Miles Morales may not be swinging back to the silver screen anytime soon, but at least things are slowly shaping up in the Spider-Verse. Sony Animation has announced that Bob Persichetti and Justin K. Thompson will return to helm Beyond the Spider-Verse, the third and final entry in the animated saga, following their stints on the previous two outings.
The update comes by way of a post on X/Twitter, inviting fans to “[welcome] back your friendly neighborhood filmmakers”. Both Persichetti and Thompson have been integral to the franchise’s creative process from the onset — the former was among the co-directors of the Oscar-winning Spider-Man: Into the Spider-Verse, while the other served as an executive producer on its 2022 sequel, Across the Spider-Verse.
“We have had the immense privilege of being part of Miles’ journey from the very beginning, and directing the conclusion to his story is beyond exciting,” said the director duo to Deadline. “The creativity and care poured into every minute of this project has been truly inspiring. We have crafted what we feel is a very satisfying ending, and we can’t wait for fans to experience it – we’re bringing everything we’ve got!”
Plot details remain under wraps for the forthcoming threequel, which has no release date. However, the second movie ended on a cliffhanger, so it’s expected to tie up any loose ends and offer a solution to that storyline.
Spider-Man: Beyond the Spider-Verse was originally slated for 29 March 2024, but was later pulled from Sony’s release schedule amid a shakeup caused by the writers’ and actors’ strikes in Hollywood. Returning as franchise veterans are co-creators Tim Miller and Phil Lord, who will join Amy Pascal, Avi Arad, and Jinko Gotoh in producing. The pair is also set to write the script with David Callaham, with Jessica Berri serving as co-producer.
While the project continues to work its way out of an indefinite delay, anticipation for its arrival has hardly dampened. The first two features in Sony’s animated trilogy, starring Shameik Moore as Spider-Man/Miles Morales, proved to be critical and commercial successes for the studio, receiving praise for their visual boldness and establishing new animation boundaries for the superhero genre. Both pics have proud milestones to show, too — Into the Spider-Verse clinched the Animated Feature Oscar in 2019, whereas Across the Spider-Verse became the studio’s highest-grossing animated film to date.
Si Jia is a casual geek at heart – or as casual as someone with Sephiroth’s theme on her Spotify playlist can get. A fan of movies, games, and Japanese culture, Si Jia’s greatest weakness is the Steam Summer Sale. Or any Steam sale, really.
Ting Wei
