'Spider-Man: Into The Spider-Verse' Characters Could Get Their Own Animated Series

Spider-Man: Into the Spider-Verse may not be as successful at the box office as the usual theatrical offerings starring characters from Marvel Comics, but the film has garnered plenty of acclaim from critics and fans alike. Now that the movie came away with a victory for Best Animated Film at the Golden Globes over presumed frontrunner Incredibles 2, the film might have longer legs at the box office, which could make a sequel an even bigger deal. But the potential for the Spider-Verse to expand may also lie outside of movie theaters.

Buried in a New York Times article profiling what Sony Corporation has planned for the future, there's a little nugget that teases some potential plans for some of the characters from Spider-Man: Into the Spider-Verse. Towards the end of the article, this is mentioned:

"Sony is also considering making animated television shows based on characters introduced in "Spider-Man: Into the Spider-Verse," which has collected $276 million at the box office."

We already know that Sony Pictures Animation is working on a sequel to Spider-Man: Into the Spider-Verse that will focus more on Miles Morales and Gwen Stacy, not to mention a movie that will focus on Spider-Gwen and other female characters like Silk from the Spider-Man universe. But this is the first we've heard of official plans for any kind of spin-offs for the other characters in the movie. While there aren't any specific characters mentioned, it's not hard to imagine the supporting cast starring in their own shows.

First of all, there's Spider-Ham, who is tailor-made for his own animated series. The character is a pig version of Spider-Man who takes cues from Looney Tunes and other classic cartoons for not just his animation style, but the way he dispatches with bad guys using cartoon weapons like a giant mallet. Giving Spider-Ham his own series is a no-brainer, even if the character's voice, comedian John Mulaney, was hoping to see the character in his own movie.

Batman: The Animated Series has received plenty of love for being the perfect representation of The Dark Knight, and a big part of that is the film noir sensibilities ingrained in the series, both narratively and aesthetically. But that could be done even more directly with the creation of a Spider-Man Noir animated series. I'm imagining something like Dick Tracy in animated series form. It's unlikely that the series could afford to get Nicolas Cage voicing the character, but that doesn't mean the series wouldn't be good. There are plenty of great voice actors out there who could make Spider-Man Noir still worth watching.

We've yet to see an anime approach to comic books on the small screen, and Peni Parker and her SP//dr robot seems like the perfect way to blend Marvel Comics and anime in a new animated series. After all, there are already plenty of traditional comic book animated shows and a variety of anime titles available, so why not combine the two and hit with two large fanbases?

Even though he only popped up in the post-credits scene of Spider-Man: Into the Spider-Verse, this is a character with a lot of potential for his own animated series. We've yet to the see the futuristic version of Spider-Man in his own animated show, and since this is a version of Spider-Man that lets a Hispanic character wear the mask, it has some potentially huge international appeal.

The only possible problem with these Into the Spider-Verse shows, no matter who ends up getting one, is that it might lose the novelty of what made Into the Spider-Verse so great. Part of the fun of the movie came from all these characters interacting with each other, and that likely won't be part of these potential shows. But then again, they each have such a unique personality and animation style that they might be able to stand on their own just fine. Maybe we'll even get multiple shows with an eye towards some crossover action down the road.

We'll keep you posted on the development of any possible Spider-Man: Into the Spider-Verse animated shows.