Spider told by the Roman poet Ovid in his "Metamorphoses", Arachne was a Lydian girl who challenged the goddess Athena to a weaving contest. Arachne won, but Athena destroyed her tapestry out of jealousy, causing Arachne to hang herself. In an act of mercy, Athena brought Arachne back to life as the first spider. Stories about the trickster-spider Anansi are prominent in the folk traditions of the Asante people of Ghana. In some cultures, spiders have symbolized patience due to their hunting technique of setting webs and waiting for prey, as well as mischief and malice due to their venomous bites.
Spider-Man: Into the Spider-Verse from the 2002 film "Spider-Man" was used for a flashback scene involving the character Ben Parker. Spider-Man co-creator Stan Lee appears in a posthumous cameo, as a character named "Stan" who gives a Spider-Man costume to Morales. It was important to Lord and Miller to give Lee a bigger moment in the film rather than just a passing cameo because they felt he was "so integral to the spirit of this movie". They described the role as "extra meaningful" following Lee's death in November 2018. Cameos during the film's post-credits scene include Oscar Isaac as Miguel O'Hara / Spider-Man 2099