Spider-Man's Role In 'Avengers: Infinity War', Miles Morales Is In The MCU, & More Spidey News

With Spider-Man: Homecoming less than two weeks from its release, the film's press tour is in full swing (yes, pun intended). That means a steady stream of revelations about the future of our friendly neighborhood Spider-Man, the level of the character's involvement in Marvel Studios' Avengers: Infinity War, and much more.

Read on for the latest Spider-Man Avengers Infinity War news, as well as some clarification about Venom, and a reference in Homecoming that seems worth looking out for.

We'll have our own chat with Marvel Studios president Kevin Feige and Homecoming producer Amy Pascal in the days leading up to the new movie's release, but in the meantime, the duo sat down with Fandango and spoke about Spidey's level of involvement in next year's Avengers: Infinity War.

"I think it might feel bigger a little bit because of Homecoming and because of what people know from it, but it's about on par with [Civil War]," Feige said. That's frankly more than I expected we'd see him, considering the sheer amount of characters and plot that movie has to churn through in its run time. Tom Holland's web-slinging hero was in Civil War for about 30 minutes, and if the positive early buzz about Homecoming reflects the opinions of general audiences, fans will be eager to see as much of him as possible when Infinity War rolls around.

And speaking of the outrageous number of characters in that film, it seems like we'll be seeing a few Homecoming alums pop up in Infinity War as well:

"There's a pretty big crew already in those movies, but you might keep an eye out [for Homecoming characters]," Feige told Fandango. And Pascal chimed in with a smile, "Yeah, you never know."

There seems to be some confusion among fans about exactly which characters will appear in the MCU and which ones will be confined to Sony's newly-developing Spider-Man adjacent universe of their own. Allow Amy Pascal to explain:

Here is Amy Pascal's full quote on the statements she made recently about VENOM, etc, being connected to #SpiderManHomecoming pic.twitter.com/xoRCB6T1ZX

— Erik Davis (@ErikDavis) June 25, 2017

So as for whether Venom could appear in the MCU, we've already told you that Kevin Feige says there are no plans for that and Tom Holland recently told ComicBook that it's "never happening," which sounds pretty definitive.

Feige and Pascal make the distinction even more clear in this exchange during an interview with Collider:

Collider: Just to be definitive, Spider-Man will not appear in any of these spinoffs for now.

Pascal: For now, correct. All of them are part of the Marvel comic universe. Not all of them are part of Marvel cinematic universe.

Collider: I'm of the opinion that you guys are making all these spin-offs at Sony where there's gonna be these other characters, whatever it may be, all of those are in the same universe. Spidey will not be there until maybe he's out of the Marvel universe and then who the hell knows what happens.

Pascal: I would say who the hell knows what happens.

Feige: But are Venom and Black Cat and stuff connected or no, you're just making the movies, right?

Pascal: Right now, it's sort of like Iron Man when you did the first Iron Man. Right now, these first movies are establishing these characters.

Feige: That's very smart and we've talked before that when we started Iron Man, we didn't sit down and go, "Let's make a cinematic universe." We said, "Let's make a good Iron Man movie."

So for now, there won't be any crossover between the two company's cinematic universes. But I can easily imagine a time when the Marvel Studios partnership has expired and when Sony decides to plug Spider-Man into their own Spider-Verse. Whether that will be Tom Holland's version of the character or a newly-cast version remains to be seen.

Speaking with ComicBook, Holland also spoke about what villains he'd like to see pop up in the sequel to Homecoming:

"There are so many. I'm so excited to explore new villains. I want to see people we haven't seen before because Spider-Man, of all characters, probably has the most villains and it only makes sense to explore new ones."

If we're nitpicking, I'd have to say Batman gives Spidey a run for his money in the villain department, but the actor's point is valid and exciting: I'd also much rather see a deeper look into the character's rogues' gallery instead of rehashing the greatest hits.

Warning: Donald Glover's role in Spider-Man: Homecoming is revealed here, so skip to the next section if you don't want it spoiled for you.

Here's where things get a bit more complicated. Phil Lord and Chris Miller (The LEGO Movie, 21 Jump Street) are producing an animated Spider-Man movie for Sony that features Dope star Shameik Moore as the voice of Miles Morales, a mixed race (black and Hispanic) teenager who takes on the mantle of Spider-Man. Mahershala Ali just signed on to voice Miles' criminal uncle Aaron in that film, and that's the role Donald Glover plays in Homecoming. Glover's character even name-drops his "nephew" in the new movie. In an interview with ComicBook, director Jon Watts and Feige basically confirm Miles' existence in the MCU:

"I mean, I always wanted Donald [Glover] to be in this movie," Watts said. "That was one of my first ideas, just because I knew... I remember all the excitement surrounding him being Spider-Man, you know? And I was like, 'If he's going to be in this movie, who could he be?' So, we're not saying anything specifically, but Aaron Davis having a nephew in New York City... I wouldn't say it's a definite hint, but I think it definitely opens that door."

"He does have a nephew," Feige said. "He has a nephew."

For his part, Holland would be thrilled if a future movie featured Miles and Peter Parker sharing the screen together:

"That would be something that I would be very up for doing, it's something that I would really, really hope to happen. I think Miles Morales is a great character, I think it would be fantastic to have an actor of color playing a superhero on screen and I just think it's going to be something very cool and something very exciting for this universe."

According to a press release that accompanied this film's announcement back in 2015, this animated movie will "exist independently of the projects in the live action Spider-Man universe," so just because Sony is featuring Miles Morales in an animated film doesn't mean that Marvel Studios won't also be able to include him in a live-action movie if they want to (as long as the deal between Disney/Marvel and Sony to share Spidey continues to stand).

And finally, there may be an easter egg in Spider-Man: Homecoming that's worth looking out for:

When @jnwtts dodges your easter egg suspicions for @SpiderManMovie but @TomHolland1996 possibly confirms it... pic.twitter.com/coHYRzR7M8

— TheJimmyMartin (@jimmymartinfilm) June 25, 2017

I haven't seen Homecoming yet, but that reaction from director Jon Watts definitely has me curious, and now I'll be scanning every window in the movie for spaceship reflections. What ship could it be? A S.H.I.E.L.D. helicarrier? A flashback to The Hulk's Quinjet as he heads for space at the end of Age of Ultron? I'll open the floor for other guesses, so chime in below with your own speculation.

Spider-Man: Homecoming arrives in theaters on July 7, 2017, while Avengers: Infinity War hits on May 4, 2018.