Spider-Man: Across the Spider-Verse Directors Reveal Which Comic Artists Are Working on the Film

Sony Animation will release the sequel to Spider-Man: Into the Spider-Verse next year, and it’s going to be a gigantic endeavor. When the studio announced the title to the film, they revealed that the film would be split into two parts called Spider-Man: Across the Spider-Verse and Spider-Man: Beyond The Spider-Verse. The sequel was initially supposed to be released this past spring but was delayed until summer 2023 to have “more time make it great.” Across the Spider-Verse is expected to feature multiple universes with different art styles, so you’d expect the directors to reach out to the experts for help. According to directors Kemp Powers, Joaquin Dos Santos and Justinbut was delaye Thompson, the film had a little help from some iconic comic book artists. During a recent interview with Cartoonbrew.com, the directors revealed exactly which artists helped on the film.

“Yeah. I mean, we were just talking about Kris Anka, who’s actually on our team,” Powers revealed. “He’s been amazing. Samford Green who’s another artist we really loved who’s been involved here.”

“They’re like the unsung heroes because all the work that they do ends up turning into these massive franchises, so let’s make sure we keep them in the fold. And Kris Anka can speak directly to it. I mean, he’s redesigned so many of these characters costumes. And so now to be able to carry it through into its like next iteration and have them there along for the ride, it’s kind of a no-brainer when you think about it. You’re like ‘why didn’t other people do this first?’ But, I’m happy we were the ones.” Dos Santos added.

The first film was helmed by Bob Persichietti, Peter Ramsey, and Rodney Rothman, so executive producers Phil Lord and Chris Miller thought that it would be a good idea to continue with that tradition on the sequel. Lord and Miller think having a trio of directors has benefited the film dramatically, so adding Dos Santos, Powers and Thompson was a no-brainer. In a previous interview with ComicBook.com the duo explained the process of hiring three directors for the animated Spider-Man flick.

“This is a situation where the movie was so ambitious, it was trying to do so many groundbreaking things in its visual style, in its storytelling style, in its cinematic style.” Miller previously explained to ComicBook.com. “Everything about it … The sound mix was probably going to be groundbreaking, so it required a lot of work. Every version of these movies is a collaboration of hundreds of filmmakers working together, and in the best versions people are contributing their creative ideas, and the people, the directors, and the producers are the ones that get to decide which of the things fit the road that you’re going down.”

In Spider-Man: Across the Spider-Verse, Miles Morales / Spider-Man (Shameik Moore) goes on an adventure across the multiverse with Gwen Stacy / Spider-Woman (Hailee Steinfeld) and a new team of Spider-People who must face a powerful villain. Also returning from the first film are Oscar Isaac as Miguel O’Hara / Spider-Man 2099, and Jake Johnson as Peter B. Parker / Spider-Man. Issa Rae has also joined the cast as Jessica Drew / Spider-Woman. 

Across the Spider-Verse is directed by Joaquim Dos Santos, Kemp Powers, and Justin K. Thompson, with a script from Phil Lord, Christopher Miller, and Dave Callaham. Spider-Man: Across the Spider-Verse will be in theaters on June 2, 2023.

What do you think about the news?Let us know your thoughts in the comments section below or by hitting our writer up @NateBrail on Twitter!