Is Spider-Man: Across the Spider-Verse woke?
Movie · 2023
Spider-Man: Across the Spider-Verse has a wokeness score of 5/10, which we rate as Socially Conscious. Clear woke themes are present and intentional, but feel balanced and organic to the story. The message supports the plot and characters rather than dominating them.
Key points
- Diverse Spider-People roster emphasizes race, gender, and identity politics across multiverse.
- 'Protect Trans Kids' poster in Gwen's room promotes gender ideology subtly but intentionally.
- Spider-Punk's rants against capitalism and fascism inject leftist social commentary.
Wokeness analysis
Spider-Man: Across the Spider-Verse features clear progressive elements that align with modern woke sensibilities, including a racially diverse ensemble of Spider-People from various universes, such as Afro-Latino protagonist Miles Morales, Indian Spider-Man Pavitr Prabhakar with anti-colonial undertones, and characters like Spider-Punk Hobie Brown railing against capitalism and fascism. These representations emphasize identity negotiation across race, class, nationality, and gender, as noted in progressive outlets like The Guardian, which celebrates the film as wokeness in action. Subtle but intentional signals include a brief 'Protect Trans Kids' poster in Gwen Stacy's room and speculation about trans symbolism, prompting backlash from conservative reviewers like Worth It or Woke?, who downgraded their rating due to this promotion of child mutilation ideology. A Black Lives Matter badge on Miles' backpack and a pregnant Spider-Woman fighting irresponsibly add to the checklist of inclusion markers. However, these themes integrate organically into the multiverse narrative, supporting character arcs and plot without dominating the entertainment. The story prioritizes family bonds, heroism, free will versus canon determinism, and high-octane action, earning praise even from some conservative voices like SciFiWright for authentic characters over tokenism. Cops and fathers are portrayed positively, countering typical anti-police tropes. Despite commercial success debunking 'go woke go broke,' the intentional woke commentary is noticeable yet balanced, appealing broadly while irking audiences tired of forced messaging in kids' media.
Plot
One year after the events of Into the Spider-Verse, Miles Morales balances life as Brooklyn's Spider-Man with school and family pressures. Reuniting with Gwen Stacy/Spider-Gwen, he ventures across the multiverse, encountering the Spider-Society led by Miguel O'Hara/Spider-Man 2099. They battle The Spot, a villain empowered by interdimensional portals seeking revenge on Miles. Conflict arises over 'the canon'—the idea that certain tragic events must occur for Spider-heroes to exist—pitting Miles' belief in defying fate against Miguel's rigid enforcement. Joined by allies like Pavitr Prabhakar, Hobie Brown/Spider-Punk, and Jessica Drew, Miles grapples with destiny, family, and heroism. The film ends on a cliffhanger, setting up Beyond the Spider-Verse, with stunning animation, humor, action, and emotional depth.
Analyzed by AI on April 30, 2026