With the release of Spider-Man: Across the Spider-Verse, even casual fans of Marvel's most popular superhero are being exposed to other iterations of the iconic character. Most of the public is only familiar with Peter Parker, the Queens-based friendly neighborhood Spider-Man portrayed by Tom Holland, Andrew Garfield, and Tobey Maguire in the films.
However, many characters other than Peter Parker have taken up the mantle of Spider-Man or Spider-Woman over the years. While Across the Spider-Verse and its predecessor Into the Spider-Verse feature lots of them, there are several that most fans of the comic book franchise don't know about. These characters are some of the more memorable Spider-People.
10 Miles Morales
One of the more notable Spider-Men in Marvel Comics history is Miles Morales, who made his comic book debut in 2011. Most audiences became familiar with Miles through his central role in Spider-Man: Into the Spider-Verse, which recounts his origin story as a biracial teen in Brooklyn who takes up the mantle of Spider-Man after the death of Peter Parker.
Since his introduction, Miles Morales has become one of the more popular Spider-People aside from Peter Parker, inspiring comic book storylines, video games, and of course film and TV show portrayals. However, at his heart, Miles represents everything that Spider-Man stands for: an underdog whose main goal is to protect those who need his help.
9 Gwen Stacy
Gwen Stacy is mostly known as being one of Peter Parker's first and most prominent love interests, albeit her fate is sealed by Spider-Man's nemesis, the Green Goblin. Nevertheless, the character reappears frequently throughout the multiverse. On Earth-65, Gwen is the one who adopts the Spider-Woman mantle, whereas Peter Parker is the one who dies instead.
After her introduction as Spider-Gwen in 2015, the character has gone on to become an integral part of the Spider-Man universe in the comics. She plays an important role in the 2015 "Secret Wars" storyline and has had frequent interactions with Miles Morales. Their relationship also lies at the center of Sony's Spider-Verse trilogy.
8 Flash Thompson
Before he's ever a superpowered character himself, Flash Thompson is simply the star athlete at Peter Parker's high school. Though he relentlessly bullies Parker, Thompson ironically has great admiration for Spider-Man, an aspect of the character which is played up greatly in the MCU films Spider-Man: Homecoming and Spider-Man: Far From Home.
While Flash has also become an iteration of Venom in the comics, the character has also adopted the Spider-Man moniker in other Spider-Verses. The Flash of Earth-78127, for instance, becomes Captain Spider, who debuted in a What If...? comic in 1977 and later became a member of the Spider-Army in the Edge of Spider-Verse comic storyline.
7 Mary Jane Watson
While Gwen Stacy is Peter's first love, his more ongoing romance is with Mary Jane Watson, otherwise known as MJ. The character has seen a lot of varied stories as part of Peter Parker's life, from happily raising a child with Spider-Man as well as suffering greatly as a result of her close ties with Marvel's most tragic superhero.
However, in another universe, MJ puts her superhero skills to the test by becoming an iteration of Spider-Woman known as Spinneret. Also called Spider-Mom, MJ adopts this mantle during the Battleworld storyline as a consequence of Secret Wars. At another point in her superhero career, this version of MJ also adorns the Symbiote suit and becomes Venom.
6 Mayday Parker
Though some variants of Peter Parker aren't as lucky when it comes to raising a family, some multiverses are more so. Originating from a What If...? comic from 1997, this child of Peter Parker and Mary Jane Watson discovered she inherited some of her father's powers as a teenager. She eventually utilized those skills to become a vigilante for good.
Eventually, Mayday also teams up with other Spider-People to form the Web Warriors, whose goal is to protect Earths that aren't lucky enough to have Spider-People to protect them. She's overall an integral part of the Spider-Verse collective, even if her appearance in Across the Spider-Verse sees her as an infant being taken into battle by Peter B. Parker.
5 Jessica Drew
One of the more significant Spider-Woman variants in the MCU is Jessica Drew, who was the subject of experimentation by her father and the High Evolutionary. As a result, Jessica became an agent of S.H.I.E.L.D., utilizing her powers to become Spider-Woman. Although she's been an Avenger and Daughter of Liberty, her allegiances haven't always been good.
Notably, it's revealed during the Secret Invasion storyline that the Jessica Drew comic book fans knew and loved was actually a Skrull in disguise. Her skills as an assassin were also formed as an agent of HYDRA, though she didn't stay loyal to them for long. Jess also plays an integral part in Civil War II, joining the side of Carol Danvers for a brief time.
4 Otto Octavius
Most casual fans of Marvel Comics know that Otto Octavius is one of Peter Parker's greatest nemeses. A mad scientist whose experiments have gone wrong, Otto eventually becomes the supervillain known as Doctor Octopus, or Doc Ock. However, in one thrilling comic book storyline, Peter Parker's consciousness is swapped with Octavius', and Peter is killed.
As a result, Otto Octavius operates as the Superior Spider-Man, with no one any wiser about his true identity. Octavius defeats the Sinister Six, but he fails to survive for long after discovering that Peter's consciousness is alive and well in his own body, forcing the two to battle for control, until Otto ultimately wins for a brief period of time.
3 Ben Reilly
While many characters have adopted the mantle of Spider-Man, it's a different story for Ben Reilly. Reilly is a clone of Peter Parker created by the Jackal, later becoming an ally to Parker and adopting the persona of the Scarlet Spider. Since then, the two have been on-and-off frenemies in the comics, often fighting over whom the original Peter Parker is.
In his many comic book adventures, Reilly has also taken up mantles other than Spider-Man, such as his most recent alias, Chasm. This version of Ben Reilly is one of Spider-Man's greatest threats, and the strongest iteration of Reilly yet. At this point, Peter probably longs for the days when Reilly was his ally.
2 Julia Carpenter
Julia Carpenter is a significant character in the Spider-Verse, as an unwilling test subject who gains powers and becomes Spider-Woman. Although her black-and-white Spider-Woman outfit is pretty iconic, the character has also adopted monikers like Madame Web, the blind clairvoyant whose duty is to protect Spider-People across the multiverse.
While many audiences may be exposed to Julia Carpenter after the upcoming Sony film Madame Web starring Dakota Johnson and Sydney Sweeney, hopefully, they'll get a chance to see her in full form as Spider-Woman. It nevertheless will be interesting to see her utilize a quite different set of spider-based powers mixed with her psychic abilities.
1 Miguel O'Hara
Those who have already seen Spider-Man: Across the Spider-Verse have become well acquainted with the character of Miguel O'Hara. In the film, O'Hara leads the Spider-Society, a seemingly benevolent coalition of Spider-People from across the multiverse whose job is to protect the sanctity of Canon Events, which are meant to happen to turn them into heroes.
As the superhero Spider-Man 2099, O'Hara doesn't have latent spider abilities, utilizing science experiments to imbue him with the necessary powers. However, as fans of the Spider-Verse films have already seen, he's one of the less likable Spider-People in the multiverse, making him a worthy adversary of the good-hearted Miles Morales.