Spider-Verse director was about to thank Stan Lee when Oscars speech was cut off

The co-director of Spider-Man: Into The Spider-Verse has revealed he was about to pay tribute to the superhero’s creators when his Oscars acceptance speech was cut short.

Bob Persichetti was on stage with co-directors Rodney Rothman and Peter Ramsey, as well as the movie’s stars, when they ran out of time during the speech for best animated feature.

Speaking backstage, Persichetti said he was about to thank Stan Lee and Steve Ditko, the Spider-Man co-creators, for inspiring the filmmakers.

Lee, the founder of Marvel, died in November aged 95 while Ditko passed away in June at the age of 90.

Persichetti said: “We were just going to thank Stan Lee and Steve Ditko for inspiring this whole thing and for being a force of believing that all of us, human beings, have the potential, the capacity, to be heroes.”

He said from “day one” the filmmakers wanted the movie to “challenge the audience to believe in themselves and believe in their neighbour and really be positive and make a difference in the world”.

Spider-Man’s Oscar win was a first for all three directors, while Ramsey became the first African American to win in the best animated feature category. The award was first presented in 2001.

Starring Shameik Moore as Afro-Latino teenager Miles Morales, Into The Spider-Verse features several different versions of the web-slinging superhero.

The film was celebrated for its diversity for having a non-white Spider-Man take centre stage.

Ramsey said: “Anyone can wear the mask; everyone is powerful and everyone is necessary, and that is the spirit of the movie.”

Spider-Man: Into The Spider-Verse won ahead of nominees including Pixar’s Incredibles 2, Disney’s Ralph Breaks the Internet, Isle of Dogs and Mirai.