'Across the Spider-Verse' and the Latino legacy of Spider-Man

As a Latino literature and media scholar, a lifelong gamer and a Guatemalan-American girl whose dad read her comics every night, I quickly became a fan and then scholar of Miles Morales, the Afro-Puerto Rican Spider-Man who first appeared in comic book form in 2011’s “Ultimate Fallout #4.”

Just seven years after his introduction, Morales swung into theaters in “Spider-Man: Into the Spider-Verse,” a visually stunning, 3D-animated film that won an Academy Award for best animated feature.

Now, its sequel, “Spider-Man: Across the Spider-Verse,” features two Latino Spider-Men in starring roles. Irish-Latino Spider-Man Miguel O’Hara of “Spider-Man 2099,” voiced by Oscar Isaac, is jumping into the fray. And although he was a well-received Spider-Man as a Marvel comic book character in the 1990s, there’s a good chance you’ve never heard of him.