After a five-year wait, Spider-Man: Across the Spider-Verse is almost upon us. The sequel to the hit 2018 film Spider-Man: Into the Spider-Verse captivated audiences with its deep dive into the multiverse and breathtaking comic book animation style. Given the success of Into the Spider-Verse, it didn’t take long for Sony to greenlight a sequel. However, animation is a timely process, and the decision to split the intended sequel into two separate films—Spider-Man: Across the Spider-Verse and Spider-Man: Beyond the Spider-Verse—along with production complications due to the COVID-19 pandemic resulted in a few delays.
It’s easy to understand why fans are very excited for Spider-Man: Across the Spider-Verse‘s release on June 2. In addition to continuing the story of Miles Morales (Shameik Moore), the sequel is set to introduce a significant number of alternate Spider-People scattered throughout the multiverses. Spider-Woman (Issa Rae), Spider-Punk (Daniel Kaluuya), and Miguel O’Hara (Oscar Isaac) are just a few of the Spider-Man variations we’re excited to see. Plus, the animation will be even more breathtaking and unique, as it reportedly incorporates six distinct art styles.
Of course, the gap between films has raised a few questions about Across the Spider-Verse, particularly regarding its timeline. Given that Morales is still a teenager, it’s clear that five years haven’t passed in the film as they have in real life. However, Peter B. Parker (Jake Johnson) now has a child and Morales seems older and more mature in the Spider-Man: Across the Spider-Verse trailer, making it clear that at least some time has passed, raising the question of just how old Morales is now.
How old is Miles Morales in Spider-Man: Across the Spider-Verse?
Determining Morales’ age is a little tricky, given that it’s never even explicitly confirmed in Spider-Man: Into the Spider-Verse. Some media outlets, like Screen Rant, speculate that Morales is around 14 or 15 years old in the first film. However, I would say he’s probably closer to 13 in the film, which would correspond with the age he was in the comics when he first got his powers. Plus, Morales is a middle school student in 8th grade at Brooklyn Visions Academy in Into the Spider-Verse. He could be 13 or 14 in the film, but likely no older than that.
As a result, Morales is likely around 16 or 17 years old in Spider-Man: Across the Spider-Verse. While his voice is deeper and he has a more muscular build in the trailer, it is confirmed that he’s still in high school, as he has a school meeting with his parents in which his grades for AP Physics and Spanish are revealed. Also, producer Chris Miller confirmed that Morales is still a teen and hasn’t reached adulthood yet. So, it isn’t likely that Morales is over 17.
However, in the time between films, Parker had a daughter, Mayday, with Mary Jane Watson (Zoë Kravitz). In concept art from Spider-Man: Across the Spider-Verse, Mayday appears to be a year old, so at least two years had to have passed between the two films for this to be possible. It could even be closer to three years, considering that Parker was only just reunited with Mary at the end of Spider-Man: Into the Spider-Verse. Given that they were previously divorced, it would make sense if it took some time before they decided to have a baby together.
Ultimately, all of this is to say that Morales is most likely around 16 or 17 in Spider-Man: Across the Spider-Verse after a two- or three-year time jump.
(featured image: Sony Pictures Animation)
