Nicolas Cage Officially Seals the Fate of Spider-Noir Season 2

Acclaimed actor Nicolas Cage, who starred as Ben Reilly in Amazon Prime Video’s Spider-Noir, has officially closed the doors on season 2 of the Amazon show, and that’s not all.

The actor went as far as to publicly drag Amazon through the mud by revealing that he refused to sign the AI waiver (which allowed Amazon to use his likeness, voice, and style for AI-generated content). During his talks at the New York Comic-Con (via Variety), Cage revealed that he will not be working with Amazon MGM Studios again because he is not an AI-friendly actor.

Amazon is a very AI friendly company to the tune of 50 billion dollars invested to OpenAI. I am not an AI friendly actor. I didn’t sign the waiver to let them use AI on Spider-Noir. It’s kind of like I’m probably not going to be working with that studio again.

Hence, this seals the fate of the entire series, as Cage’s statements have quite literally sounded the death knell on the future of Spider-Noir for Amazon MGM Studios. This statement presents a new angle to the cancellation of the franchise, which was announced almost a month before Cage’s interview.

Nicolas Cage Calls Out Prime Video For Allegedly Using AI In Spider-Noir

Nicolas Cage in a still from Spider-Noir | Credits: Amazon MGM Studios

Although Cage refused to sign the AI waiver deal, it hasn’t been confirmed whether AI was used in the making of Amazon Prime Video’s Spider-Noir. Even if AI was allegedly used in the making of the series, it’s still uncertain to what extent it was used. Although official credits cite that the series was made with a human VFX team, the very talk of using AI for likeness raises bigger questions in the industry.

Nicolas Cage was quite bold and honest in calling out Amazon MGM Studios and even stated that he would never work with them again. In fact, he praised the Gen-Z filmmakers like Backrooms director Kane Parsons, and revealed that he would want to work with these types of directors who do “it from scratch and by hand”.

The news of Cage refusing to sign the AI waiver also points to the fact that Amazon struck a massive partnership with OpenAI back in February to expand the company’s use of AWS and build custom AI models. Naturally, the conversations are pointing to a point where Prime Video might just have allegedly used AI in the past, but Nicolas Cage is not interested.

Will Nicolas Cage Ever Voice The Character of Spider-Noir Again?

Nicolas Cage voiced the role of Spider-Noir in Spider-Man: Into the Spider-Verse | Credits: Columbia Pictures

Thankfully, the character of Spider-Noir isn’t owned by Amazon MGM Studios; rather, it is owned by Sony and was predominantly featured in the animated films Spider-Man: Into the Spider-Verse and Spider-Man: Across the Spider-Verse. Therefore, Nicolas Cage’s statements about not working with the studio again don’t mean he will never portray the role of Spider-Noir again.

In fact, the actor hasn’t said anything about his reprisal of Spider-Noir in the upcoming animated Sony flick, Spider-Man: Beyond the Spider-Verse. Naturally, it is safe to say that Cage will be voicing the role again in 2027, as of this moment. On the other hand, Prime Video canceled the second season of Spider-Noir almost a month before Cage’s comments about the AI waiver. Although they didn’t cite an official reason behind the decision, with fans concluding budget and viewership issues are the driving factor, there could be more to the live-action series than meets the eye.

Do you think studios should use AI to recreate actors’ likenesses? Let us know your thoughts in the comments below.

Spider-Noir is available to stream on Prime Video.