Across The Spider-Verse Villain The Spot In Live-Action

The Spot might be a bit of a C-list villain in the comics, but as the Guardians of the Galaxy prove, the MCU is pretty good at elevating little-known characters to major player status. Nevertheless, in an interview with CartoonBrew, “Spider-Man: Across the Spider-Verse” co-director Joaquim Dos Santos noted that while the Spot’s inky nature makes him a perfect fit for an animated film, his powers would probably be visually underwhelming in a live-action setting.   

“Pretty early on we knew the Spot was going to be our main villain,” Dos Santos said. “Without an awesome villain, who you sort of can understand with their through-line, you don’t really have a strong story for your main character. So he’s an awesome sort of opposite to Miles. And his living ink really is just, I think we’ve all been saying, it’s not just an effect. It’s artistry come to life. It’s something that can only really happen in animation. You can imagine Spot as a dude in a sock suit in a live-action Spider-Man film. It’s not going to work.”

MCU movies like “Doctor Strange” have done great work to adapt the visual style of the comics, but it’s worth noting that many classic comic book effects are still designed with a very specific medium in mind. For instance, it’s probably no accident that the MCU debut of Jack Kirby’s signature Kirby Krackle visual technique happens in the animated “What If…?” Disney+ series. With this in mind, it’s easy to believe Dos Santos when he says that animation is the way to go with the Spot. It’s even easier to believe that the makers of “Across the Spider-Verse” have some pretty wild visuals in mind for the character. 

The Spot might be a bit of a C-list villain in the comics, but as the Guardians of the Galaxy prove, the MCU is pretty good at elevating little-known characters to major player status. Nevertheless, in an interview with CartoonBrew, “Spider-Man: Across the Spider-Verse” co-director Joaquim Dos Santos noted that while the Spot’s inky nature makes him a perfect fit for an animated film, his powers would probably be visually underwhelming in a live-action setting.   

“Pretty early on we knew the Spot was going to be our main villain,” Dos Santos said. “Without an awesome villain, who you sort of can understand with their through-line, you don’t really have a strong story for your main character. So he’s an awesome sort of opposite to Miles. And his living ink really is just, I think we’ve all been saying, it’s not just an effect. It’s artistry come to life. It’s something that can only really happen in animation. You can imagine Spot as a dude in a sock suit in a live-action Spider-Man film. It’s not going to work.”

MCU movies like “Doctor Strange” have done great work to adapt the visual style of the comics, but it’s worth noting that many classic comic book effects are still designed with a very specific medium in mind. For instance, it’s probably no accident that the MCU debut of Jack Kirby’s signature Kirby Krackle visual technique happens in the animated “What If…?” Disney+ series. With this in mind, it’s easy to believe Dos Santos when he says that animation is the way to go with the Spot. It’s even easier to believe that the makers of “Across the Spider-Verse” have some pretty wild visuals in mind for the character.