Spider-Noir looks set to put a fun spin on one of Spider-Man's most unique Variants, with Nicolas Cage taking on the role of private eye, Ben Reilly. The name change is a big alteration from the comics, but "Ben" will still be surrounded by quite a few familiar faces.
Among them is Robbie Robertson, a beat reporter and ally to both Ben and New York's newest superhero. Appearing at the Spirit Awards last night, Lamorne Morris, who plays Robbie in the Prime Video series, revealed what fans can expect from his take on the character.
Confirming that this version still works for The Daily Bugle, he explained that the reporter "is one of those guys who sees what's happening in the city, and he's really committed to fixing it. He's his own superhero without any powers or abilities. So it's really cool to see him and Nic team up to try and figure some things out."
Asked whether fans can expect any Spider-Verse Easter Eggs, Morris joked about cameos from Tom Holland and Andrew Garfield, before saying of Tobey Maguire, "What a real piece of sh*t, that guy. He said no [Laughs]."
On a more serious note, he added, "We've got some really cool Easter eggs in there. I think the fans will really love it, for sure, especially if you're an OG Spider-Man fan diving back into Spider-Noir."
Prime Video is releasing Spider-Noir in its entirety, meaning it will be a binge-watch like Wonder Man. As the Marvel Television series proved, all episodes dropping on that same day isn't necessarily an indication of a show's quality and may actually make it a more satisfying watching experience.
When the interviewer quizzed Morris on how long he's committed to the series and whether there could be multiple seasons, the actor trailed off, clearly unwilling to answer. So, the door may be open to Spider-Noir Season 2 somewhere down the line.
Elsewhere in the conversation, the New Girl alum reflected on his first day on set with Cage:
"Oh my gosh. I remember trying to make him laugh, and he's such a pro that he wasn't laughing. And I was like, 'I gotta f**k with him as much as I can. I was so nervous to be around him. I had to break the tension somehow. And then I made him laugh. I forget what the joke was, but I kept poking the bear at something, and he laughed a little bit."
"And then, because he couldn't keep a straight face afterwards, he told me about a time on The Family Man with Jeremy Piven where Jeremy made him laugh right before a take. They couldn't get through the scene because they kept laughing. He showed me the YouTube video of the outtake—you can find it on YouTube, the outtakes from The Family Man. I just thought, 'Oh my god, me and Nic Cage are bonding. This is really cool.' So me trying to poke the bear worked, because now I have a very cool shorthand with him and no more nerves on set."
You can hear more from Morris on Spider-Noir in the player below.
Spider-Noir is a live-action series based on the Marvel comic Spider-Man Noir. Spider-Noir tells the story of Ben Reilly (Nicolas Cage), a seasoned, down-on-his-luck private investigator in 1930s New York, who is forced to grapple with his past life, following a deeply personal tragedy, as the city’s only superhero.
The full cast includes Academy Award-winning actor Nicolas Cage (Adaptation), Emmy Award-winning actor Lamorne Morris (New Girl), Li Jun Li (Sinners), Karen Rodriguez (The Hunting Wives), Abraham Popoola (Atlas), with SAG Award-winning actor Jack Huston (Boardwalk Empire), and Emmy Award-winning and Academy Award-nominated actor Brendan Gleeson (The Banshees of Inisherin).
Guest stars include Lukas Haas, Cameron Britton, Cary Christopher, Michael Kostroff, Scott MacArthur, Joe Massingill, Whitney Rice, Amanda Schull, Andrew Caldwell, Amy Aquino, Andrew Robinson, and Kai Caster.
Oren Uziel (The Lost City, 22 Jump Street) and Steve Lightfoot (Marvel's The Punisher, Shantaram) serve as co-showrunners and executive producers. Uziel and Lightfoot developed the series with the Academy Award–winning team behind Spider-Man: Into the Spider-Verse: Phil Lord, Christopher Miller, and Amy Pascal.
Spider-Noir comes to Prime Video on May 27.