These days it's usually Disney Plus that's the streaming home of superhero content, but Netflix subscribers in the UK can now watch one of the biggest recent superhero movies as it's just been added to the library.
The movie in question is Spider-Man: Across the Spider-Verse, which was added to Netflix UK on Saturday, March 8. This animated feature from 2023 follows on from 2018's Into the Spider-Verse, and is the second of three parts of a trilogy of movies (Beyond the Spider-Verse has no release date just yet).
Some of Sony's Spider-Man movies make their way onto Netflix pretty quickly, but for the Spider-Verse ones, fans have had to wait longer. So they'll be pretty glad that the movie is now on Netflix.
Across the Spider-Verse continues the story of Miles Morales, or Spider-Man, and in this installment he has to travel across the multiverse to team up with other Spider-People including Spider-Woman (or Gwen Stacey) in order to stop a dangerous villain.
With 95% on Rotten Tomatoes, Across the Spider-Verse was a hit with audiences, and its nomination for the Best Animated Feature Oscar is a testament to its popularity.
Anyone who's seen Into the Spider-Verse will be able to tell you why: these two movies have proven hugely influential with animated features. They're credited with kick-starting a new age of creative and artistically-animated movies with Puss in Boots: The Last Wish, TMNT: Mutant Mayhem, Entergalactic, The Bad Guys and The Mitchells vs. the Machines creators all citing the first movie as inspiration.
The movies blend animation styles to create a distinct look, and Across the Spider-Verse blends this idea well with its multiverse-hopping plot.
As you can probably guess, the movie was a hit in the box office too. Its run was only disrupted by Transformers: Rise of the Beasts, which coincidentally was also added to Netflix on the exact same day.
Fans have been clamoring for the final entry in the Spider-Verse trilogy, which by all accounts could be several years out. A spin-off movie called Spider-Women is also in the works, which again has no confirmed release date, but the producers said it could be along earlier than expected.
With superhero movies currently suffering from "superhero fatigue" in audiences (at least, judging by box office returns and Rotten Tomatoes scores), Across the Spider-Verse remains a great example of how to continue making well-received superhero stories.
If you live in the US, Spider-Man: Across the Spider-Verse is also on Netflix, but it's been there for a while now. Into the Spider-Verse is also on Netflix in the UK, but not in the US.
If you've already seen the movie, or think you might love it, I should probably also point out that it's a popular DVD and Blu-Ray release. This isn't just because it means you can watch it whenever you want, ready for when Netflix loses it, but because the discs have more visual fidelity than the streaming version (which is really important for this movie) and because it has a movie's worth of extras to help you enjoy the animated craft more.
- Find Across The Spider-Verse UHD edition on Amazon US here and on Amazon UK here.
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