Do sequels count for Late-Arrival Spoiler?

Late-Arrival Spoiler wants to be about accidental spoiler creeping in via secondary material. Yet I also see it used for sequels spoiling the plot of the first installment which is unavoidable most of the time. Is this misuse or part of the flexibility of the trope?

My sense is that sequels shouldn't count, but the advertising about them does. A sequel is a continuation of the story and it's reasonable to assume somebody watching/reading/playing the sequel is at least somewhat familiar with the original, so it would be weird if established facts were treated as plot twists.

Advertising is a different story, because it's pretty plausible that somebody might not have seen the original yet.

I'd say if you have to read/watch the sequel to get the spoiler, it doesn't count. But covers, posters, titles, etc. are fair game. Not sure about back-of-book blurbs.

It shouldn't be about the innate content of a sequel, as an ongoing story HAS to assume the viewer knows earlier plot points. But it can definitely be applied to Previously on… type of stuff.

Second question: If a (dead) major character from a first movie is missing in a sequel's poster or trailer, is this assumed to be a Late-Arrival Spoiler? I'd imagine all sequels with a Sacrificial Lion in the first movie would be prone to have this happen to them involuntarily.

Example: Promo material for A Quiet Place Part II

Edited by eroock on Oct 15th 2021 at 7:08:50 AM

I would say no, if you're that familiar with the work that you start questioning that kind of evidence, it's unlikely you would qualify as "saw a few early episodes, surprised at the turn of events in a new promo."