Spider-Man: Beyond the Spider-Verse Star Shares Emotional Update

Spider-Man: Beyond the Spider-Verse just got an update from one of the franchises’ stars. Brian Tyree Henry walked the purple carpet for Godzilla x Kong last night, and he teased what’s coming for Miles Morales and his family. The Jefferson Davis actor talked about how the work was coming and the emotions surrounding the young Spider-Man’s return to the Spider-Verse. Apparently, fans should be preparing themselves for a gut-punch whenever Spider-Man: Beyond the Spider-Verse hits theaters. (As of now, we still don’t have a release date.) Check out the interview with Deadline on the red carpet down below!

“It’s in the works, it’s coming,” Tyree Henry said. “It’s in the works for sure and that one is even more epic than the last. You know how we do it.” The interviewer asked about Phil Lord and Christopher Miller’s comments about the emotional stakes and heights of Spider-Man: Beyond the Spider-Verse. The actor agreed, “Oh yeah, get your hankies ready. It’s gonna go there.”

Brian Tyree Henry Returns As Miles’ Dad

It’s no secret that the Spider-Verse franchise has a secret weapon. That being, Miles Morales’ family and how relatable the characters are. A big part of that is Rio and Jefferson Davis. Back when Spider-Man: Across the Spider-Verse hit theaters, I spoke to Brian Tyree Henry for ComicBook.com. During our conversation on the red carpet, the actor explained how he approached Miles Morales’ father. It seems like his own experiences really shaped the acting choices with this movie and the first one. Here’s what he had to say.

“I know the kind of household I was raised in. I know the kind of parents I had and I wanted to do the opposite of that,” Henry told us. “I wanted to make sure that there were all different kinds of flavors represented. You’re raising this Afro-Latino son, who you don’t know is running around being a superhero, but you know that there’s secrets, that you’re trying to reach him, that he’s growing. What does that look like?”

“I think every parent wants to feel like their child knows their love, that their child knows that they’re nurtured while also trying not to strangle their child at the same time,” he added. “So I love that kind of dynamic that Luna [Lauren Velez] and I bring to Jefferson and Rio. And at the end of the day, we still care for him. We still love him no matter what kind of superhero is out there. He’s always been exceptional to us.”

Spider-Verse Getting Short Film 

If you just can’t get enough Spider-Man, there’s some new Miles Morales coming this week. The Spider Within: A Spider-Verse Story releases this Wednesday on YouTube. Fans not only get a new Spider-Man short film. But, they also get a moment to reflect on mental health. The Kevin Love Fund actually helped Sony Pictures Imageworks in crafting some learning resources around mental health awareness and processing emotions. There will be an interactive curriculum released where kids make storyboards to communicate their experiences. The short film has a description from Sony as well.

“The Spider Within is the inaugural short of Sony Pictures Animation and Sony Pictures Imageworks’s new LENS (Leading and Empowering New Storytellers) program. The program connects up-and-coming filmmakers from underrepresented groups with creative and executive leadership to produce a short film utilizing an existing pipeline from an upcoming feature film,” Animation Is Film Festival said of the short. “This program will feature the North American Premiere of the film, followed by a panel with Jarelle Dampier (Director), Khaila Amazan (Writer), Clara Chan (VFX supervisor), and Joe Darko (animation supervisor), moderated by Michelle Raimo-Kouyate and David Schulenburg (Producers/LENS Program Creators).”

Are you still hopeful for next year on Spider-Verse? Let us know down in the comments!