Sony reveals next live-action 'Spider-Man' spinoff, 'Venom 3' and 'Across the Spider-Verse' details

CinemaCon, the annual convention for theatrical exhibitors where studios show off the big-screen releases they've got coming up in the next couple of years, is back in full swing this week after the pandemic muted the show, and Sony Pictures wasted no time with a couple of big announcements, and one very big chunk of teaser footage. 

We've known for a while now that the Oscar-winning Spider-Man: Into the Spider-Verse would be getting a big sequel, but on Monday night producers Phil Lord and Chris Miller took the CinemaCon stage to let people know just how big the two-part follow-up really is. 

“We told [Sony Pictures boss Tom Rothman] it would be the same size as the last one but we couldn’t do it," the duo said, according to Deadline. "It’s the largest crew of an animated movie ever. This movie has 1,000 people working on it. Don’t tell Tom. The number of characters. This movie has 240 characters. Please don’t tell Tom. It takes place in six universes. That’s why we couldn’t do the sizzle reel.”

In lieu of a sizzle reel, the duo queued up the first 15 minutes of the upcoming sequel film Across the Spider-Verse, which featured Gwen Stacy (Hailee Steinfeld) facing off against her cop father, Miguel O'Hara (Oscar Isaac) and Jessica Drew (Issa Rae) having adventures on their Earth, and of course the return of Miles Morales (Shameik Moore) who's just trying to get through school. 

Along the way, Lord and Miller also revealed that the second half of Across the Spider-Verse now has a title: Spider-Man: Beyond the Spider-Verse. 

Speaking of title reveals, Rothman was not to be outdone by Lord and Miller during Sony's presentation. The live-action side of the studio also revealed something new on Monday night, in the form of the latest addition to its ever-growing Spider-Man character universe that includes the likes of Venom, Morbius, and the upcoming Kraven the Hunter and Madame Web. According to Deadline, Sony announced that El Muerto, a luchador with a magical mask who battles Spider-Man in the pages of Marvel Comics, will be the next Spider-adversary to get his own movie, and the character will be played by bestselling recording artist Bad Bunny, who took the CinemaCon stage as part of the announcement. 

According to Deadline, the project came about in large part because Bad Bunny -- whose other acting work includes Narcos: Mexico and the upcoming Bullet Train -- really wants to be part of a comic book movie, and went so far as to dig through Spider-Man comics himself, looking for a character he might be able to embody. What he found was El Muerto, and now Sony's on board with his mission after they were impressed by his Bullet Train work. The project is set to release on January 12, 2024. 

And that's not all. In unsurprising but still fun news, Sony concluded its presentation with a brief tease of a third Venom film, revealing nothing but a title card announcing the movie's on the way. We have no idea how many returning cast members will be involved, who'll direct the project, or what Eddie Brock and his symbiote pal will face next, but get ready for more Venom action very soon. One thing noticeably not mentioned was a sequel for Morbius, which opened to somewhat tepid reviews and a muted box office haul (when compared to other Sony/Marvel movie fare).

Spider-Man: Across the Spider-Verse will hit theaters June 2, 2023. El Muerto and Venom 3 do not yet have a release date.