Spider-Man: Across the Spider-Verse Director Reveals How Miles and Gwen Have Changed in the New Movie (Exclusive)
Miles Morales and Gwen Stacy are two of the central figures in Spider-Man: Across the Spider-Verse, and soon fans will learn just how much they've changed since the first Spider-Verse movie. Gwen and Miles formed a fast friendship in Spider-Man: Into the Spider-Verse, and its sequel sees her recruit Miles for another multiversal mission. While Miles is pretty new to being a hero, Gwen has been at it a bit longer. They're two completely different characters, but there's been some evolution to them as well. Joaquim Dos Santos, one of the directors of Spider-Man: Across the Spider-Verse, details how much they've truly changed.
ComicBook.com's Aaron Perine spoke to directors Kemp Powers, Justin K. Thompson, and Joaquim Dos Santos ahead of Spider-Man: Across the Spider-Verse's release, where the topic of how different Miles Morales and Gwen Stacy came up.
"I think the cool thing is Gwen serves as a mirror to Miles' possibility; she's a guard against keeping things so open with your family," Dos Santos said. "Even in the first film, she was fully capable. She's even more so in this one. She has a moment with Miles where she thinks, 'Can you hang?' And Miles can hang now. And she's like, 'Dude, you're growing up. You're changing.' So it's fun to have a character that can provide a little bit of, 'Hey, what does the next year of my life look like?'"
Dos Santos then noted how growing up, he had friends that went off to either college or to do their own thing, and when they returned home they had changed and grown up. Things may have been different when those friends returned, but it eventually evened out. This is similar to what Miles and Gwen go through in Across the Spider-Verse.
Spider-Man: Across the Spider-Verse Reactions Praise the Film
Just days ahead of its release, critics are saying Spider-Man: Across the Spider-Verse is a worthy successor to 2018's Oscar-winning Spider-Man: Into the Spider-Verse. Though most applaud the work of the film's returning ensemble, including Shameik Moore (Miles Morales) and Hailee Steinfeld (Gwen Stacy), newcomers have also found their way into the hearts of critics. Most notably, a substantial amount of praise has been heaped on Oscar Isaac's Spider-Man 2099 and Issa Rae's Jessica Drew/Spider-Woman.
When it comes to criticisms, a recurring theme of many is how the picture feels very much like a Part 1 rather than a self-contained story. Initially announced as Across the Spider-Verse Part One and Part Two, the second part has since been renamed as Spider-Man: Beyond the Spider-Verse.
Spider-Man: Across the Spider-Verse swings into theaters on June 2nd.