“Spider-Man: Brand New Day,” the latest movie featuring the web-slinging Marvel hero, arrives in theaters in July. But this week a very different Spider-Man comes to television.
“Spider-Noir” premieres Monday on the MGM+ cable channel and begins streaming on Amazon Prime Video on Wednesday. Nicolas Cage plays the title character, a version of Spider-Man who lives in 1930s New York and works as a private investigator. He doesn’t wear a red and blue suit, opting instead for a black mask and a billowing coat.
If this sounds familiar, it is because Cage is reprising, somewhat, his role from the Oscar-winning animated feature “Spider-Man: Into the Spider-Verse” (2018). But “Spider-Noir” is designed to stand on its own.
The series, developed by Oren Uziel, also comes with a gimmick: It will be available to stream in both black-and-white and color. How does it relate to all the other friendly neighborhood Spider-Men we’ve come to know over the years? Here’s what you need to know before diving in.
Where have you seen this character before?
The noir iteration of Spider-Man was first introduced to comic books in 2008 as part of a series that placed various Marvel heroes in retro settings. He became more widely known with his appearance in “Spider-Man: Into the Spider-Verse,” as one of many Spider-variants who team up with Miles Morales (Shameik Moore) and Peter B. Parker (Jake Johnson) to help fix a dimensional rift.
In “Into the Spider-Verse” the character is voiced by Cage and is also named Peter Parker. He explains that in his universe it is 1933, he’s a private eye, and he likes to drink egg creams and fight Nazis. He is illustrated in black-and-white.
Confusingly, the character in “Spider-Noir” is not the one from the film. Amazon said the series is not a spinoff of “Into the Spider-Verse,” even though it features Cage and overlapping members of the creative team, including Amy Pascal, Phil Lord and Christopher Miller, executive producers on the series.
So who is the ‘Spider-Noir’ version of Spider-Man?
In the series, he is Ben Reilly, another name associated with Spider-lore.
The first Ben Reilly character was created in 1975, by the famed comics writer Gerry Conway and the artist Ross Andru, as a clone of Peter Parker. That isn’t the case here. This Ben is an investigator in New York who once fought crime as a masked hero, known as the Spider, but stopped after the death of his fiancée, Ruby. Reilly’s spidey sense endures, however, and it is effective in his casework — so effective that in the “Spider-Noir” premiere, he ends up in the cross hairs of a villainous gangster named Silvermane (Brendan Gleeson). Reilly is forced to re-embrace his alter ego.
Uziel said that when Pascal, Lord and Miller approached him about creating a “Spider-Man Noir” show, he immediately thought of Cage for the role, even though he had never starred in a television series. But the actor already understood the concept, which Uziel described as, What if Humphrey Bogart happened to be Spider-Man?
“It’s not the same version he portrayed in the ‘Spider-Verse’ movie,” Uziel said in a video interview. “But he’s familiar with it, and I’m familiar with it.”
Are there other familiar Spider-Man characters?
Many. One of Reilly’s allies is Robbie Robertson, a journalist played by Lamorne Morris (“New Girl”). Robertson has appeared in various Spider-Man stories, most notably Sam Raimi’s movie trilogy, portrayed by Bill Nunn.
Reilly’s investigation leads him to a nightclub singer named Cat Hardy (Li Jun Li of “Sinners”). Her name resembles that of Felicia Hardy, better known as Black Cat. Another moniker that might ring a bell: Flint Marko, played by Jack Huston (“Boardwalk Empire”). Marko is the alter ego of Sandman, who was portrayed by Thomas Haden Church in “Spider-Man 3” (2007). The British actor Abraham Popoola plays Lonnie Lincoln, also known as Tombstone.
Uziel said he tried to find the “superhero equivalent” of “all those fun classic situations that a detective might find himself in and characters like a femme fatale or a heavy.”
So you can watch this in black-and-white or color?
Yes. “Spider-Noir” is being released in both “authentic” black-and-white and what is being billed as “true hue” full color. Uziel said the initial plan was to make the show in black-and-white, but then Amazon suggested that they release two versions.
Uziel saw it as a chance to honor both of the show’s foundational genres. The black-and-white version could introduce superhero movie fans to the aesthetic of classic films like “The Third Man” (1949) or “Double Indemnity” (1944). At the same time, he said, a noir fan might see the color version and appreciate how comic book movies can be “incredible works of art.”
Making a show for two formats wasn’t easy. The costumes, sets and props had to look as good in black-and-white as they did in color.
“We had to find the right palette for everything that would end up looking great in both,” Uziel said. “It was a lot of work, a lot of trial and error.” For example, red lipstick wouldn’t do, because it would look like black lipstick in monochrome.
How should you watch it?
Uziel suggests that viewers watch all the way through in whichever version they prefer. “Then, if you’re interested, give it a shot in the other one to see how it changes the experience,” he said.
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