Celebrities, SNL stars, and the man who could have been Spider-Man.
Here's a rundown of the absolute best cameos in "Spider-Man: Across the Spider-Verse."
When we catch up with Miles after Gwen's "Across the Spider-Verse" opening, he's late for a
meeting with his parents and his school guidance counselor.
They're all supposed to be chatting about his future college applications, but Miles
is too busy battling The Spot across Brooklyn.
"He's lying to you, and I think you know it."
If you thought the guidance counselor's dry tone sounded familiar, you might be a fan
of "Saturday Night Live," as esteemed alum Rachel Dratch is the voice behind the character.
While she played a wide range of roles during her tenure on the show, Dratch is probably
most famous for her Debbie Downer character.
"The only thing higher than gas prices in this country are divorce rates."
It's also interesting to note that, while obviously distorted and caricatured to fit
the animated style, the school counselor bears a striking resemblance to Dratch herself.
Given how perfectly the counselor fits in her repertoire, it's not unlikely that the
role was written with Dratch already in mind.
If you're a big Spider-Man fan, you probably already know about Donald Glover's complicated
relationship with the character.
Back in 2010, when Sony was casting roles for "The Amazing Spider-Man," the now-acclaimed
multihyphenate was publicly favored for the leading role.
"Donald Glover can play Spider-Man.
He's nerdy."
Fans quickly rallied online on his behalf, and even Stan Lee threw his support behind
Glover, but he was never given the opportunity to audition.
Glover eventually did join the Marvel Cinematic Universe as a lowkey cameo version of Aaron
Davis, Miles' uncle and the secret identity of the Prowler, in "Spider-Man: Homecoming."
So it only makes sense that he'd reprise that role in "Across the Spider-Verse."
Glover's cameo is mostly played as a gag, but it's also a clear nod to the actor's long
and complicated history with the modern "Spider-Man" franchise.
The version of the Prowler that he plays here isn't the same as his "Homecoming" incarnation,
as he actually has some of the purple armor that the character typically wears.
After scuffling with Miles around Brooklyn, The Spot vanishes by disappearing into himself.
However, he's not trapped, as an endless stream of holes provides gateways into other universes.
Most of the parallel worlds are animated, albeit in a variety of styles.
But one portal takes The Spot to a live-action realm, right into the convenience store run
by Peggy Lu's Mrs. Chen.
If you haven't seen the Tom Hardy "Venom" films, this scene was probably pretty confusing.
But in reality, Mrs. Chen is a mainstay of the "Venom" franchise.
Her extensive experience with the titular alien antihero is why she's so completely
unphased by The Spot's appearance.
Lu even starred as Mrs. Chen in a web series promoting "Venom: Let There Be Carnage."
Lu is set to return again as Mrs. Chen in the upcoming third "Venom" film.
There may not be a more iconic superhero movie performance than J.K.
Simmons as J. Jonah Jameson.
The Oscar-winning actor first played the Daily Bugle's cantankerous editor-in-chief in 2002's
"Spider-Man," and he reprised the role in both of Sam Raimi's sequels.
Since then, Simmons has played a different version of Jameson in the MCU, in which the
character is more of a conspiracy-obsessed Alex Jones parody.
"We'll be right back after a brief word from Daily Bugle Supplements, the only other daily
fix you need."
At this point, it's weird to imagine anyone else playing the part.
So it should come as little surprise that Simmons once again embodies Jameson in "Across
the Spider-Verse."
Some of his lines are pulled directly from the Raimi films, including in one scene featuring
a Lego version of the Daily Bugle in which he demands pictures of Spider-Man.
However, there's also some new dialogue in the film.
During Gwen's opening sequence, we see how she became blamed for the death of Peter Parker
in her universe.
A muddled mess of accusatory audio plays over her somber scene, and Simmons' voice can be
heard referencing the mysterious Spider-Woman.
Given how beloved Simmons' Jameson is, it's a treat to see that he's willing to return
to the role again and again.
A musical comedy group might not be your first pick to feature in a superhero movie, but
then again, "Across the Spider-Verse" isn't a typical superhero movie.
Really, maybe it shouldn't be all that surprising that two members of The Lonely Island appear
in the film.
The first Lonely Island member we encounter is Jorma Taccone, who voices the strange,
Renaissance-era version of the Vulture who battles Gwen at the beginning of the movie.
Taccone previously voiced multiple characters in "Into the Spider-Verse," including the
Green Goblin.
Later on, we meet Ben Reilly, aka the Scarlet Spider, who's voiced by fellow Lonely Island
alum Andy Samberg.
Scarlet Spider arguably plays a larger role in the film, as he's part of the task force
created by Miguel O'Hara to hunt down Miles after his escape.
The character is pretty similar to the kind of comedic fare that fans of Samberg's work
should be accustomed to — a boisterous, oblivious goof with a handful of pretty good
laugh lines.
As if there weren't enough "Saturday Night Live" alumni in "Across the Spider-Verse"
already, stalwart straight man Taran Killam also shows up.
Killam voices both Web-Slinger — a cowboy version of Spider-Man — and his horse Widow,
who also wears a webbed mask.
The two bizarre variants only really speak in one brief scene, so you'd be forgiven for
not noticing Taran's presence in the film.
Later on, Web-Slinger and Widow join the stampede after Miles when he attempts to escape Miguel's
grasp.
Though Killam is certainly most famous for his tenure on "SNL," he's appeared in dozens
of TV shows and films.
He's also lent his voice talents to the animated "Star Wars" shows "The Bad Batch" and "Young
Jedi Adventures."
Cameos aren't just for actors, as the late Stan Lee himself could have told you.
In addition to the various "SNL" alumni and Hollywood icons who sneak their voices into
"Across the Spider-Verse," two acclaimed animators are also hiding in the background.
First, Pixar legend Peter Sohn makes a brief cameo as Miles' roommate, Ganke.
The acclaimed animator recorded lines for the character during production on "Into the
Spider-Verse," but those bits were ultimately cut, so it's nice to see him reinstated in
the sequel.
"Are those my Jordans?"
"I can't help it if we're the same size."
Sohn's career in film animation began with "The Iron Giant," and he's worked on everything
from "The Incredibles" and "Finding Nemo" to "The Good Dinosaur," which he directed.
He's also the director of the 2023 Pixar film "Elemental."
Throughout his career, Sohn has made a habit of voicing smaller characters here and there
and his biggest such role to date is probably the robotic cat Sox in "Lightyear."
But he's not the only animator with a voice cameo.
Later on in the film, during Miles' escape from the Spider-Society, we encounter a Spider-Man
therapist voiced by animator Mike Rianda.
"And then I looked at my uncle and…"
"Let me guess.
He died?"
Rianda gained widespread acclaim for co-writing and co-directing the Netflix animated film
"The Mitchells vs. the Machines," which was produced by "Across the Spider-Verse" writers
Christopher Miller and Phil Lord.
Zoë Kravitz played the famous Mary Jane in "Spider-Man: Into the Spider-Verse," but because
it's been five years since that movie was released, many may have forgotten.
MJ has a small role in "Across the Spider-Verse," only really appearing in one scene to talk
with Peter B. Parker about their daughter.
But yes, even in that brief moment, it's still Kravitz.
In the time since the first movie came out, Kravitz has expanded her superhero repertoire
by delivering a spectacular turn as Catwoman in "The Batman," starring opposite Robert
Pattinson.
It's nice to see that her DC ties haven't kept her from returning to the world of Spider-Man,
though, and there's a good chance that she'll have a larger role again in "Beyond the Spider-verse"
next year.
Though her part in "Across the Spider-Verse" is small, it's far from insignificant.
MJ delivers one of the core monologues of the movie, explaining the inherent chaos of
becoming a parent and the impossibility of being fully prepared for change.
Acclaimed hip-hop and R&B producer Metro Boomin worked on the "Across the Spider-Verse" soundtrack,
but that's not where his contributions ended.
He also lends his voice to a new Spider-Man variant in the film that goes by the apt name
of Metro Spider.
The character appears briefly to deliver a quick one-liner during the Spider-Society
chase.
"There's nowhere to run.
My bad everybody.
There was somewhere to run."
Metro Boomin's grungy production style leaves its fingerprints all over the soundtrack in
the best way, imbuing action scenes and somber moments alike with a rich depth of audio intensity.
The DJ made his fame producing radio hits, but he's clearly just as at home working on
a sweeping cinematic score.
He contributes hugely to the overall aesthetic of "Across the Spider-Verse," and it's nice
to see that work rewarded with an onscreen cameo.
While not exactly cameos in the traditional sense, "Across the Spider-Verse" does feature
some visual nods to the live-action "Spider-Man" movies of the past.
Both Tobey Maguire and Andrew Garfield appear in archival footage, which mostly shows up
during Miguel's multiverse exposition.
As he explains the "canon events" that connect all Spider-Man variants, different instances
manifest around him and Miles.
These include the deaths of Uncle Ben and Captain Stacy as seen in the previous Sony
films.
Because of the specific moments chosen, Cliff Robertson's Uncle Ben and Denis Leary's George
Stacy also appear.
It's particularly touching to see Robertson, who passed away in 2011.
His version of Ben Parker remains extremely iconic and influential, and it only seems
right to give him his flowers in a movie about the franchise as a whole.
"Across the Spider-Verse" stops short of filming any new material for Maguire or Garfield,
and that's probably for the best.
The use of their footage here is tasteful, evoking just enough nostalgia without overdoing
it.
As first shown in the trailers, "Across the Spider-Verse" features a staggering number
of different "Spider-Man" variants.
Some are core characters with key roles to play in the story, many are entirely new creations
just meant as goofy gags, and a few are callbacks to specific moments in the wall-crawler's
long media life.
Two of the latter appear during the Spider-Society scenes, both representing a different animated
TV iteration of the webhead's adventures.
The striking nano-suit from "Spider-Man Unlimited" — the sequel to "Spider-Man: The Animated
Series" that ran from 1999 to 2001 — can be seen in Miguel's base chasing after Miles.
Also visible in Spider-Man 2099's HQ is the squat, round Spider-Man from 2008's "The Spectacular
Spider-Man" cartoon.
Just as he was in his own series, this particular variant is voiced by Josh Keaton in "Across
the Spider-Verse."
"I am the Spectacular Spider-Man."
In addition to the different comic book variants and cartoon Spider-Men who appear in the Spider-Society,
there are two characters pulled straight out of Insomniac Games' acclaimed 2018 video game.
The PS4 versions of both Peter Parker and Miles Morales can be seen walking and talking
through Miguel's base, and later on, the video game version of Peter even speaks.
As you'd expect, he's voiced by Yuri Lowenthal here — the same prolific voice actor who
plays the character in the PlayStation title.
This isn't the movie's only nod to the 2018 game either.
When Miles bursts into his dorm room through the window at the beginning of the movie,
his roommate is playing the game on their shared TV.
The PlayStation "Spider-Man" has been hailed as a huge achievement for the franchise, and
it spawned a half-sequel starring Miles himself.
As such, it's only right that the game gets its own little cameo in "Across the Spider-Verse."