Based on the performance of recent Marvel Studios films, proclamations of “superhero fatigue” arose, with people claiming that people were finally getting bored with the genre. However, Spider-Man: Across the Spider-Verse managed to break expectations and prove that no one is sick of the genre just yet.
During an interview with Rolling Stone, Across the Spider-Verse producers, Christopher Miller and Phil Lord debunked the idea that “superhero fatigue” is here. Using their film as an example that there is still room for superhero films in the market, Miller believes that people want to see a new story being told, not something that feels repetitive.
“I don’t believe it’s super superhero fatigue, I believe it’s “a movie that feels like a movie I’ve seen a dozen times before” fatigue. If you’re using the same story structure and the same style and the same tone and the same vibe as movies and shows that have come before, it doesn’t matter what genre it is. It’s going to be boring to people.”
Lord added to this and claimed that easter eggs can’t “sustain” the audience alone, nor could “big, crazy multiverse stakes.” He thinks that quieter and more relatable moments are what viewers want. Aside from Across the Spider-Verse, he mentioned Marvel Studios’ Guardians of the Galaxy and how people liked Rocket Racoon’s story and his relationship with Groot. He also suggested this is what the audience told them what they wanted, and both producers were glad they listened.
“And the audience in the theater cannot be sustained on Easter eggs and reveals. Or even these big, crazy multiverse stakes. They only care about, like, the relationship between Rocket Raccoon and Groot. And so this story is just so rooted in parents and kids. And Miles and his family. With the last movie we showed it to some friends early on, and they were like, “You have to get to like all these multiple Spider-People as quickly as possible. That’s the exciting thing.” And we were like, we don’t think so. Because the thing that everybody seems to enjoy is the quieter scenes with Miles and his mom and dad. They can’t get enough of it. And I’m so glad we stayed true to what the audience was telling us.”
What’s interesting about this take is that this was something that was mentioned in the Disney Plus series, She-Hulk: Attorney At Law, when it stated that the MCU is known for its “big spectacles and high-stakes plotlines” and concluded that Jen’s story should be about her balancing her and She-Hulk, not people trying to steal her powers. So perhaps these big movie studios are now slowly realizing what audiences want in their films, and it seems to be working considering the praise Across the Spider-Verse has received.
Spider-Man: Across the Spider-Verse was more than just a continuation of Miles Morales’ story. Rather than facing another “villain of the week,” he is also tested by the Spider Society, led by Miguel O’Hara, as he redefines what it means to be Spider-Man. Will he follow the same path that multiple other Spider-folk have walked, or tell his own Spider-Man story that “breaks canon?” You can find out for yourself, as the film is now showing in theaters.