21 Easter Eggs That Hardcore "Spider-Man" Fans Would Love In "Beyond The Spider-Verse"
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While some have accused theatrical audiences of having “superhero fatigue,” Spider-Man: Across the Spider-Verse has proven that’s certainly not the case.
Sony Pictures Animation
Outside of the brilliant script and jaw-dropping visuals, Spider-Man: Across the Spider-Verse has also showcased a mountain of Easter eggs, from references to past Spider-Man video games, comic books, animated series, and even the Marvel Cinematic Universe itself.
Sony Pictures Animation
With this in mind and the film’s highly-anticipated part two, Beyond the Spider-Verse, which is currently scheduled to hit theaters in March 2024, I’ve assembled 21 Easter eggs that Spider-Man fans hope make an appearance in Miles Morales’s next multiverse-traversing adventure.
Sony Pictures
There are obviously spoilers ahead for Across the Spider-Verse.
1.Insomniac Games' Miles Morales from Spider-Man: Miles Morales
Insomniac Games
One of the biggest reactions that came from my audience during Across the Spider-Verse was the brief but funny cameo from Yuri Lowenthal as the Peter Parker known best from Insomniac Games’ incredibly popular Spider-Man Playstation game series. It’s admittedly awesome that the film shows reverence to the extraordinary games, but with Across the Spider-Verse introducing multiple versions of Miles Morales, it would be pretty fitting for Beyond the Spider-Verse to bring aboard Nadji Jeter as Insomniac’s version of Miles Morales, who headlined his own game in 2020.
2.Tom Hardy’s Eddie Brock (aka Venom) from Venom
In one of Across the Spider-Verse’s most memorable sequences, The Spot comes face-to-face with Mrs. Chen, frequent ally of Eddie Brock in the Venom films, while discovering the multiversal properties of his powers. With the interlinking of the universes, as well as the symbiote’s own universe-jumping powers as showcased in the post-credit scene of Venom: Let There Be Carnage, fans have their fingers crossed that perhaps Tom Hardy himself might make an appearance, live action or otherwise, in Beyond the Spider-Verse.
3.Topher Grace’s Eddie Brock (aka Venom) from Spider-Man 3
Of the many on-screen Spider-Man villains who have gotten their due over the years, one strangely glaring omission has been the largely maligned Eddie Brock/Venom from Sam Raimi’s Spider-Man 3, as portrayed by Topher Grace. It may not be necessary to dredge up this iteration of the character for modern crowds, but for Spider-Man die-hards, seeing this bizarro-world version of the character one more time in Beyond the Spider-Verse could give closure to fans craving more of the first trilogy of Spider-Man films in a post-No Way Home landscape.
4.The Lego Movie
A fan-favorite gag from Across the Spider-Verse features The Spot entering the “Legoverse,” where Lego versions of J. Jonah Jameson and Peter Parker appear prominently. Not only does this scene play to the multiverse aspect of the narrative, but plays as an Easter egg to writers/producers Phil Lord and Christopher Miller, who directed The Lego Movie. Though The Lego Movie is a Warner Brothers’ property, it’s not entirely out of the realm of possibility that a deal could be made for a cameo of any Lego Movie characters for a one-off gag, perhaps even a meeting of the minds between Lego Spider-Man and Lego Batman? And before we get into the logistics of doing so, let's not forget Lord and Miller snuck a blink-and-you'll-miss-it Clone High reference during Gwen's arrival recap in Into the Spider-Verse.
5.Aaron Taylor-Johnson’s Sergei Kravinoff from Kraven the Hunter
Sony Pictures
Between the next Spider-Man video game and his big-budget solo film later this year, Sony is going all-in on Kraven the Hunter as their next big-screen antihero in their Spider-Man universe. Of course, any plans can change if the box office receipts aren't there to support them, but should Aaron Taylor-Johnson's Kraven make an impact, the violent badass could ostensibly show up in some capacity in Beyond the Spider-Verse, especially considering the live-action crossover precedent set in the films thus far.
6.Otoha Okutamiya (aka Octopus Girl)
7.Damage Control
Sony Pictures / Marvel Studios
For a brief time, it appeared that Marvel was putting a lot of eggs in the Damage Control basket, with the group appearing in a small but notable capacity in the most recent Spider-Man films and was heavily developed for a television series during Marvel's collaborations with ABC. With Marvel and Sony still on good terms, these frequent "friends" of Spider-Man could show up to clean up some of the mess caused by the multiversal mayhem in the Spider-Verse saga.
8.Peter Parker/Man-Spider from Edge of Spider-Verse #004
9.A Morbius reference
Let's be real here: No one really wants to see more Morbius in the Spider-Verse sub-franchise. But with the Venom universe intertwined with their canon in Across the Spider-Verse, it would be fun to see Morbius get the "Poochie" treatment in a meta-moment in Beyond the Spider-Verse (although let’s face it, chances are they’ll find some way to weasel this craptastic iteration of the character in the inevitable Sinister Six film).
10.Chris Edgerly's Spider-Man from The Amazing Adventures of Spider-Man
This might be one of the deepest cuts among Spider-Man fanatics, but Universal's Islands of Adventures' The Amazing Adventures of Spider-Man remains one of the best theme park attractions after more than 20 years. It may not do much in terms of additional revenue, but including a tip-of-the-hat to this game-changing dark ride would be a wonderful way to highlight one of the most unique iterations of the iconic web-slinger.
11.Cindy Moon (aka Silk)
12.Jonah Hill and Channing Tatum's Schmidt and Jenko from the 21 Jump Street films
Another pair of crimefighters from Lord & Miller's bizarre gallery of cinematic characters, I'll admit this entry is the most WTF addition to this list. However, given the brilliant never-ending sequel gag from the end of 22 Jump Street, it would be hysterical if Lord and Miller called in a favor to have Schmidt and Jenko appear at Prowler Miles's school or be visited by The Spot, especially given how willing Channing Tatum is to go 100% for a quick cameo.
13.Felicia Hardy (aka Black Cat)
Insomniac Games
Rumor has it that Black Cat was due for her moment to shine in the unmade third Amazing Spider-Man film with Felicity Jones, but sadly, fate had other plans. That said, with the Spider-Verse films highlighting some of the less celebrated villains in Marvel's library, this fan-favorite foe deserves some of the spotlight in Sony's Spider-Verse sooner rather than later.
14.Hudson Thames's Peter Parker/Zombie-Fighting Spider-Man from What If...?
15.Michael Mando's Mac Gargan (aka The Scorpion) from Spider-Man: Homecoming
16.Tobey Maguire, specifically as The Wrestling Iteration of Peter Parker/Spider-Man from Spider-Man
Sony Pictures
I think if there’s a definitive point where everyone dropped any reservations they had regarding Tobey Maguire’s version of Spider-Man, it would have to be when he stepped into the ring with “Macho Man” Ran-- er, “Bonesaw” for “three minutes of playtiiiime.” Though the “Macho Man” sadly passed away years ago, an appearance, reference, or even modern spin on this scene would be a welcome surprise in Beyond the Spider-Verse.
17.Benedict Cumberbatch's Stephen Strange (aka Doctor Strange) from Spider-Man: No Way Home
In one of the less subtle references featured in Across the Spider-Verse, Miguel O'Hara makes a reference to the events of Spider-Man: No Way Home during Vulture's attack in the beginning of the film. Though I doubt an appearance from Benedict Cumberbatch's Doctor Strange would play a substantial part in the personal journey of Miles Morales, it would still be a pretty substantial mark-out moment for MCU fans if a three-eyed Stephen Strange made an appearance to help fix the Spider-Verse.
18.The 1977 Amazing Spider-Man TV Series
The Spider-Verse films thus far have gone above and beyond to reference a wide range of Spider-Man properties, regardless of their popularity or relevance in pop culture. Yet, for one reason or another, the original 1977 Amazing Spider-Man series hasn’t been featured in any noticeable way, and it feels like a bizarre omission if The Spot, Miles Morales, or any of the Spider-Men in the Spider-Verse don’t find themselves rotoscoped into the first-ever live action Spider-Man adaptation at some point in Beyond the Spider-Verse.
19.Dakota Johnson's Cassandra Webb (aka Madame Web) from Madame Web (2024)
Prior to the release of Beyond the Spider-Verse, Sony’s Spider-Man Universe is looking to grow with the aforementioned Kraven the Hunter as well as Madame Web, the next Spider-Man villain-centric solo film starring Dakota Johnson in the titular role. This writer doesn’t know if audiences will accept Madame Web like Venom or reject the film a la Morbius, but considering its close proximity to Beyond the Spider-Verse, I’d wager chances are stronger than you might think for some kind of reference or Easter egg to connect the upcoming films.
20.Christopher Daniel Barnes's Peter Parker (aka Spider-Man) from Spider-Man: The Animated Series
Another strange missing link to Spider-Man canon is the lack of the animated Spider-Man from the beloved 1990s television series, who has yet to appear among the menagerie of other Peter Parkers. I think I could speak for a legion of die-hard Spider-Man: The Animated Series fans that would say it would definitely be a little disappointing if Christopher Daniel Barnes wasn’t heard at all in Beyond the Spider-Verse.
21.And finally, Tom Holland’s Peter Parker (aka Spider-Man) from Spider-Man: No Way Home
Let’s address the elephant in the room: It’s all but guaranteed that Tom Holland will be reprising the role of Peter Parker/Spider-Man in one more (or last?) Spider-Man film within the MCU that may kick off a trilogy entrenched in Sony’s Spider-Verse. That said, he’s the only major live-action Spider-Man film lead who has yet to appear in some capacity within Sony’s Spider-Verse films, and it feels only natural that Sony would save a grand reveal of Holland, either animated or otherwise, for Beyond the Spider-Verse.
