Across the Spider-Verse producers fought to keep Spider-Punk in the movie

Last Updated on August 30, 2023

With the many, many, many versions of Spider-Man introduced in Spider-Man: Across the Spider-Verse, it says something that Spider-Punk emerged as a breakout character. However, the character wasn’t always part of the story and the producers had to fight to keep him in the movie once Daniel Kaluuya signed on.

Spider-Punk (Daniel Kaluuya), aka Hobie Brown, is part of the Spider-Society in Across the Spider-Verse, although he mostly plays by his own rules. He forms a bond with Gwen Stacy (Hailee Steinfeld) and by the end of the film, the stage is set for Hobie to play a bigger role in the upcoming sequel. “He was in and out of the picture for a little while because we weren’t sure which elements we were going to stick in this part and which were going to migrate to the next movie,” Phil Lord told Entertainment Weekly. “When we met Daniel Kaluuya, we realized that he had to be Hobie Brown, no matter the cost. And Hobie had to be in the movie because that personality needed to be part of the story.“

With so many characters in the story, Christopher Miller said, “Some people were like, ‘Is there a way to simplify this? There’s so many characters. Do we really need Spider-Punk?’ But once we got to know Daniel, we rewrote the part so it became more necessary.” Across the Spider-Verse co-director Kemp Powers added, “[Spider-Punk is] a catalyst for so many things in this movie, which is why I think he ended up being such a breakout star. No matter how cool the character design looks, he really earned his way into this film because every character has to be in service of Miles’ story.” Spider-Punk will return for Beyond the Spider-Verse, and Lord and Miller have said that we’ll be spending more time in his world.

“When Miles Morales is unexpectedly approached by his best friend and love interest Gwen Stacy to complete a mission to save every universe of Spider-People from a mysterious new villain who could cause a catastrophic disaster, Miles is up for the challenge,” reads the official synopsis for Spider-Man: Across the Spider-Verse. “He and Gwen journey through the Multiverse together and meet its protectors, a group of Spider-People known as the Spider-Force. However, Miles finds himself at odds with the Spider-Force on how to handle the threat.” Across the Spider-Verse features the voices of Shameik Moore, Hailee Steinfeld, Brian Tyree Henry, Luna Lauren Vélez, Jake Johnson, Jason Schwartzman, Issa Rae, Karan Soni, Daniel Kaluuya, and Oscar Isaac. The film was directed by Joaquim Dos Santos, Kemp Powers, and Justin K. Thompson from a script by Phil Lord, Christopher Miller, and David Callaham.