Warning! This post contains SPOILERS for Spider-Man: Across the Spider-VerseSpider-Man: Across the Spider-Verse has a massive amount of Easter eggs and a literal army of different Spider-Men from multiple realities. As Miles Morales (Shameik Moore) enters the vast Spider-Verse for the first time, he meets several different Spider-People seen in the original comics, games, and more. Likewise, there are so many amazing and spectacular references Spider-Man fans of all ages will absolutely love.
In Across the Spider-Verse, Miles learns about his true place in the multiverse in a sea of countless versions of Spider-Man. Encouraged by his parents to forge his own path, Miles does exactly that when he ends up at odds with the vast majority of these Spider-Verse heroes who’ve formed a formidable Spider Society. Here are all of the most prominent new heroes, Easter eggs, and Spider-Cameos we’ve managed to spot in Across the Spider-Verse.
73 Coughing During Across The Spider-Verse Opening Logos
Eagle-eyed viewers will notice an audible cough paired with a visual “cough!” text at the very beginning of Across the Spider-Verse’s opening credits. As revealed in April of 2023, the cough belongs to writer/producer Chris Miller. Having originally coughed during the audio mix for Phil Lord and Miller’s 21 Jump St., the cough has been added to nearly every movie they’ve done since as a running gag. However, the visual cue seems to be a new addition for Across the Spider-Verse.
72 “Let’s Do Things Differently” (Spider-Gwen’s Story)
In Spider-Man: Into the Spider-Verse, every new version of Spider-Man was introduced with personal origin narration beginning with, “Let’s do this one last time”. However, Across the Spider-Verse shifts gears with a deeper dive into Spider-Gwen’s past and present with the opener: “Let’s do things differently”.
71 Spider-Gwen’s Trans Flag And Color Scheme
Featured in Gwen’s room on Earth-65 is the trans flag that says “Protect Trans Kids”. Combined with the similar color schemes of Gwen’s world, some have come to believe that Across the Spider-Verse is hinting that Spider-Gwen herself might be trans. While that hasn’t been confirmed, she’s at the very least confirmed to be an ally.
70 J.K Simmons as J. Jonah Jameson
Featured multiple times across a few different realities, J. Jonah Jameson was there to report on Spider-Man (or Spider-Woman) being a menace. Likewise, it’s wonderful that actor J.K Simmons playing and/or voicing JJJ is apparently a multiversal constant. While there was fresh dialogue from Simmons, the LEGO universe hilariously featured dialogue from Simmons’ first outing as Jameson in the Sam Raimi-directed Spider-Man trilogy.
69 Doctor Strange and the Nerdy Kid From Earth-199999 (MCU)
Confirming that Kingpin and his super collider created a massive hole in the multiverse, Spider-Man 2099 also referred to “Doctor Strange and that nerdy kid from Earth-199999″, a reference to the MCU and the events seen in Spider-Man: No Way Home. Unfortunately, this is the only reference to Tom Holland’s Webslinger, though perhaps there’s hope for an appearance in Beyond the Spider-Verse.
68 Hammerspace (Spider-Ham)
During Spider-Gwen’s battle with a Da Vinci-themed Vulture from another universe, she gets help from Spider-Man 2099 and Jessica Drew’s Spider-Woman. When 2099 rips off one of the Vulture’s wings, the villain pulls a new wing from a pocket dimension which 2099 refers to as “Hammerspace”, a nod to John Mulaney’s Spider-Ham who was able to pull cartoon objects like hammers out of nowhere as seen in Into the Spider-Verse.
67 “I Think It’s A Banksy” (Post-Malone)
In Into the Spider-Verse, a passerby comments on a multiversally-warped lampost: “I think it’s a Banksy”, referring to the work of the iconic street artist. This was actually a line from rapper Post Malone, and it’s heard again in Across the Spider-Verse following the battle with the Da Vinci Vulture at the Guggenheim Art Museum, taking place in Spider-Gwen’s Earth-65.
66 “We Love and Accept You”- Miles Morales’ Parents
During Miles’ narration introducing himself and what he’s been up to since Into the Spider-Verse, he imagines a scenario where he tells his parents that he’s Spider-Man, believing that in some other universe they might be okay with his Webslinging. While Miles’ parents do know he’s Spider-Man in the comics, it wasn’t a walk in the park and led to some pretty significant family struggles. Likewise, Miles’ mom in the Insomniac game universe knows his secret as well.
65 Ganke Lee Is NOT Miles’ Guy In The Chair
Unlike the MCU’s Ned Leeds, the Ganke from the comics, or the Ganke from the Insomniac games, Across the Spider-Verses’s Ganke Lee has zero interest in being Miles Morales’ “guy in the chair”. He wants no part in Miles’ antics as Spider-Man, believing that even one act of helping Miles would be a slippery slope that would lead to him becoming “The Guy”.
64 Ganke Playing Spider-Man On A PS5
As Miles is rushing to get to his meeting with his parents and school counselor, he runs through his dorm room at Brooklyn Vision where Ganke is playing games on a PlayStation 5. Additionally, it definitely looks as though he’s playing a version of Insomniac’s Spider-Man (perhaps even the upcoming sequel).
63 Secret Tom Holland Spider-Man Reference In Miles Morales’ Room
Also featured in Miles and Ganke’s room is a poster of South Korean soccer legend Heung-min Son. In real-life, Son is a personal hero of actor Tom Holland’s, so the addition of the poster is likely very much intentional as Son is also a big Spider-Man fan himself. Apparently, Ganke’s a Son fan too.
62 The Spot Is The Villain of the Week?
A core motivation for The Spot is that he wants to be taken seriously as a true nemesis. However, he’s frequently referred to as a “Villain of the Week”. This is a common comic term referring to foes who aren’t very memorable and rarely show up beyond a handful of appearances. While this is largely accurate for The Spot in Marvel comics, it looks as though the villain is determined to fight back against this flippant label, seeking to become more dangerous than ever before.
61 Miles Morales’ Project 42 Is A Much Bigger Deal
While Project 42 was simply a reference to the Alchemax project that created the spider that bit Miles in the comics, Project 42 is far more significant as revealed in Across the Spider-Verse. Brought from another universe by The Spot when he was still a scientist working at Alchemax, it’s revealed that this spider was meant to bite and create a different Spider-Man, making Miles Morales a major multiversal anomaly which explains why he wasn’t invited to the Spider Society.
60 Venom Reality in Across the Spider-Verse
In addition to a brief visit to the LEGO universe, The Spot also visits Earth-688 which is home to Tom Hardy’s Venom. While the Lethal Protector is nowhere to be found, Spot does interact with Mrs. Chen in her convenience store, quite unimpressed seeing as how a symbiote and its host are her regular customers.
59 “The Palm of My Hand” (Doctor Octopus)
Upon realizing his true ability to travel the multiverse, Spot remarks that he has “the power of the multiverse in the palm of my hand”. This is very similar to Doctor Octopus and his fusion reactor in Spider-Man 2: “The power of the sun in the palm of my hand”.
58 Everything Everywhere All At Once Reference (Bagels)
When The Spot return to his apartment to build a miniature super collider, a billboard on the roof can be seen with a giant bagel on it. Not only is this a reference to Spot being the guy who got hit in the head by a bagel in Into the Spider-Verse, but the billboard says “All Of It Always All Over The Place”, a hilarious reference to A24’s Oscar-winning multiverse movie Everything Everywhere All At Once which has its own bagel significance.
57 Williamsburgh Bank Building
Just like Tobey Maguire, Andrew Garfield, and Tom Holland’s versions of Spider-Man, Miles Morales reveals his favorite thinking place, a spot to be alone and get away from his problems. For Miles, it’s the Williamsburgh Bank Building in Brooklyn while Tobey Maguire’s Spider-Man has the Chrysler Building, Garfield prefers the Empire State Building, and Holland’s Peter Parker has the roof of the Midtown School of Science and Technology.
56 Across The Spider-Verse’s Comicbook Framework
Just like Into the Spider-Verse which featured a comic cover every time a new Spider-Verse hero was introduced, covers are used to split up Across the Spider-Verse into different chapters. As such, it’s meant to mirror issues in a comic book run, a very cool framing device that’s incredibly unique for the animated superhero sequel.
55 Anomalies in Across the Spider-Verse
Once Miles finally makes it to the Spider Society headquarters on Earth-928, he learns that Spider-Man 2099 created the organization to capture multiversal anomalies, beings who end up getting shunted across universes and can create all kinds of disruptions, potentially breaking canon events critical to the stability of the multiverse itself and its heroes. As such, this helps explain Michael Keaton’s MCU Vulture who recently ended up on Earth-688, confirmed to be the home of Venom, Morbius, and likely more classic Spider-Man characters such as Kraven.
54 Live-Action Prowler From MCU (Donald Glover)
One of the Spider Society’s captured anomalies is none other than a live-action version of the Prowler played by Donald Glover. Glover made his first appearance as Aaron Davis in the MCU with Spider-Man: Homecoming. As such, it’s very fun to see his evolution as the Prowler (even if it’s just a cameo that might not go anywhere in the MCU).
