Spider-Man: Across the Spider-Verse has a multiverse full of Easter eggs and Marvel references – so, here’s some of the best ones.
Into the Spider-Verse, 2018’s Oscar-winning debut of Miles Morales, was our first proper foray into the multiverse before the MCU dedicated a whole saga to it. Between its multiple Peter Parkers and alternate versions of villains, it was chock-full of little details for fans – but if you thought that was a lot, just wait.
Its sequel is a monumental achievement in comic book movies and animation. When you’re not slack-jawed by its dazzling, dynamic animation, you’ll likely clock more than a few nods to the wider Spider-Man canon, not to mention its 200+ Spider-People.
After the film swung into cinemas this month, here’s some of the best Easter Eggs in Across the Spider-Verse. Spoilers to follow…
Spider-Man: Across the Spider-Verse Easter eggs
Now, before we start, it’d be tempting to list almost every Spider-Person (or cat, or dinosaur) as an Easter egg. We’re not going to do that, as much as we’d be happy to – but we will single out a few Spider-People in our list worth mentioning. You can check out our cast breakdown here if you want to know more about the rumored appearances.
“Approved By The Comics Code Authority”
Before the movie begins, the Comics Code Authority seal appears onscreen. This is a nod to the CCA, founded in 1954 as an alternative to government oversight, serving as a regulatory body for comics until 2011. It also appeared in Into the Spider-Verse.
Peter Parker’s polo shirt
he also wears the polo shirt peter wore in the ‘90s animated series!! https://t.co/Wjkiu6Ft2q pic.twitter.com/5nTt1wJneF
— duncan elliott (@duncann_donutss) June 8, 2023
In Gwen Stacy’s Earth-65 flashback, we see her having dinner with her dad and Peter, and Peter is wearing the exact same polo shirt from the ’90s animated series.
Gwen and Peter Parker, aka The Lizard
The prologue primarily follows Gwen on Earth-65, and we learn a bit more about her backstory with her best friend, Peter Parker. He developed a serum to make himself “special” and fight back against bullies, but it transformed him into that universe’s Lizard.
When the Lizard goes on a rampage at school, Spider-Gwen fights him without realizing it’s actually Peter, and he dies in her arms.
JK Simmons as J. Jonah Jameson
Do you know what’s funny? Across the multiverse, characters have all sorts of different voices and variants – but every version of J. Jonah Jameson is played by JK Simmons, once again reprising his role.
His voice can be heard throughout the movie, and we catch a few brief glimpses of him in LEGO form and presenting his Infowars-esque Daily Bugle show.
Major Spider-Man: No Way Home reference
This Easter egg was first revealed in the movie’s trailer, but we’ve included it anyway: during the fight with the Renaissance-era Vulture, Spider-Man 2099 says: “Don’t get me started on Doctor Strange and the little nerd on Earth-199999.”
This is a reference to the events of No Way Home, in which Doctor Strange attempts to make the world forget Spider-Man’s true identity and accidentally opens a rift in the multiverse.
“Hammerspace”
In that same melee, Spider-Man 2099 also mentions “hammerspace”, aka characters having a seemingly infinite amount of space to store weapons and other things. This is a reference to Spider-Ham and his massive hammer, as well as other villains and heroes who whip out weapons from nowhere.
Ganke playing Spider-Man PS4
During a quick breather from his battle with the Spot, Miles stops by his dorm room, and we see his roommate Ganke playing Insomniac’s Spider-Man game.
The Spot’s origin story
The origin story of Dr. Jonathan Ohnn, aka The Spot, is also an Easter egg. He was a scientist for Alchemax who transported the radioactive spider that bit Miles to his universe. Later, when Miles and Peter escaped the facility, he was the person who got hit in the head with the bagel.
More importantly, when Miles destroyed the collider at the end of the film, it transformed Ohnn into a skin canvas on interdimensional portals, ostracized by Alchemax and left to turn to a life of crime.
Amazing Fantasy #15
When Gwen arrives via a multiverse portal to see Miles, we see a comic book floating in the air – this is Amazing Fantasy #15, the first-ever appearance of Spider-Man.
Gwen Stacy knows her own fate
Gwen tells Miles that it’s her fate to fall in love with Spider-Man, but it never ends well. As we saw in The Amazing Spider-Man 2, this is a reference to Gwen’s tragic destiny: dying in a fight with the Green Goblin, most likely by plummeting to the ground.
Gwen nearly falls to the ground in Mumbattan, but Miles manages to catch her.
Lego Spider-Man and Mrs. Chen from the Venomverse
In a hilarious scene, the Spot “kicks himself into himself” and begins sticking his head into other universes, including one with LEGO Spider-Man and another with Mrs. Chen from the Venomverse.
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Sadly, Tom Hardy’s symbiote-wearing antihero doesn’t make an appearance.
“The power of the multiverse in the palm of my hand”
This is a quote from the Spot which is obviously a reference to Otto Octavius’ iconic line in Spider-Man 2, which was also brought back for No Way Home: “The power of the sun in the palm of my hand.”
Armadillo
As Miles attempts to get home in time for his father’s promotion party, he runs into all sorts of distractions and hurdles, including the Armadillo.
This is a villain from the Marvel comics, armed with superhuman strength and durability, as well as being a professional wrestler – however, as much he may seem quite formidable, Miles basically flicks him away.
Meaning of Earth-42
Throughout the movie, we see the number 42, whether it’s the spider that bit Miles or the universe he ends up in at the end of the movie. This is a tribute to Jackie Robinson, as revealed by the first film’s directors.
“42 was Jackie Robinson’s jersey number for the Brooklyn Dodgers. He was a barrier-smashing Black superhero in baseball, and [Miles is a] color-smashing Black superhero in Spider-Man comics,” Peter Ramsey told Insider.
PlayStation’s Spider-Man
After the game’s appearance, Insomniac’s Spider-Man shows up on Earth-928’s Nueva York as Miles is introduced to the Spider Society, with a brief voice cameo from Yuri Lowenthal.
Donald Glover as The Prowler
This is a big Easter egg: Donald Glover reprises his role as Aaron Davis, first seen in Spider-Man: Homecoming. As we know, Uncle Aaron was the Prowler in Into the Spider-Verse, and in the sequel, we see his live-action counterpart locked up after taking on the villainous mantle.
“Blue Panther”
This is a minor one, but Gwen makes fun of Spider-Man 2099 by calling him a smattering of names, like Dark Garfield and Blue Panther, the latter of which is a reference to Black Panther in the MCU.
Cartoon Spider-Men
Among the many, many Spider-People that show up on Earth-928, we get appearances from a number of famous cartoon Spider-Men, including The Spectacular Spider-Man voiced by Josh Keaton, 1960s Spider-Man, and Spider-Man: Unlimited’s web-slinger.
Scarlet Spider
Okay, okay, I know we said we weren’t going to include lots of Spider-People – but this one is too good. Andy Samberg voices Ben Reilly, aka Scarlet Spider, a himbo hero who over-observes everything with his hilarious, moody monologuing.
His Lonely Island collaborator Jorma Taccone also voices the Vulture.
Mayday
Peter B. Parker returns, and not only has he mended his relationship with Mary Jane, but they now have a baby: Mayday, who also has superpowers. The character was first introduced in the What If…? comic series, only for her to be scrubbed from existence in One More Day.
Andrew Garfield and Tobey Maguire appearances
Yes, Andrew Garfield and Tobey Maguire show up, but there’s a catch: it’s all archival footage. They appear as Spider-Man 2099 explains “cannon events” to Miles, meaning certain events that must happen in every universe or else they’ll implode.
This includes the deaths of Captain Stacy and Uncle Ben, teeing up those scenes from The Amazing Spider-Man and 2002’s Spider-Man.
“Hello, Peter”
Alfred Molina makes an incredibly quick voice cameo as Doc Ock, saying: “Hello, Peter.” It sounds like the exact same line from Spider-Man: No Way Home, so it was likely just lifted from there rather than the actor recording it again.
The Sinister Six Cartel
It appears the third movie in the trilogy, Beyond the Spider-Verse, will introduce the “Sinister Six Cartel”, clearly inspired by the Sinister Six from the comics.
We’ve yet to find out who’s part of the supervillain group, with the exception of Miles’ evil Prowler variant, but it could include the likes of Mysterio, Green Goblin, Kraven, Electro, Doctor Octopus, and others.
Spider-Man: Across the Spider-Verse is in cinemas now. Check out our other coverage below:
- Spider-Man: Across the Spider-Verse review
- Spider-Man: Across the Spider-Verse ending explained
- Spider-Man: Across the Spider-Verse soundtrack and songs
- Spider-Man: Across the Spider-Verse cast & characters
- Is there an Across the Spider-Verse post-credits scene?
- Best Easter Eggs
- Beyond the Spider-Verse release date and more
- Across the Spider-Verse box office
- Is Tobey Maguire in Spider-Verse 2?
- Is Tom Holland in Spider-Verse 2?
- Is Andrew Garfield in Spider-Verse 2?
- Is Gwen Stacy transgender in Across the Spider-Verse?