transport objects and people at will. This spells trouble for Miles.

We love this great use of animation and how The Spot’s design is fluid, much like his ability to dance between dimensions. We don’t see him in action yet in Across the Spider-Verse‘s first trailer. But we do see plenty to get us excited for the movie.

Sony Pictures Animation also shared that we’ll see “an anachronistic version of the Vulture voiced by Jorma Taccone.”

Spider-Man: Across the Spider-Verse‘s First Trailer

Spider-Man: Across the Spider-Verse‘s trailer doesn’t swing deep into the action right away. Instead, it kicks off by reminding us what we loved so much about Into the Spider-Verse. Namely, the incredible animation on our screens and our favorite, endearing protagonists. Spider-Gwen is back, voiced by Hailee Steinfeld. Gwen dons her undercut, green vans, and snarky affection. She’s come ready to give our hero, Miles Morales, a gentle, hard time. Miles, voiced by Shameik Moore, is, of course, nothing but smooth. It’s clear they’ve missed each other.

We find out that Miles is grounded, but happily, for us, Spider-Man is anything but. The second half of the trailer swings into high gear as Miles Morales’ Spider-Man makes his way through a couple of superbly animated worlds. The multiverse has not become any less beautiful since the first movie. He’s tussling with Spider-Man 2099 as he goes, but it’s unclear whether the latter comes as a friend or foe. We last saw Spider-Man 2099 in Into the Spider-Verse‘s after the credits scene.

Spider-Man: Across the Spider-Verse‘s trailer description further shares:

Miles Morales returns for the next chapter of the Oscar®-winning Spider-Verse saga, an epic adventure that will transport Brooklyn’s full-time, friendly neighborhood Spider-Man across the Multiverse to join forces with Gwen Stacy and a new team of Spider-People to face off with a villain more powerful than anything they have ever encountered.

Spider-Man: Across the Spider-Verse‘s Plot

At CinemaCon 2022, Phil Lord and Chris Miller unveiled the first 15 minutes from Across the Spider-Verse and shared some sweet tidbits about the upcoming film. (We saw this at Gizmodo.) Among the exciting bits is the fact that there are a whopping 240 characters in the film. And yep, it certainly sounds like a whole lot of our favorites from the first film are back—along with a few hundred more friends and foes this time around.

Miles Morales and Gwen Stacey will meet even more Spider-Pals, including Miguel O’Hara and Jessica Drew.

Additionally, according to Sony Pictures Animation, “our old friend Spider-Man 2099 (voiced by Oscar Isaac)” will return. As well as “the incomparable (and pregnant!) Jessica Drew, aka Spider-Woman (voiced by Issa Rae).”

So, grab your spidey suits; it’s going to be a wild ride when Spider-Man: Across the Spider-Verse releases on June 2, 2023. Spider-Man: Beyond the Spider-Verse, bows on March 29, 2024.

Originally published on December 6, 2021.

The post ACROSS THE SPIDER-VERSE Reveals Villain, Trailer, and Plot appeared first on Nerdist.

Cartoon characters wearing the same clothes over and over is a classic animated TV series trope. It’s on full display in Spider-Man: The Animated Series from the ’90s. To be fair, our titular wallcrawler did have more than one outfit as Peter Parker. (Okay, it was maybe three at most). But the most iconic of those was the striped polo shirt he wore in the opening credits of the show. It’s the same one Peter wore when the radioactive spider bit him—and seemingly, every other day after that. And now shopDisney is selling a replica of that shirt for $49.99. You can check out images of the polo shirt in the gallery below, as well as read Disney’s official description.

Show your love for a timeless hero with this Spider-Man polo shirt. Inspired by the classic Spider-Man animated TV series of the ’90s, it looks like the iconic striped polo that Peter Parker wears when he’s not being your friendly neighborhood Spider-Man. A great get for any fan and a guaranteed conversation starter, it features an embroidered Spider-Man patch on the chest.

Click To View Gallery

Anyone who grew up with the animated Spidey back in the day will instantly recognize this turquoise, blue, and white shirt. And if they don’t, the Spidey head will help them make the connection. The embroidered patch kind of reminds us of Izod shirts, only replace that Izod alligator mascot with a Friendly Neighborhood Spider-Man. As we said, cartoon characters rarely ever had more than one signature piece of clothes. On Scooby-Doo, the gang seemed to have just one set of clothing. For 50 years. At least Peter Parker also had a t-shirt with a blazer he’d wear sometimes. Progress!

The Spider-Man polo shirts are currently sold out, but given their huge popularity, expect shopDisney to restock them at some point down the line.

The post Wear Peter Parker’s Polo Shirt from the ’90s SPIDER-MAN Cartoon appeared first on Nerdist.

The Sony Spider-Man universe is expanding, this time into streaming. Announced via Deadline, it appears that the character of Silk, long rumored for a series of her own, is finally coming to live-action. Silk: Spider-Society will focus on Cindy Moon, a.k.a. Silk, a young woman who was also bit by the same enhanced spider that Peter Parker was. The new series will air first on MGM+, the linear network formerly known as Epix. It will then stream on Prime Video.

The showrunner for Silk will be The Walking Dead’s Angela Kang. Spider-Man: Into The Spider-Verse producers Phil Lord and Chris Miller will executive produce, along with Spider-Man franchise producer Amy Pascal. In a statement, Sony Pictures Television president Katherine Pope said “We can’t wait to bring the adventures of Cindy Moon to life, thanks to the creative dream team of Chris and Phil, Angela and Amy, along with our partners at Marvel and Amazon.”

Created by Dan Slott and Humberto Ramos, Silk was first introduced relatively recently, in 2014’s Amazing Spider-Man #1. A Korean-America high school student, who attended the same school Peter Parker did, she was on the same field trip where Peter had his fateful encounter with the radioactive spider. But after it bit Peter, it then bit Cindy, giving her similar powers. However, she had organic webbing, which Peter did not. She kept her powers secret for years, finally emerging years after Peter became Spider-Man. She eventually becomes part of the larger Spider-family of heroes, along with other arachnid ladies like Jessica Drew and Julia Carpenter.

It’s unclear which universe the Silk series will take place in. Given that this is going to Amazon Prime and not Disney+, we think we can scratch the MCU off the list. But Silk could exist in the universe of Andrew Garfield’s Spidey. Or maybe even Sam Raimi’s Spider-Man films, given that Silk has organic web-shooters as his Peter Parker does. We’ll find out when Silk: Spider-Society makes its debut, probably sometime in 2024.

The post SILK Series Announced, Bringing Marvel Hero to Prime appeared first on Nerdist.

Spider-Man: Across the Spider-Verse, the Into the Spider-Verse sequel, will hit theaters on June 2, 2023. And it will double down on the many multiversal variants of Spider-Man we already saw in Into the Spider-Verse. We already know some of the Spider-Man variants we’ll see in the upcoming animated movie. We have Spider-Woman, a.k.a. Jessica Drew, Spider-Man 2099, and even Spider-Punk, a.k.a. Hobart “Hobie” Brown. Then we have the rumors, like the ones that say the live-action movie Spideys like Tom Holland, Andrew Garfield, and Tobey Maguire could also appear. Even the PS4 Spider-Man is rumored to show up in Across the Spider-Verse. So which Spider-Man variants might we see in Across the Spider-Verse? Let’s break it down. 

The TV Animated Spider-Man Variants That Could Show Up

If the live-action Spider-Mans pop up in Across the Spider-Verse, then the animated forerunners of Peter B. Parker deserve a chance to appear. Here are the ones we think deserve to swing in for at least a cameo appearance.

1960s Saturday Morning Spider-Man

The original 1967-1970 animated Spider-Man series made Peter Parker a household name to non-comics fans. The show made his theme song an iconic tune that everyone still knows today. He deserves recognition in the Spider-Verse. His voice actor, Paul Soles, sadly died in 2021. But a sound-alike could do the honors. We can call this guy “Boomer Spidey” and he sure would be a fun Spider-Man variant to see in Across the Spider-Verse.

Spider-Man and his Amazing Friends

In the early ’80s, Spider-Man returned to Saturday morning cartoon dominance with a new show featuring the mutants Iceman and Firestar. Together with their Lhasa Apso dog, Ms. Lion (yes, really), they teamed up with other Marvel heroes and saved New York City from their high-tech HQ in Aunt May’s house. This is “Gen X Spidey,” and Peter and his pals need to represent in the Spider-Verse. This show’s Peter Parker, voice actor Dan Gilvezan, is still working, so he should definitely reprise the role.

Spider-Man: The Animated Series‘ Peter Parker

At the same time Batman: The Animated Series and X-Men: The Animated Series blew up on Fox Kids, Spider-Man became a weekday afternoon hit. More than any other cartoon before it, the ’90s Spidey was pretty faithful to the comics. Christopher Daniel Barnes was the Spider-Man for Millennial kids, and we feel he’s definitely going to have to show up. Maybe this Spider-Man variant could spin his webs on some obviously early-CGI skyscrapers in Across the Spider-Verse. 

The Spectacular Spider-Man

One of the more recent animated Spideys to win the hearts of kids (and more than a few adults) was The Spectacular Spider-Man. This wallcrawler for the Gen Z-ers aired from 2008-2009, only for a brief two seasons. But it still has quite a following to this day, and fans would lose it seeing this version of Peter meet his Spider-Man variants on screen. 

Japanese Spider-Man, Earth-51778 (Confirmed)

Marvel Comics

Until a recent episode of Marvel’s 616 on Disney+, many fans had no idea about the existence of the Japanese Spider-Man. This version starred in his own TV series in Japan from 1978-79. Although Japanese Spidey might look totally familiar, he is a completely different character from Peter Parker. Because his show premiered on May 17, 1978, his Earth is designated as “Earth-51778.”

In the series, Spider-Man was Takuya Yamashiro, a young motocross racer who gains powers from an alien ship from Planet Spider. Not only does he gain the traditional Spider-Man powers, but he also can transform his spaceship into a giant robot. All of these things are cooler than Aunt May already. Yamashiro appeared in the Spider-Verse comics event, so we say put him in an animated film next. And it seems Across the Spider-Verse producer Phil Lord has already confirmed he’s in it.

The Marvel Comics Spider-Man Variants That Could Show Up

“The Spider” (Earth-311)

Marvel Comics

DC Comics works like Sandman helped make fantasy author Neil Gaiman famous in comics. But for Marvel, he wrote two prominent series: The Eternals and Marvel: 1602. As the title suggests, this took place on an alternate Earth where Marvel’s heroes lived in the Elizabethan era. One of those heroes was Peter Parquagh, the apprentice and assistant of one Sir Nicholas Fury. He eventually gets powers and becomes “the Spider.” The Spider-Verse sequel could have a blast with a Spider-Man in an Elizabethan ruff speaking in Shakespearean soliloquies. Someone call Sir Patrick Stewart to play this Spider-Man variant.

The Superior Spider-Man (Earth-616)

Marvel Comics

A few years ago, Peter Parker seemingly died. But one of his great foes, Dr. Otto Octavius, took over his body. The arrogant scientist decided to become a hero after experiencing the dying Peter’s memories, but he was still an insufferable jerk. To the world at large, he was still Peter Parker, now the CEO of Parker Industries. Otto just couldn’t understand why, with his genius, Peter Parker wasn’t rich. So, he very quickly made him rich. This arrogant jerk of a “superior” Spider-Man would certainly be a scene-stealer on screen.

Spider-Clan Spider-Man/”Manga Spider-Man” (Earth-2301)

Marvel Comics

In the early 2000s, Marvel experimented with manga versions of their iconic heroes. One of these was naturally a “manga Spider-Man.” This version of Peter Parker, hailing from Earth-2301, was a member of the ninja warriors known as the Spider Clan. He was trained in their ways by his Sensei, Ben Parker. He became the last member of the Spider Clan after Venom kills Ben under orders from the Kingpin. A Spider-Man variant with all the powers of regular Spidey and with ninja training? Sign us up.

Cosmic Spider-Man (Earth-91110)

Marvel Comics

Everyone always talks about how the X-Men’s Jean Grey got a huge cosmic power upgrade and became Phoenix. But did you know something similar happened to Peter Parker once too? Yes, in the late ’80s, Peter Parker bonded with a potent mystical cosmic force known as the Uni-power, or the Enigma Force.  The “Captain Universe” power gave Peter immeasurable strength, energy manipulation abilities, transmutation, and molecular control. He even had near-omniscience. Cosmic Spidey was short-lived, but a version of a Cosmic Spider-Man who never lost these powers still resides on Earth-91110. We’d love to see this all-powerful Spider-Man variant in Across the Spider-Verse.

Six-Armed Spider-Man (Earth-92100)

Marvel Comics

Okay, so this wasn’t originally an alternate Earth Spider-Man. This actually happened to our Peter Parker in the ’70s comics. Back in the day, Peter Parker grew an additional four arms, after injecting a chemical he hoped would take away his powers. In the regular 616 universe, his six-armed Spider-Man status is reversed, thanks to Dr. Curt Connors and the DNA of Morbius the Living Vampire. On Earth-92100 however, this reversal never happens. And Spider-Man retains eight limbs. We’d love to see this ridiculous-looking Spidey pop up at least once in Across the Spider-Verse.

The Scarlet Spider, Earth 616 (Confirmed)

Marvel Comics

A toy release confirmed this Spider-Man variant for Across the Spider-Verse. Ben Reilly is as evocative of a certain period of ’90s comics as electric Superman and armored Batman. The highly controversial (but highly selling) “Clone Saga,” introduces Ben as the long-lost clone of Peter Parker. He had all of Peter’s memories, but forged a new life for himself under a new identity. Ben (naming himself after his beloved uncle) eventually became a superhero himself, known as the Scarlet Spider.

He even took over as Spider-Man for a while, letting Peter and Mary Jane lead a civilian life. Once the Clone Saga ran its course, Ben died. But of course, he eventually returned. He’s since become beloved by those who grew up with ’90s comics. The blond Peter Parker from Into the Spider-Verse was a nod to Ben Reilly. But we think Spider-Verse 2 may give us the proper Ben Reilly at last on screen. And recent early action figures released seem to confirm this Spider-Man variant will indeed appear in Across the Spider-Verse.

Originally published on June 10, 2021.

The post Which Alternate Universe Spider-Man Variants Could We See In ACROSS THE SPIDER-VERSE? appeared first on Nerdist.

Spider-Man: Into the Spider-Verse was one of the greatest superhero films of all time. So naturally, we can’t wait to see Across the Spider-Verse and Beyond the Spider-Verse. Recently, rumors have been running rampant that the three big-screen live-action Spideys would appear in the two upcoming sequels. Along with other classic Spider-Mans from various cartoons and comics. And now, the digital effects experts at the Corridor YouTube channel have created an incredible version of what Tom Holland showing up in Miles Morales’ Spider-Verse might look like. You can watch the full video of Spider-Man: Everyone’s Home right here:

The Corridor Crew really outdid themselves with this video. The way in which Tom Holland’s Peter Parker, as well as Tobey Maguire and Andrew Garfield’s were rendered was just perfect. If they do show up in either of the upcoming Spider-Verse sequels, we certainly would not mind if they looked just like this.

Even the voice actor they got to portray Tom Holland’s Spidey sounded quite a bit like him in this Spider-Verse video. In a separate video, the Corridor crew detailed how they made this Spider-Verse fan film come to life, using A.I. And it’s nothing short of amazing. You can watch that one right here as well.

Of course, Marvel fans will recognize many of the other friendly neighborhood wallcrawlers who portal in, Avengers: Endgame style. Spider-Man from the classic ’90s animated series appears. Not to mention the Peter Parker from The Spectacular Spider-Man. PS4 Spidey is there too, as is the Spider-Man from the short-lived 2000s MTV series. Remember that one? That one seems like it’s forgotten today by most fans.

Maybe our favorite appearances were from two 1970s live-action Spideys, the one from the 1977 TV series, and the Japanese Spider-Man, a.k.a. ” Supaidāman.” They have confirmed the latter of those is showing up in the next film. We also got a kick out of seeing Hostess Snacks Spider-Man. (Yes, he was a real thing). For more amazing videos like these, be sure to check out the Corridor YouTube channel.

The post Here’s What Tom Holland’s Spidey Looks Like in the SPIDER-VERSE appeared first on Nerdist.

I didn’t understand what was wrong with me. Sure, I’d seen all the movies and knew through conventional wisdom that being a nerd wasn’t exactly the gateway to popularity as a young buck. Whatever famous quote there is about knowledge not equating to experience is true. There’s a very specific kind of pain when the things you like—and the worlds you choose to inhabit—are deemed to be “weird” and “stupid.”

As a result, during the school year especially, I spent many weekends in my room. I’d play a game of Mario Party against nobody but the computer-controlled Waluigi who always managed to steal my stars. Looking back, I’m thankful that Ultimate Spider-Man (2000) comic by Brian Michael Bendis with artwork by Stuart Immonen and Mark Bagley—which remains my favorite fictional story across any medium to this day—became my friend when I needed one the most. 

My early childhood wasn’t awful; however, there was plenty of loneliness and self-consciousness in it. Were video games some terrible thing? Was there something wrong with enjoying that old Sonic the Hedgehog movie? Was it bad that I loved Yu-Gi-Oh! and collecting Bionicle LEGO figures? I thought I was a nice and friendly kid, but was I actually a jerk? 

Of course, I didn’t know it at the time, but part of the ostracization from kids partially came from being at a small private middle school with predominately white kids. But on the other side of things, being around my fellow Hispanic brethren was just a different kind of pain. I still remember the times people would mock me for “not really being Spanish” because I fancied a weekend of playing Ratchet & Clank: Up Your Arsenal over playing soccer. 

That’s where Ultimate Spider-Man—which had an iconic run from September 2000 to June 2011—comes into my life. I certainly loved Spider-Man before this comic run after first meeting the character through Sam Raimi’s films. But this was another thing entirely. My discovery of this comic series was totally accidental. My mom bought me a textbook for school with art that I didn’t recognize. I thought,” Wait, why does it say Ultimate? I want to be Ultimate!” And the rest is, as the cool kids say, history.

There was something about the look of Ultimate Spider-Man that immediately felt more relatable. He really was a teenager, which I couldn’t exactly saying for Tobey Maguire. So, whenever I felt alone, I simply viewed Ultimate Spider-Man as one of my best friends. In middle school, I loved his silly, cocky attitude, like the time he insulted the big mean bully Kingpin—a figure that my unpopular-self knew all too well. Spidey literally whipped out flash cards with jokes on them to get his point across.

I also loved when he met up with other heroes. The story was showing me a warmth and a hope that, like Spider-Man, I’d eventually stumble into “different” people like me. His many interactions with the X-Men, when the Human Torch came to Spidey’s high school and they all went down to the beach together, and even when Spidey and Wolverine temporarily switched bodies were such precious moments. Every issue felt like preparation for a fun hangout.

When I got into high school, I began to connect with the character on a deeper level than just quirky jokes and other superhero cameos. It was the Peter Parker side—the vulnerable, anxiety-ridden mess. The guy who was constantly unsure and having inconveniences that seem enormous at that age alongside genuine tragedy. His many girl troubles, class attendance worries, and even his job at the Daily Bugle struck a chord with me. I worried about girls too and I struggled with school! And I wondered, constantly, about what the heck my career would entail!

The deeper things with Peter always hit too, even beyond Uncle Ben. Sometimes, they weren’t treated in some epic, self-aggrandizing way. Peter’s frustration with how the Kingpin’s constant vindication by an unjust system, and particularly the death of Gwen Stacy by the symbiote Carnage, rang true. It seemingly came out of nowhere—almost as if the series was simply saying “s**t happens,” for a lack of a better term. 

There was even a small moment, when he and the X-Men are captured by Deadpool to compete on a life-or-death game show for mutant-hating viewers. Kitty Pryde—who shares a brief but wholesome and adorable relationship with Peter—points out how hate gets affects us after a while. This sentiment didn’t bang me over the head, because it didn’t need much explanation. It just was. 

It’s often forgotten, thanks to his plucky attitude, how dark Spider-Man stories can be. And despite all of that, Peter just keeps going. Not because he has some grand ideas about saving the world. But just because he has to try. Is it possible that it’s all pointless? Is the hate in the world too much? Probably. But we still try anyway. Even in the final moments of his life when a sniper shot from the Punisher left him bleeding, he still does everything he can to protect the people who he cares about the most. Not to save the world, just to save his family. 

I don’t want to make some dramatic statement about how Ultimate Spider-Man “saved” me from the world. I still had a couple of friends. And my unbelievably supportive parents gave me a rather privileged upbringing. Rather, it was just something that was there for me. It was a safe space. In an age where—for better and worse—superheroes have become the main fixture of pop culture, I think some of their defining messages can get lost in translation. I think, fundamentally, one of the most important takeaways is that being different is okay. 

Ultimate Spider-Man helped me realize this fact as a guiding force when folks around me ravaged the things I enjoyed. I realized that I, too, can be cool. There will be rough patches, and tragedies will come my way, but it’s okay. That’s just part of growing up. And I did indeed meet plenty of fellow super-nerds who are there for me.

At this stage of my life, I’ve come to believe that we are, indeed, likely doomed. But I try anyway, and I think anyone who reads this should, too. Because even if there’s the slightest atomical chance for a better existence, we owe it to those less fortunate than us to try. We all have great power, in our unique ways, and a great responsibility. Ultimate Spider-Man echoed this sentiment the best, and I’m glad my curious younger self discovered it. 

The post ULTIMATE SPIDER-MAN Always Stood By My Side appeared first on Nerdist.

The Boys has become a worldwide sensation, mainly thanks to the clever way it mocks superhero culture. Both the streaming series and the original comic portray superheroes as narcissistic celebrities at best, and sociopathic monsters at worst. In an era where superheroes dominate media, it’s a refreshing (although cynical) take on the very concept of heroism and celebrity. But what if Marvel heroes came to The Boys? It’s time for a MCU and The Boys mashup.

YouTube channel Alternative Cuts has created a hilarious parody video that perfectly edits Marvel heroes into scenes from The Boys. And it pulls no punches. You can watch it in full right here:

Most of the footage used comes from a conversation between Hughie and Billy Butcher from The Boys’ pilot episode. Butcher explains the truth about Supes to the then-innocent Hughie. Only now, they’ve littered the scene with promotional material from the MCU. You can see posters for movies like Avengers, Guardians of the Galaxy, and more. The video also includes some cleverly edited footage of a drunk Tony Stark going on a dangerous rampage from Iron Man 2. Only this time, there are casualties. As would be common in the debased world of the Seven.

Despite using lots of MCU signage, the footage in the video seems to poke the most fun at a non-MCU hero, Tobey Maguire’s Spider-Man. (Although, we guess he’s technically part of the MCU now, thanks to No Way Home). The mashup includes a lot of edited footage of Maguire’s Peter Parker being an outright menace. Although most of it is from the Sam Raimi Spider-Man trilogy, a lot of it is new footage made to resemble Maguire’s Spidey. While it’s fun seeing the Marvel heroes be total jerks, we’re glad they’re the (mostly) nice guys they are. The Boys is fantastic, but we like our jerk superheroes in limited doses, thanks.

The post Watch Marvel Heroes Act Like Jerks in the World of THE BOYS appeared first on Nerdist.

We recently told you about the mod for Marvel’s Spider-Man Remastered that allows for players to swing around New York as Stan Lee. Thought that was out of left field? Thanks to Comic Book, we’ve discovered that there’s a mod that’s even weirder. Because now you can play as Uncle Ben’s gravestone instead of as Peter Parker himself. The mod offers players the option to “become Uncle Ben himself.” And yes, it sort of does that? We guess it’s a classier, less gross option than “zombie Uncle Ben.”

The morbid mod came to life (so to speak) thanks to a user who goes by Saphire. Another user later uploaded it to the Nexus Mods site, named HomelanderSoldierBoy. (Guess someone’s a big fan of The Boys). The only image we saw on this mod’s page displays the gravestone for Uncle Ben with an inscription they displayed in the game itself. One which gives Uncle Ben’s year of death as 2010. This puts the game’s Peter Parker at about thirty years old, assuming he was about sixteen or so when the spider bit him. The gravestone is actually an asset in the game.

Players are going to need the SMPCTool mod installed if they want to use this Uncle Ben gravestone. If a player’s got Marvel’s Spider-Man Remastered via Steam, then that’s all they’ll need. Now, here’s what we want to know. When is someone going to make a mod for Aunt May? And we’re talking comic book Aunt May. From back when Marvel artists drew her as if she was 150 years old. Long before the days of young Aunt May in the MCU. That’s the mod we want to see in Spider-Man Remastered. Ok, that and Ms. Lion, Peter Parker’s Llahsa Opso dog from Spider-Man and His Amazing Friends. Explore the whole Spider-verse, we say!

The post Uncle Ben’s Gravestone Is a New Mod in SPIDER-MAN REMASTERED appeared first on Nerdist.

It’s been three years since we lost Stan “The Man” Lee, co-creator of Spider-Man, not to mention a metric ton of other Marvel Comics icons like Iron Man. One of the most offputting bits of Phase 4 MCU is not seeing Stan mugging for the camera in a cameo scene, as he did in nearly 40 Marvel-based films over the past 20 years. But in the world of video games at least, Stan Lee lives on. Well, in a manner of speaking. A mod for the Spider-Man video game lets players play as Stan Lee.

In news we first spotted at GameSpot, you can now play as Stan Lee in Marvel’s Spider-Man Remastered for PC. The mods for the game added several new costumes for Spidey to wear, pulling from the character’s long history. But the coolest Spidey “costume” is simply getting to play as Spidey’s daddy himself, Stan Lee. If you’re so inclined to swing through New York shouting “Excelsior,” you can find the Stan mod by clicking here. And you can watch an example of the Stan Lee mod in the video above, from YouTuber Dracul.

Marvel recently signed a deal with the Stan Lee estate that allows the company to license his name and likeness for all manner of media over the next 20 years. So we doubt this is the last time “Spider-Stan” gets to be part of a game. The mod replaces the Spider Clan suit from the main game with one of Stan Lee wearing a tuxedo. Players can then swap the head in the “Bombastic Bag-Man” suit with Stan’s.

For those of you who are unaware, the Bombastic Bag Man is the spare Fantastic Four costume Peter Parker once wore, in which he had a brown paper bag over his head. This is when Peter and the black symbiote costume separated in the Fantastic Four’s Baxter Building, but Peter still needed to swing around to get home. Marvel Comics’ history is wild, folks. Marvel’s Spider-Man is out now on PC via Steam and Epic Games store.

The post This SPIDER-MAN Game Mod Allows You to Play as Stan Lee appeared first on Nerdist.

Spider-Rex was just introduced to Marvel Comics, but you can already buy the inflatable dinosaur costume. And perhaps in a hint of what’s to come in the comics, there’s also a Venomosaurus costume for sale. They debuted at San Diego Comic-Con and are now available from Jazwares for $99.99 each. No matter the time period, Spider-Man and the villainous Venom are ready to face off.

Marvel’s foray into prehistoric times follows DC Comic’s recent introduction of The Jurassic League. In those, Wonder Woman, Batman, and Superman are all dinosaurs wearing familiar costumes and defending the world against sinister forces. In Marvel’s case, it seems the themed colors are actually the dinosaur’s skin. And considering we have very few clues into what color dinosaurs were in real life, why not make them red and blue with black spider-shaped markings? Or give them a massive tongue, in the case of Venom. 

Combining dinosaurs and superheroes actually seems logical considering they’re two of the things kids are most into. Not to mention those of us who are still kids at heart. These are adult costumes, after all. The Spider-Rex product description specifies that: “This inflatable costume comes with a pair of detailed Spider-Rex clawed gloves to defend the Savage Land from Venomosaurus. Collect this Spider-Rex costume and fuse ultimate power with ultimate responsibility.”

In the age of social distancing at conventions, maybe a nerdy costume that comes with its own face covering, gloves, and ventilation system is actually a very good idea. Would you wear one of these costumes for Halloween or to the next gathering of geeks? Or even just a parade of inflatable animals?

Melissa is Nerdist’s science & technology staff writer. She also moderates “science of” panels at conventions and co-hosts Star Warsologies, a podcast about science and Star Wars. Follow her on Twitter @melissatruth. 

The post Marvel Superhero/Dinosaur Mashup Costumes Are Now for Sale appeared first on Nerdist.