Spider-Man: Across the Spider-Verse is swinging into theaters very soon, and, while we know that Miles Morales will be going up against multiverse-traversing villain the Spot in the sequel, there's another figure standing in his way.
Perhaps surprisingly, the first two trailers for the movie put less emphasis on the rivalry between the Spot and Miles, and more on the tension and fighting between Miles and the leader of the Spider-Society, Miguel O'Hara (Oscar Isaac), who is being teed up as an enemy.
He's also known as Spider-Man 2099, a futuristic version of Spider-Man who was not bitten by a radioactive spider but built a super-suit himself. He doesn't stick to walls but climbs them using claws that can rip through metal; he doesn't have a Spider-Sense but he does have fangs and a toxin that he injects into people. He's a different proposition to Peter Parker altogether.
"Miguel definitely becomes an antagonist to Miles, but his goals are very understandable," co-director Kemp Powers tells SFX magazine in the new issue, featuring Star Trek: Strange New Worlds on the cover. "Some people might side with Miles's perspective, but some people might side with Miguel's.
"You know, Miguel is the leader of this Spider-Force for a reason," Kemp continues. "He bears this incredible sense of responsibility. Spider-Man has always been your friendly neighbourhood Spider-Man, and Miguel is very different in that his responsibilities go way beyond any one neighbourhood. He's just a fascinating character, but he's not a villain. He's a good guy."
For his part, Shameik Moore, voice of Miles, says his character "is heartbroken by Miguel. He's like, 'Dude, I just wanted to be a part of your society, I'm the coolest Spider there is. But, if you want to be like that, then be like that, you're not gonna stop me.'"
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Across the Spider-Verse is in theaters June 2. That's just a snippet of our interview, available in the latest issue of SFX Magazine, which features Strange New Worlds season 2 on the cover and is available on newsstands from Wednesday, May 17. For even more from SFX, sign up to the newsletter, sending all the latest exclusives straight to your inbox.
