With just weeks to go before Sony unveils the buzzy animated movie, Spider-Man: Into the Spider-Verse, Sony Pictures Animation is already putting the pieces together for not just a sequel but a spinoff as well.
Joaquim Dos Santos, known for his work on cartoon series Avatar: The Last Airbender and, more recently, Netflix’s Voltron series, has been tapped to direct the sequel. David Callaham, who penned The Expendables and worked on Wonder Woman 1984 as well as Zombieland 2, is writing.
At the same time, Lauren Montgomery, who also worked on Voltron and co-directed animated movies Batman: Year One and Superman/Batman: Apocalypse for DC, is in negotiations to helm an untitled Spider-centric project that will gather the female heroes in the Spider-Man universe of characters in one adventure. Bek Smith, who did production rewrites on Captain Marvel and is rewriting a Lego movie project for Warners, will pen the script.
Amy Pascal, who is a producer on Spider-Verse as well as the live-action movies, will be back in the producer’s chair for these projects. Phil Lord and Chris Miller, the brainiacs behind Spider-Verse, are expected to be creatively involved, although no deals have been made. Avi Arad and Christina Steinberg are also expected to return in some capacity.
Details for the sequel are not being revealed, but seeds have been planted in the upcoming inaugural outing, in which mixed-race character Miles Morales takes center stage.
For the all-female spinoff, no plot details are sticking on the web at this time, but look for the project to center on fan favorite Spider-Gwen. Spider-Woman, Madame Web, Spider-Girl and Silk are other possible contenders.
Sony is very much capitalizing on every aspect of Spider-Man it can. Venom, based on a Spidey villain, broke October box office records and has spun over $822 million worldwide since its Oct. 5 opening — with over $211 million of that tally domestically.
Into the Spider-Verse is set to bow Dec. 14 and is already building buzz as an animation awards player, thanks to its unique style.
Among other projects in development is a feature on the antihero Morbius the Living Vampire, with Jared Leto attached to star.
Nov. 27, 1:07 p.m. Updated to add Callaham information.
