We still don’t have a Mile Morales-led live-action Spider-Man movie. Andrew Garfield, who played Peter Parker in The Amazing Spider-Man action movies, has long been an advocate for such a thing, even going so far as to suggest Peter should pass the torch.
“Miles Morales was a huge moment in this character’s comic book life,” he told Comic Book Resources in 2014. “I do believe that we can do that. It’s something I’m really interested in figuring out; an eloquent way of coexisting, or passing on the torch. I don’t have an answer, but I think it’s actually a really important move. I think it’s a really beautiful and important move.”
He explains that the miracle of Spider-Man is that under the suit, the hero could be anyone. “You don’t see skin color when he’s in the suit. You don’t see any religious beliefs. You don’t see any denominations,” Garfield says. “Everyone can project themselves into that suit. It’s incredibly powerful in that way. So of course I think it’s important that the openness, the casting, in terms of who could be Spider-Man, could be absolutely anyone.”
Of course, Miles is now leading his own Spidey animated movies with the Spider-Verse series. The first one, in 2018, is easily one of the best films of that year, and a sequel, Across the Spider-Verse, is coming next year.
However, Miles does still feel a little compartmentalised. He hasn’t made an appearance in the MCU yet, and his recent videogame didn’t have the same release excitement as Peter’s. Maybe one day we’ll see Miles Morales permeate the greater Marvel franchise to the same degree as Peter. Like Garfield says, that’s always been the great power of Spider-Man.
The Spider-Man: Across the Spider-Verse release date is set for June 23, 2023.