About

Miles Morales is a fictional character created by Marvel Comics writer Brian Michael Bendis, artist Sara Pichelli and editor Axel Alonso. The character is inspired by the original Spider-Man, Peter Parker, and was introduced as part of Marvel's Ultimate Universe series in August 2011. Miles Morales is biracial, born to a Black father and a Puerto Rican mother. Morales is also the lead in the animated Spider-Verse movie franchise. Following his introduction to the MCU in the 2010s, Morales became the subject of numerous memes and fan art depictions online.

Origin

Comics

Miles Morales's role as the first Black Spider-Man was reportedly heavily inspired by Donald Glover. Marvel writer Brian Michael Bendis discusses seeing African-American actor Donald Glover wearing in Spider-Man pajamas in an episode of the television show Community, having previously heard of the online campaign launched in an effort to secure Glover an audition for the lead role The Amazing Spider-Man (2012). According to Bendis, "He looked fantastic! I saw him in the costume and thought, 'I would like to read that book.' So I was glad I was writing that book."^[1]

While Miles is the first Black Spider-Man, the 1990s Spider-Man 2099 series marked the first Latino Spider-Man in the form of Miguel O'Hara, who also appears as an antagonist in the second Spider-Verse movie. Miles's character was created to be part of Marvel's "Ultimate" universe, which featured stories of iconic Marvel characters reimagined for a 21st-century audience.^[2] He can be seen in his first comic book appearance in the panel below, which comes from Ultimate Fallout #4 that was released in August 2011.^[8]

Television

Miles Morales makes repeat appearances in the 2012 Disney XD television show Ultimate Spider-Man in which he is initially voiced by Donald Glover and subsequently by Ogie Banks.

Spider-Verse Franchise / Movies

Miles Morales (voiced by Shameik Moore) is the lead in the animated Spider-Verse films, with the first film in the franchise, Into the Spider-Verse releasing in 2018, and Across the Spider-Verse releasing in 2023. Miles Morales's film avatar makes repeat appearances in memes, fueled by the vast popularity and critical acclaim gathered by the Spider-Verse films.

Reception

The announcement of Miles Morales's character received mixed reactions from audiences^[4][5] and generally favorable reviews from critics,^[3] however, some conservative commentators accused Marvel of catering to political correctness.^[6][7]

Related Memes

Miles Morales Says Hey

Miles Morales Says Hey or Miles Morales Flirting refers to a memorable scene from 2018 animated film Spider-Man: Into the Spider-Verse in which the protagonist Miles Morales attempts to flirt with a schoolmate by placing his hand on her shoulder and saying "Hey". In December 2018, the scene was featured in various remix videos and was adopted for an exploitable comic series.

Shocked Miles Morales

Shocked Miles Morales or Surprised Miles Morales is a viral redraw of the Shocked Black Guy meme featuring the character Miles Morales from the 2018 film Spider-Man: Into the Spider-Verse and its 2023 sequel Across the Spider-Verse. Posted by artist @raflizi26 in early June 2023, the image achieved virality as a reaction on social media in the following weeks.

The Exaggerated Swagger Of A Black Teen

The Exaggerated Swagger Of A Black Teen is a memorable quote uttered by GameSpot video game reviewer Jordan Ramée in his review of Marvel's Spider-Man: Miles Morales. In the review, while discussing the role of the character Miles Morales' Black and Puerto Rican heritage, Ramée, who is Black, says the character animations have the "exaggerated swagger of a Black teen." The line became the source of minor controversy, with some accusing Ramée of racism, with some removing the phrase from the context of the review for remix videos and image macros that troll the reviewer and GameSpot.

Yoooo wtf GameSpot?? pic.twitter.com/89sRJkwtSV

— 𝚁𝚎𝚗𝚂𝚘𝚞𝚕𝚜 (@RenRenHa) November 6, 2020

Miles and Peni Shipping

Miles and Peni Shipping refers to a fan art and shipping pairing main protagonist Miles Morales and supporting character Peni Parker from Spider-Man: Across the Spider-Verse in a relationship. A noticeable uptick in artwork of the two characters occurred around mid-June 2023, particularly on the Spanish-speaking side of Twitter.

Search Interest

External References