The Spider-Verse is expanding. Issa Rae has joined the voice cast of the upcoming sequel to 2018’s Spider-Man: Into the Spider-Verse in the role of Jessica Drew, also known as Spider-Woman, per The Hollywood Reporter.

Rae’s attachment to the Spider-Verse sequel marks the first official new addition to the production’s voice cast. Shameik Moore and Hailee Steinfeld have both been confirmed to reprise their roles of Miles Morales and Spider-Gwen, respectively. The sequel is slated to hit theaters on October 7, 2022.

Sony Pictures Animation’s follow-up to Into the Spider-Verse has picked up steam in recent months, with the studio tapping a trio of directors to helm the film in April that includes Joaquim Dos Santos, Justin K. Thompson, and Soul co-director Kemp Powers.

The writing-directing duo Phil Lord and Chris Miller are teaming up with Shang-Chi and the Legend of the Ten Rings screenwriter David Callaham to pen the sequel. Lord co-wrote the original Spider-Verse film, while both he and Miller served as producers.

Rae is currently filming the fifth and final season of HBO’s Insecure, a comedy series which she co-created. In film, she most recently co-starred with Kumail Nanjiani in the comedy The Lovebirds and with LaKeith Stanfield in romance The Photograph, both released last year.

Spider-Man Into the Spider-Verse was a critical and commercial success when it released in 2018. The film grossed $373.5 million worldwide and earned Sony Pictures Animation its first Oscar win for Best Animated Feature. We named Spider-Man: Into the Spider-Verse IGN’s movie of the year in 2018, saying it “delivered a visual experience unlike any other.”

For more about Spider-Verses on the big screen, check out our collection of every Spider-Man movie spin-off currently in development.

J. Kim Murphy is a freelance entertainment writer.

(Photo by Will Heath/NBC/NBCU Photo Bank via Getty Images)

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