Spider-Man: Into the Spider-Verse sequel begins production

'First day on the job!'

The highly anticipated sequel to Spider-Man: Into the Spider-Verse has officially started production despite the outbreak of the coronavirus.

Nick Kondo — the lead animator for Sony Imageworks who worked on the first film — took to Twitter to share his excitement about the beginning of filming.

Kondo posted a 10-second animated clip which announced that the sequel would arrive in 2022 alongside the caption: “First day on the job!”

The original Spider-Man: Into The Spider-Verse follows Brooklyn teenager Miles Morales (Shameik Moore) as he becomes Spider-Man.

Crossing paths with counterparts from other dimensions, the Spider-People team up to stop Wilson Fisk – also known as the Kingpin – as he presents a threat to all realities.

The first Spider-Verse film was a critical and box office hit. It grossed over $375million (£300m) worldwide against a $90million (£60m) budget and won numerous awards, including Best Animated Feature at the 91st Academy Awards, 46th Annie Awards, and 76th Golden Globe Awards. It was the first non-Disney/Pixar film to win the Academy Award for Best Animated Feature since Rango (2011).

The follow-up Spider-Verse film will focus on the growing relationship between Miles and Gwen Stacy (Hailee Steinfeld), a Spider-Woman from another dimension.

The original animation features a number of secret cameos from Stan Lee — the famed comic-book writer who created such Marvel characters the X-Men, Iron Man and Spider-Man.