It is perhaps fortuitous that Spider-Man: Across the Spider-Verse opens just one week after Disney's lavish-yet-feeble remake of The Little Mermaid.
One might not think of the two films as having much to do with each other, but both are attempts to diversify beloved decades-old pop-culture properties, broadening the racial mix on screen, and, in theory, making these stories relatable to a wider array of viewers in the process.
