Film
Spider-Man: Across the Spider-Verse
The middle chapter of the Spider-Verse trilogy is bigger, stranger and sadder than the first: a dazzling collision of animation styles across dozens of universes, following Miles Morales as he's told his origin was a mistake he must undo. It's a coming-of-age story disguised as a multiverse epic, gorgeous frame by frame, and it ends on a cliffhanger — go in knowing that.
If you liked this
Spider-Man: Into the Spider-Verse2018
The film that started it all, and genuinely essential if you haven't seen it — it invented the animation language and the emotional throughline this sequel builds on.
But If you've already seen it, there's nothing new here — this is purely for the uninitiated.

Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles: Mutant Mayhem2023
Same Sony animation studio pushing the same scrappy, sketchbook-textured visual style into a different franchise, with a similarly loose, funny teenage energy.
But Lower stakes and less ambition — it's a fun hangout movie, not the emotional gut-punch Across the Spider-Verse aims for.

The Mitchells vs. the Machines2021
Another Sony-adjacent animated film that treats every frame as a canvas, mixing styles freely, with real heart underneath the visual chaos and jokes.
But Family road-trip comedy rather than superhero spectacle — the tone is much gentler and more domestic.

The wildcard
Something you would not have found on your own.
Akira1988
The Spider-Verse films' animators have cited Akira as a touchstone for pushing animation past its usual limits — same lineage of a teen protagonist wrestling with power he can't fully control, told through genuinely radical visual technique.
A landmark hand-drawn anime about a teenager whose emerging power threatens to destroy the world around him, animated with a density and ambition that changed what animation could do.
But Dense, dark, occasionally confusing plotting, and a much colder emotional temperature than a Marvel film.

More like this (7)
Big Hero 62014
A warm, grief-tinged superhero-origin story with real technical polish, if you want the Disney version of a teenager processing loss while discovering powers.
But Considerably more conventional and safer — this won't scratch the multiverse or stylistic-experimentation itch.

The Incredibles2004
The gold standard for superhero family drama done through animation, with the same interest in legacy, expectation, and what powers cost the people who have them.
But Two decades old and stylistically conventional — none of the visual invention that defines the Spider-Verse films.

Puss in Boots: The Last Wish2022
Unexpectedly gorgeous, existentially heavier than its premise suggests, with fight scenes that borrow the same painterly, frame-skipping animation tricks.
But It's a fairy-tale adventure at heart, not a superhero story, and the emotional register is lighter overall.

Doctor Strange in the Multiverse of Madness2022
If it's the multiverse mechanics and the 'variant selves' idea you loved, this live-action MCU entry chases the same concept with horror-tinged visuals.
But Requires MCU homework to land fully, and the multiverse is used more as spectacle than as metaphor.

Spider-Man: Homecoming2017
For the live-action version of a teenager buckling under the weight of being Spider-Man, with the same mix of comedy and genuine adolescent anxiety.
But A completely different Peter Parker, different universe, different tone — no Miles, no multiverse, no animation.

X-Men: Days of Future Past2014
A superhero team splintered by disagreement over how to prevent a catastrophic future, wrestling with fate versus choice much like the Spider Society does.
But Older effects, a sprawling ensemble that assumes X-Men familiarity, and none of the visual daring.

Donnie Darko2001
Miles is told his survival is 'wrong' and the multiverse demands correction; Donnie is told the same thing about himself, minus the costume and the CGI — same question about fate versus rebellion, played dead serious instead of thrilling.
A moody, cult indie film about a teenager who learns he's living inside a timeline that's supposed to end in tragedy, and has to decide whether to accept or fight it.
But Slow, melancholic, ambiguous, and deliberately unresolved — the opposite of a big-budget spectacle.

People
Cast
Shameik MooreMiles Morales (voice)
Hailee SteinfeldGwen Stacy (voice)
Brian Tyree HenryJeff Morales (voice)
Luna Lauren VélezRio Morales (voice)
Jake JohnsonPeter B. Parker (voice)
Oscar IsaacMiguel O'Hara (voice)
Jason SchwartzmanSpot (voice)
Issa RaeJessica Drew (voice)
Daniel KaluuyaHobie Brown (voice)
Karan SoniPavitr Prabhakar (voice)
Shea WhighamGeorge Stacy (voice)
Greta LeeLYLA (voice)
Directing
- Joaquim Dos SantosDirector
- Justin K. ThompsonDirector
- Kemp PowersDirector
- Melanie DukeScript Coordinator
Writing
- Miguel JironHead of Story
- Octavio E. RodriguezHead of Story
- Anthony HoldenStory Artist
- Ben ChoiStory Artist
- Caitlin VanArsdaleStory Artist
- Darnell JohnsonStory Artist
- Denise KoyamaStory Artist
- Kasey FagerquistStory Artist
- Lauren SassenStory Artist
- Matt JonesStory Artist
- Max PerkinsStory Artist
- Sarah Jean PartingtonStory Artist
- Stephanie Garcia RizoStory Artist
- Violaine BriatStory Artist
- Wynton RedmondStory Artist
- Melanie DukeStory Coordinator
- Christopher MillerWriter
- David CallahamWriter
- Phil LordWriter
Production
- Caitlin McKennaADR Voice Casting
- Libby Thomas DickeyCasting
- Mary HidalgoCasting
- Alonzo RuvalcabaCo-Producer
- Julie GrollCo-Producer
- Rebecca Karch TomlinsonCo-Producer
- Aditya SoodExecutive Producer
- Bob PersichettiExecutive Producer
- Brian Michael BendisExecutive Producer
- Peter RamseyExecutive Producer
- Rodney RothmanExecutive Producer
- Crystal VilaikeoFinishing Producer
- Christian HejnalLine Producer
- Amy PascalProducer
- Avi AradProducer
- Christina SteinbergProducer
- Christopher MillerProducer
- Phil LordProducer
- Ethan DuffyProducer's Assistant
- Griffin JohnstonProducer's Assistant
- J. Wheeler WhiteProducer's Assistant
- Darius CorneaProduction Accountant
- Jejo SleeperProduction Accountant
- Paige MinanaProduction Accountant
- Robert JonkerProduction Accountant
- Angie K. FarellaProduction Assistant
- Camila DemarchiProduction Assistant
- Joere EstremaduraProduction Assistant
- Katya ViglioneProduction Assistant
- Kaylee Yibing HouProduction Assistant
- Roohi KamalProduction Assistant
- Russell Tyre FrancisProduction Assistant
- Dan SlottProduction Consultant
- Jason LatourProduction Consultant
- John MuradProduction Consultant
- Matthew A. CherryProduction Consultant
- Mike RiandaProduction Consultant
- Nilah MagruderProduction Consultant
- Reggie YatesProduction Consultant
- Thenmozhi SoundararajanProduction Consultant
- Andrea OnukwubiriProduction Coordinator
- Carli LynchProduction Coordinator
- David CohanProduction Coordinator
- Sharon KikinisProduction Coordinator
- Sofia HurtadoProduction Coordinator
- Jessica BerriProduction Manager
Recommended by
Spider-Man: Into the Spider-Verse, Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles: Mutant Mayhem