Prime Video’s Spider-Noir Quietly Brings Back The Multiverse After Spider-Man: No Way Home

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Prime Video’s new Spider-Man show cleverly brings back the idea of the multiverse, and it’s a smart move for the series following Spider-Man: No Way Home. The multiverse has been a key part of great superhero comics for years, and it’s now become a popular element in movies and TV shows.

The DC television universe, known as the Arrowverse, frequently explored the idea of multiple universes, especially during big crossover events like “Crisis on Infinite Earths.” These events brought together characters from different DC adaptations, such as Tom Welling reprising his role as Clark Kent from Smallville, and even featured voice acting legend Kevin Conroy playing a live-action version of Batman from the “Kingdom Come” storyline. More recently, James Gunn’s new DC Universe has also begun using the multiverse concept, with the second season of Peacemaker hinting at the possibility of alternate universes.

The Marvel Cinematic Universe’s current storyline, called the Multiverse Saga, demonstrates the franchise’s significant influence on the superhero genre. The idea of the multiverse has been a key element in some of the MCU’s most successful films, and Spider-Man: No Way Home was the biggest movie yet to explore this concept.

Five years after the release of Spider-Man: No Way Home, the new Prime Video series Spider-Noir has subtly reintroduced the idea of the multiverse to live-action Spider-Man stories. All eight episodes of the series are now available on Prime Video, and viewers can choose to watch them in either color or black and white. The way Spider-Noir uses the multiverse is quite understated and easy to overlook.

Spider-Noir Starts With A Quick Multiverse Mention

Be warned, this article reveals spoilers for the first season of Spider-Noir. Unlike Spider-Man: No Way Home, which brought together different Spider-Men and villains from past movies by focusing on the multiverse, Spider-Noir keeps its story within a single universe. The Prime Video series stars Nicolas Cage as Ben Reilly, a private investigator in 1930s New York City. However, the very beginning of the first episode subtly hints at the idea of the multiverse, suggesting that Spider-Noir has encountered it before.

The new series, Spider-Noir, opens with a quick look at the Spider’s past. Ben Reilly then reflects on a question someone once asked him – what universe is this? – a question that has stayed with him. He insists this is the only universe he’s ever known, which means he isn’t the same Spider-Noir that Nicolas Cage played in the animated film Spider-Man: Into the Spider-Verse from 2018, effectively confirming he hasn’t traveled the multiverse.

The quote hints that a Spider-Man from another universe – or another Marvel hero – visited the world of Spider-Noir before the Prime Video series began. Because Spider-Noir is a realistic and gritty show, even with a Spider-Man and villains like Sandman, it’s logical that this character’s encounter with Ben Reilly wasn’t shown on screen.

Spider-Noir’s Use Of The Multiverse Is Perfect After Spider-Man: No Way Home

Although it’d be enjoyable to see Ben Reilly explore different universes, the Spider-Verse movies already cover that ground – even though Nicolas Cage plays Peter Parker in those films. Plus, Cage will reprise his animated role in the 2027 movie, Spider-Man: Beyond the Spider-Verse, giving fans who love Spider-Man Noir more to look forward to. Spider-Noir’s connection to the multiverse feels more like a playful reference to Cage’s involvement with the Spider-Verse, rather than setting up another large-scale multiverse story like we saw in No Way Home.

The new Spider-Man film, Spider-Man: Brand New Day, cleverly uses the idea of the multiverse, something fans have been eager to see since Tom Holland, Tobey Maguire, and Andrew Garfield teamed up in No Way Home. While some viewers hoped for another large-scale multiverse story, this film intentionally subverts expectations. It initially hints at a multiverse connection, but ultimately delivers a gritty, detective-focused narrative. This approach, featuring Spider-Noir, is a smart move for Marvel, demonstrating a strong direction for future Spider-Man stories and acknowledging the setup from the MCU film.

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2026-05-28 02:28