Karan Soni, best known for his role as Dopinder, the taxi driver in the Deadpool movies, will be crossing over to another superhero movie franchise, as he will play a role in the upcoming Spider-Man: Across the Spider-Verse.
Not only will Soni be involved in the movie, but in a movie with dozens upon dozens of characters, Soni's character will play a crucial role in the story, as he has been cast as another iteration of Spider-Man. However, this iteration is more obscure, like some others in Spider-Man: Into the Spider-Verse.
According to One Take News, Soni will play a different version of Spider-Man, and his role will be more than a cameo. "Sources tell us Soni will play Pavitr Prabhakar, also known as Spider-Man India. Soni is the latest addition to the Spider-Verse family and sources tell us he’s expected to play a significant role in the film." One Take News also provided context for the character Soni will be playing. "In the comics, Pavitr Prabhakar is just a kid from Mumbai, India, who is given the powers of a spider by an ancient yogi. He then fights crime as Spider-Man India. His story is nearly 100% mirrored to Peter Parker’s, and this iteration of the character has become popular amongst readers since his introduction in 2005."
Spider-Man India will be one of many versions of the wall-crawler involved in Spider-Man: Across the Spider-Verse. Besides the characters introduced in the film's predecessor - Miles Morales, Spider-Gwen, Spider-Man Noir, Spider-Ham, SP//dr - the film will also have Spider-Man 2099, Spider-Woman, and Spider-Punk. They will also have previous revered iterations of the Spider-Man character, including the Spider-Man from the PS4/PS5 video game series and Spider-Man from the Spectacular Spider-Man series that aired from 2008 to 2009.
As far as casting Soni, that is a pretty good choice, given that Soni demonstrated his excellent comedic timing in the Deadpool movies. Dopinder at first came off like your typical mild-mannered cab driver, only for his disturbing side to come out upon meeting the merc with the mouth. In the first movie, he kidnaps his romantic rival, then begs Deadpool to let him join his line of work as a hitman. The way Soni balanced coming off as an everyman and yet as someone who has a darkness to him was hilariously portrayed.
His casting would indicate that Spider-Man: Across the Spider-Verse will have a comedic tone, much like the first installment. Of course, that may have been obvious when they cast comedic actor Jason Schwartzman as the obscure Spider-Man villain The Spot. However, Soni may add a new dimension of comedy to the film, and that won't be from playing the same character in Deadpool, but better yet, his character may add a new dimension to heroism too.
Spider-Man: Across the Spider-Verse will premiere in theaters on June 2, 2023.
Source: One Take News
