Brooklyn Nine-Nine actor Andy Samberg is joining Marvel Studios and Sony Pictures Animation’s Spider-Man: Across the Spider-Verse, the sequel to the 2018 animated film Spider-Man: Into the Spider-Verse. The announcement was posted on The Lonely Island’s Instagram page, with Samberg joining another member Jorma Taccone in the project.
While Taccone will lend his voice to the Renaissance-themed variant of Spider-Man villain Adrian Toomes/Vulture, Samberg’s role is kept a mystery. Who could he be playing in the movie?
Andy Samberg Is Playing A Secret Role In Spider-Man: Across the Spider-Verse
Fans would recognize Andy Samberg from his iconic role in NBC’s Brooklyn Nine-Nine, a police sitcom where he played Detective Jake Peralta. Samberg’s talent in comedy led him to form his own group, The Lonely Island, with Jorma Taccone, and Akiva Schaffer. The band was formed in 2001 in Berkeley, California.
They are known for writing and starring in the hit American TV program Saturday Night Live, where they created the famous SNL Digital Shorts. The group also dabbles in hip-hop songs, which also serve as part of their SNL skits.
With Samberg joining the Spider-Verse in a mystery role, there is speculation that he might be voicing Ben Reilly a.k.a. Scarlet Spider. The character is revealed to star in the award-winning animated movie, although no one knows who will portray him.
In an interview with Total Film magazine via Slash Film, co-director Joaquim Dos Santos shared his excitement over Scarlet Spider’s debut while keeping his lips sealed as to who will be the actor behind the character:
“I can’t wait for people to hear who voices him. […] It still hasn’t been released, but I love our Scarlet Spider actor. […] Not even the actors know! Everyone is sworn to secrecy, and they record alone, so most of them are discovering with the public who is in the film they’ve been making. Their reactions have been pretty hilarious.”
At this moment, there are only hypotheses surrounding the casting of Andy Samberg and the mysterious actor who will join the Spider-Verse franchise as Scarlet Spider.
Everything We Know About Spider-Man: Across the Spider-Verse
Spider-Man: Across the Spider-Verse will feature Shameik Moore as Miles Morales/Spider-Man, Hailee Steinfeld as Gwen Stacy/Spider-Woman, Jake Johnson as Peter B. Parker/Spider-Man, and Oscar Isaac as Miguel O’Hara/Spider-Man 2099. The franchise will also welcome Issa Rae as Jessica Drew/Spider-Woman, Daniel Kaluuya as Hobie Brown/Spider-Punk, Karan Soni as Pavitr Prabhakar/Spider-Man India, and Jason Schwartzman as Spot.
The movie will follow Miles Morales reuniting with Spider-Gwen and Peter B. Parker and teaming up with Spider-Man 2099, Spider-Punk, and the original Spider-Woman. The villain, Spot, will receive a power upgrade that would allow him to create his own portals to other realms of the multiverse.
A report fresh from CinemaCon 2023 informs that Across the Spider-Verse officially begins more than a year after Into the Spider-Verse. Sony Pictures Animation was generous enough to show a 14-minute footage to the audience, boasting stylistic animation and a heartfelt storyline.
As fans gear up for the much-awaited sequel, they also have time to guess who Andy Samberg would play in the film and to ponder if it is just a happy coincidence that Scarlet Spider’s actor is kept under wraps.
Spider-Man: Across the Spider-Verse arrives in theaters on June 2, 2023.
Source: Slash Film
