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Warning: this article contains spoilers for Spider-Man: Across the Spider-Verse
The hype for Spider-Man: Beyond the Spider-Verse has begun after the success that Across the Spider-Verse saw during its domestic opening. The 2023 sequel set the stage for the third installment of the animated Miles Morales films, and the producers have begun debunking rumors about the film’s runtime.
Christopher Miller, the producer for Spider-Man: Into the Spider-Verse and the LEGO Movie, responded to a fan after rumors shared by the Cosmic Circle podcast speculated that the runtime for Beyond the Spider-Verse will be longer than Across the Spider-Verse. For context, 2018’s Into the Spider-Verse had a run time of 1 hour and 40 minutes. Meanwhile, the sequel is longer, with a run time of 2 hours and 16 minutes.
Miller claimed that the final length of the film has not yet been dictated and that they have “no length intentions” for the third installment. According to him, the length of Beyond the Spider-Verse will be based on “whatever works best for the story.” Basically, it’s unknown if the film will be three hours long or if it will be shorter than Across the Spider-Verse.
Fans were shocked to learn that neither he nor the other crew involved in the Spider-Man films dictate the duration of the movie beforehand. After all, we’ve heard stories on how episode 3 of HBO’s The Last of Us was originally 2 hours long and had to cut it down to 1 hour and 15 minutes long, making it the second longest episode, following episode 1’s 1 hour and 20 minutes runtime.
But then again, this is a movie, not a TV show, so they’re not usually bound to constraints unless it’s a budget issue. During CinemaCon, the filmmakers for DC’s The Flash revealed that the film was originally 4 hours long before they managed to get it down to its current run time of 2 hours and 35 minutes. Meanwhile, Zack Snyder’s Justice League was four hours long since he wanted to make sure he was able to tell the stories of all the main characters. Timing restrictions didn’t stop James Cameron from making Avatar: The Way of Water three hours long, and the third installment as of when we last heard anything about it, is currently sitting at 9 hours.
It will be interesting to see how Beyond the Spider-Verse will play out, considering that Miles is trapped in another universe without a Spider-Man. Meanwhile, Gwen and her friends are now on a mission to save Miles, while Miguel O’Hara and his team are off trying to hunt him down. The stage has been set and it will be interesting to see if the third installment will require a longer runtime or just be short enough for people to not worry about toilet breaks.
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