Spider-Man 2 Actors Share Post-Release Thoughts at Twin Cities Con 2023

Yuri Lowenthal, Nadji Jeter, and Tony Todd Excited About the Release

We recently had an awesome opportunity. Thanks to a media badge at Twin Cities Con, Forever Classic Games interviewed several guests, including voice actors, actors, and people who do a little of everything. The most immediately relevant conversations we captured at the event were with the actors behind core characters in Marvel’s Spider-Man 2, the PS5 blockbuster from Insomniac Games. We spoke with Yuri Lowenthal (Peter Parker), Nadji Jeter (Miles Morales), and Tony Todd (Venom), who all shared insight into their thoughts shortly after the release of a game that will likely define the PS5 library. 

Each interview was conducted in the meet and greet area where Twin Cities Con guests were stationed throughout the weekend. By waiting in line or catching a lull, we were graciously given a few minutes to ask a few questions. We also purchased autographs from each, creating an incredible way to remember the event. The full interviews can be found on our podcast feed, which can also be found by searching for The Forever Classic Podcast. 

Warning, there may be a slight spoiler or two for Marvel’s Spider-Man 2 in the audio interviews. 

Tony Todd was the first of the three we spoke with, a newcomer to the Spider-Man game franchise who became an instant fan-favorite in his portrayal of Venom. Todd also had a role in Half-Life: Alyx, Call of Duty: Black Ops II, Star Trek Online, and a few other games but his voice is probably most known through his work as Darkseid in animated films. Yet, many of his fans cite his iconic instances in horror films, most notably as the titular character in The Candyman series. Venom was seemingly a perfect character for Todd, who studied for the role through a deep dive into comics. 

“I went to my favorite comic book store in L.A. called Golden Apple and I talked to the manager and said ‘Give me your best ten collector’s editions of Venom’ … and I looked at that for source.” Todd also shared that he watched the recent film where Tom Hardy played the monstrous anti-hero; Todd was excited to cross paths with Hardy as the two worked together in 2006’s Minotaur.

Revealed through a teaser at the 2021 PlayStation Showcase event, Todd’s appearance as Venom had a ton of fans roaring with excitement. When Todd’s guttural tone ripped through the scene with the well-known line “We are Venom” he recounted that “the whole comic world lit up with joy.”

The casting choice and the time it took to develop the game seem to have paid off as it has already sold over 5 million copies in less than two weeks with glowing reviews from critics.  

We later spoke to Nadji Jeter who has been voicing Miles Morales since 2017, first in an animated Spider-Man series, later reprising the role in a larger fashion (thanks to the inclusion of motion capture) in the first Marvel’s Spider-Man a year later. From there, Jeter starred as the lead for the midquel release that offered a taste of what the PS5 could bring to the web-slinging adventure in Marvel's Spider-Man: Miles Morales. Although, Jeter has been a part of PlayStation’s biggest games for a while as he was the voice of Sam in The Last of US in 2013. Outside of games, Jeter can be found in Grey’s Anatomy, Everybody Hates Chris, and Grown Ups, among others. 

When it comes to being a part of one of the most successful PlayStation titles and playing such an important character to millions the world over, Jeter said, “It is an absolute honor. We’re bringing a lot of impactful messages and scenes to the world and everyone is relating to Miles in their own way and Spider-Man in their own way. It’s just a crazy feeling to be a part of something so impactful, good for the soul, and good for everybody.”

Lastly, we caught Yuri Lowenthal who has voiced a tremendous amount of characters from Sasuke in Naruto to Simone in Gurren Lagann to Ben Tennyson in Ben 10 to Peter Parker in the game that started a whole new journey for Insomniac and PlayStation, Marvel’s Spider-Man appearing first on PS4. 

“As much as I grew up as a kid reading comic books, watching movies, and loving superheroes, it feels like a dream that I have yet to wake up from,” he told us when asked what it feels like to be such a large part of the American icon’s story, “Yet sometimes I feel the weight of it. I’m like ‘Oh don’t mess this up! It’s Spider-Man for God’s sake!’ but honestly I wouldn’t trade it for anything. It’s the best.” 

What struck us most in each of these interviews was how humble, honored, and graceful each cast member held themselves. They also showed off a fun-inducing chemistry during a reunion Q&A panel, which might be one of the rare times we get to see all three in the same space in public though I’m sure other events may get a similar panel. Through the human element found in these games — and the celebratory nature of representation found in the animated Spider-Verse films — one of the throughlines in Spider-Man is that anyone can be a hero. Anyone can “put on the mask” and do good in their community. Spider-Man stories and media are for anyone and everyone. During the panel, this is something that all three actors appeared to be proud to contribute to the fandom. 

“Thank you all for wearing the mask so well,” concluded Lowenthal at the end of the panel. 

Catch the full interviews on our podcast feed. 

Learn more about Twin Cities Con and Marvel’s Spider-Man 2 on the official websites. Screenshots were used courtesy of official press kits and photos were taken by Forever Classic Games. 

To the actors, thank you kindly for allowing us to interview you at this event. Every conversation was truly a pleasure. Keep up with them in the links below:

Yuri Lowenthal: https://linktr.ee/YuriLowenthal 

Nadji Jeter: https://twitter.com/NajJeter, https://www.instagram.com/najjito 

Tony Todd: https://twitter.com/TonyTodd54, https://www.instagram.com/tonytoddofficial