Spider-Man: Brand New Day

film

2026 Marvel Studios film

Revision 1 · Updated 11 Aug 20260 viewsMachine-generated draft

Overview§

Spider-Man: Brand New Day is a 2026 American superhero film based on the Marvel Comics character Spider-Man. Made by Columbia Pictures, Marvel Studios, and Pascal Pictures, and distributed by Sony Pictures Releasing, it is the 38th film in the Marvel Cinematic Universe (MCU) and the fourth film in the MCU Spider-Man film series after Spider-Man: No Way Home (2021). The film was directed by Destin Daniel Cretton, written by Chris McKenna and Erik Sommers, and stars Tom Holland as Peter Parker / Spider-Man alongside Zendaya, Sadie Sink, Jacob Batalon, Jon Bernthal, Florence Pugh, Tramell Tillman, Marisa Tomei, and Mark Ruffalo. Parker anonymously protects New York City as the hero Spider-Man and investigates a powerful new threat while his superpowers undergo a surprising and potentially dangerous evolution in the film. Sony was developing a fourth MCU Spider-Man film by August 2019, and producer Amy Pascal revealed in November 2021 that it was intended to be the first in a new trilogy starring Holland. Work on the story started that December, with Holland more involved in development than he was for the previous films. McKenna and Sommers returned as writers by February 2023, Cretton was hired to direct by October 2024, and the title—derived from the 2008 comic book storyline "Brand New Day" that reset Spider-Man's status quo—was announced in March 2025. The producers wanted Holland's Parker to be a "proper Spider-Man" for the first time, on his own and fighting street-level crime in New York City. Ahead of filming, Bernthal and Ruffalo were revealed to be reprising their MCU roles of Frank Castle / Punisher and Bruce Banner / Hulk. Filming took place from August to December 2025, with location filming in Glasgow, Scotland, and throughout England. Soundstage work occurred at Pinewood Studios in England. Spider-Man: Brand New Day premiered at the Dolby Theatre in Hollywood, Los Angeles, on July 27, 2026, and was released in the United States on July 31 as part of Phase Six of the MCU. It gained largely positive reviews from critics, with some calling it the best and most mature of the MCU Spider-Man films, and praise going to Holland's performance and the more grounded, character-driven story. The film has grossed $1.672 billion worldwide, becoming the second-highest-grossing Spider-Man film and the highest-grossing film of 2026. It also had the highest opening weekend gross for the U.S. and Canada and the second-highest worldwide.

Plot§

After Dr. Stephen Strange's magic spell makes the world forget that Peter Parker exists, he chooses to protect his girlfriend Michelle "MJ" Jones-Watson and best friend Ned Leeds by not reintroducing himself to them. Over the next four years, Parker anonymously protects New York City as its celebrated hero Spider-Man. He defeats leading criminals, including Mac Gargan and the Hand ninjas, earning the trust of police detective Jean DeWolff. Parker regularly visits his aunt May's grave. Parker stops Frank Castle from causing collateral damage in pursuit of a tank that crashes into a Department of Damage Control (DODC) prison. The driver is possessed by a telepath who body hops from person to person to help Gargan escape, but is unable to enter Parker's mind. Yelena Belova informs Parker that multiple DODC facilities have been attacked by someone searching for "V-Max". DODC director Bill Metzger, now using the Hand for security, denies knowledge of "V-Max" to Parker. Ned and MJ move back to New York after graduating from MIT. Parker encounters them and sees MJ kiss her new boyfriend. Returning home in distress, he wakes up the next day with heightened senses and organic webs in his wrists. When the telepath attacks another DODC facility with a possessed Gargan, Parker loses control of his new abilities and brutally beats Gargan, inadvertently injuring a police officer. After DeWolff tells him to regain control, Parker learns from Bruce Banner, who has an inhibitor device that uses siRNA to suppress his super-powered alter ego, the Hulk, and builds his own inhibitor. While he tests it, the telepath finds his apartment and learns around MJ from an unsent reintroduction letter he wrote to her. Parker races to get MJ to safety, but the telepath possesses and almost kills her. He rescues MJ and identifies the telepath as Jean Grey. Parker takes MJ to Castle's hideout for protection, where she helps complete his inhibitor and an universal inhibitor. Jean attacks the DODC's headquarters with a possessed Banner, whose inhibitor is removed, causing him to become the Hulk. While Parker fights the Hulk, Jean possesses Castle to open a vault hiding DODC agents. Parker calms the Hulk, then blocks Jean's powers with the universal inhibitor while Metzger tranquilizes her. Jean mentions "Sara" before losing consciousness; Metzger claims he remembers thinking of a colleague by that name while possessed by Jean. Parker returns to MJ, who has found the letter. He apologizes for not telling her and declares his love, but MJ does not remember him nor reciprocate his feelings. Despite this, she invites him to her and Ned's apartment, where a masked Parker bonds with them both. After MJ describes not remembering anything while possessed, Parker realizes Metzger lied. Parker contacts Yelena, who learns from redacted DODC files that Sara is Jean's sister, another telepath kidnapped by the DODC. Metzger experiments on Jean at a DODC facility on Roosevelt Island that Parker infiltrates. Jean deduces that "V-Max" is the weathered label on the air vent in her cell, the last thing Sara saw—and mentally communicated to Jean—before she died. Enraged, Jean creates a psionic field that extends beyond the facility, freezing everyone within it except for Parker. Jean rebuffs his apologies and attacks him using the Hand. Parker removes his inhibitor and controls his new abilities, defeating the Hand and stopping Jean from killing Metzger. He lets her enter his mind, where she experiences a memory of May saying she loves him for who he is. Parker and Jean reconcile over their respective losses. Parker senses Castle shooting at Jean from a distance and shields her, sustaining a critical injury. Jean drops the psionic field. Parker wakes up in a hospital with a remorseful Castle, who says Jean remotely kept him alive with her powers. Jean leaves the city, Metzger disappears, and the DODC comes under investigation. At May's grave, Parker vows to stop trying to do everything alone, later agreeing to let DeWolff handle a robbery while he recovers. Seeing Ned again, Parker reintroduces himself with their old handshake.

Cast§

Tom Holland as Peter Parker / Spider-Man:A former Avenger who gained spider-like abilities after being bitten by a radioactive spider. After Dr. Stephen Strange's spell at the end of the film Spider-Man: No Way Home (2021), the world has forgotten that Parker exists and he is now focused on anonymously protecting New York City from street-level crime. Director Destin Daniel Cretton said Parker is "dedicating his entire existence" to being Spider-Man. Holland felt this was an unique and "profound" superhero story to tell, and said Parker's dedication to selflessness and sacrifice would have consequences for his personal life and health. He said the film focuses on Parker's search for identity as he transitions from youth to adulthood, inspired by Holland's own journey into adulthood. In Brand New Day, Parker's superpowers start to evolve: his eyes turn fully black at times; his senses are heightened; and he gains the ability to generate organic webs from his wrists instead of relying on mechanical web-shooters, similar to Tobey Maguire's version of the character in Sam Raimi's Spider-Man film series (2002–2007). Zendaya as Michelle "MJ" Jones-Watson:Parker's former classmate and ex-girlfriend who attended the Massachusetts Institute of Technology (MIT) with Ned Leeds, with whom she shares an apartment. MJ has a new love interest in the film, causing conflicting feelings for Parker. After she felt an initial draft had made her too "normal", zendaya worked with the writers to ensure MJ's "quirks" from the previous films were retained while still maturing the character. Sadie Sink as Jean Grey:A young mutant with psionic abilities such as telekinesis, telepathy, and possession. She is searching for her sister Sara, who was taken by the Department of Damage Control (DODC), bringing her into conflict with Spider-Man. Jean's origin story is depicted differently from the comics and other live-action films, showing her learning around her powers alongside Sara instead of them manifesting in a car crash. Sink watched the previous screen adaptations of Jean as reference, but noted that this version is very different. She and Cretton focused on portraying her as a "hurt teenager" who is lonely, angry, and desperate. Jean is still learning around her abilities, does not believe she is a villain, and thinks her actions are justified. Cretton said using a young, lonely person as the villain solidified his understanding of the film's ideas. Jacob Batalon as Ned Leeds:Parker's former best friend who attended MIT with MJ. He has built an app called "Spidey Tracker" in the hopes of learning who Spider-Man is, to thank him for saving Ned and his classmates while they were in high school as seen in the previous films. Batalon said Ned and MJ live "really great full lives" despite both feeling that "something's kind of missing" since forgetting around Parker. Jon Bernthal as Frank Castle / Punisher:A vigilante who, after the brutal murder of his family, aims to fight the criminal underworld by any means necessary, no matter how lethal the results are. Castle's "psychological state" going into Brand New Day was explored in the Disney+ television special The Punisher: One Last Kill (2026), with Bernthal saying the character has essentially "sworn off human beings" at this point. United States Army Special Forces member Colton Hill was on set to assist Bernthal with his portrayal, as he did on previous projects. Holland said the dynamic between Parker and Castle evolved into a "big brother/little brother rivalry" as he and Bernthal improvised during filming. Bernthal said Castle's role in the film was a "cautionary tale" for Parker, showing where the latter could end up if he goes down a darker, more solitary path. Castle operates from a houseboat named Golden Girl, built from a converted industrial barge, which acts as both a command center and a safe house. He also uses a comic accurate version of the Punisher's Battle Van. Florence Pugh as Yelena Belova / Black Widow:A member of the New Avengers who was originally trained in the Red Room to be a Black Widow assassin. The character uses a New York bathhouse as her "office", where Spider-Man consults her and gains information that he needs for his missions. The film reveals that Belova is now known as the "Black Widow", an alias used by her sister Natasha Romanoff before her death. Tramell Tillman as William "Bill" Metzger: The head of the DODC who is policing superpowered individuals Marisa Tomei as May Parker: Peter's aunt, who was killed in No Way Home and appears through flashbacks Mark Ruffalo as Bruce Banner / Hulk:A founding Avenger and genius scientist who, because of exposure to gamma radiation, transforms into a muscular, green-skinned humanoid when enraged or agitated. Banner is now a professor at Empire State University (ESU), teaching quantum mechanics, and Peter turns to him for help regarding his evolving superpowers. Banner wears an inhibitor device to suppress the gamma radiation in his body and appear in his human form; this technology was introduced during the mid-credits scene of the film Shang-Chi and the Legend of the Ten Rings (2021) and explained in the Disney+ television series She-Hulk: Attorney at Law (2022). When the inhibitor is removed in Brand New Day, Banner regresses to his uncontrollable, destructive "Savage Hulk" persona, last seen in the film Avengers: Infinity War (2018). Also, Michael Mando reprises his MCU role of Mac Gargan / Scorpion, a criminal who was captured by Spider-Man and arrested in the film Spider-Man: Homecoming (2017), and now wears a suit of armor equipped with a mechanized scorpion-like tail. Liza Colón-Zayas portrays Jean DeWolff, a New York City Police Department (NYPD) detective; Olivia Booth-Ford plays Sara Grey, Jean's older sister who possesses the same mutant powers as her; Shannon Young Cho portrays Cindy, one of Banner's students at ESU; stunt performer and martial artist Xiaoshuang Fan plays Snow, the leader of a group of ninjas called the Hand; Naomi Watts voices E.V., Parker's AI assistant; and Keith David narrates a nature documentary on spiders that Parker watches. Eman Esfandi appears as MJ's unnamed boyfriend, identified by the film's subtitles as "Paul". Esfandi denied speculation that he was portraying Paul Rabin, one of Mary Jane Watson's boyfriends from the comics. News anchor Pat Kiernan appears as himself after doing so in several other MCU projects. Zabryna Guevara is briefly seen as Sheila Rivera, the new mayor of New York City from the Disney+ television series Daredevil: Born Again (2025–present), during an opening montage that also includes short appearances by Marvin Jones III as Lonnie Lincoln / Tombstone, a superhuman crime boss with albinism; stunt performer Aidan Kennedy as Fred Myers / Boomerang and as a member of the Hand; Billy Clements as Ramrod, a cyborg; and an unknown performer as the Tarantula. Photographs of Tony Revolori and Martin Starr as their respective MCU characters Flash Thompson and Roger Harrington are also seen.

Interest and writing delay§

Sony Pictures said in August 2019 that it would not be making future Spider-Man films with Marvel Studios and its president, Kevin Feige, after negotiations to update the production deal between the two companies failed. Sony co-made Spider-Man: Homecoming (2017) and Spider-Man: Far From Home (2019) with Marvel Studios and Amy Pascal, and was reported to be developing two more films. After a negative fan reaction, Sony and Marvel's parent company Disney returned to negotiations and announced a new agreement at the end of September, allowing Marvel Studios and Feige to make Spider-Man: No Way Home (2021) with Pascal. Peter Parker / Spider-Man star Tom Holland said No Way Home was the final film in his contract but he hoped to continue playing the character, and later added that any further Spider-Man films would differ from the previous trilogy and feature a tonal change in February 2021. Around the release of No Way Home in December 2021, Holland said he was unsure if he should continue making Spider-Man films, feeling he would have done something wrong if he were still portraying the character in his thirties. He was interested in a film being made around Miles Morales / Spider-Man instead, and added that he would be saddened to leave the franchise but he had achieved what he wanted with the character. Despite these comments, Pascal hoped to continue working with Holland on future Spider-Man films, and said work on the first film in a new trilogy was around to start. Aaron Couch at The Hollywood Reporter said Sony did not yet have official plans for further MCU Spider-Man films but hoped to continue its collaboration with Marvel Studios. Pascal hoped the partnership between Sony and Disney would last forever, and Feige promised that it would not break down again as it did during No Way Home's development. He said Holland would return in another MCU film and confirmed that Marvel Studios had begun discussing the story for the next Spider-Man film with Pascal, Sony, and Disney. By April 2022, Sony was expecting director Jon Watts to return from the previous trilogy after he exited as director of Marvel Studios's Fantastic Four film (2025). Sony Pictures CEO and chairman Tom Rothman hoped the "whole group" would return, including Watts, Holland, and Zendaya—Holland's then-girlfriend and later wife who portrays Michelle "MJ" Jones-Watson. In February 2023, Feige said writers were working on a story with "big ideas", but this was put on hold in May because of the 2023 Writers Guild of America strike. Pascal said work would resume after the strike concluded. Holland said he was in meetings around ideas and "ambitions" for the film, and these were also put on hold due to the strike. He was happy with the creative reasoning for why a fourth film should be made, but was apprehensive around the stigma surrounding fourth films. He felt they "hit a home run" with the first three films, calling No Way Home the "perfect send-off", and part of him wanted to exit the franchise on that high note and "pass the baton" to another actor. Holland only wanted to return if they could "do justice to the character".

Restarting active work§

The writers' strike ended in September 2023, and Holland confirmed in November that discussions had resumed. He had more input on the story than with the previous films because he was involved in the creative process much earlier. Holland tried to understand fan sentiment on the internet because "we make these movies for [the fans]", and said fans were interested in a more relatable film where Spider-Man does not have to save the world. He presented this "vibe" to the studios, who also believed a more character-focused approach made sense after struggling to determine how they could go "bigger" than No Way Home's multiverse-based crossover story. Holland pitched that Parker's powers should go through puberty-like changes, which the creative team liked and developed further. Another proposal was to give him a pet dog, which was rejected. Journalist Jeff Sneider reported in early 2024 that Justin Lin had been in contention to direct; that Chris McKenna and Erik Sommers had returned from the prior three films to write the script; and that filming was set to start in September or October of that year, delaying filming for the third season of Euphoria (2026) to accommodate Zendaya's schedule. Holland said they were giving the writers the time they needed to work on the script after the strike in April. Feige said in July that a script draft was being submitted "relatively soon", and Watts might not direct due to his schedule. Watts ultimately chose not to direct the film.

After further work on the script, the studios started meeting with directors. Destin Daniel Cretton was the top choice to direct by September 2024. He directed the film Shang-Chi and the Legend of the Ten Rings (2021) for Marvel Studios and signed an overall deal with them in December 2021 that included directing a sequel to that film and developing the Disney+ series Wonder Man (2026). Cretton was also hired to direct the MCU crossover film Avengers: The Kang Dynasty in July 2022, but stepped down in November 2023; The Kang Dynasty was later reworked into Avengers: Doomsday (2026). Cretton later said he did not feel like the right fit for that story. He discussed other potential projects with Feige and the fourth Spider-Man film was raised as a possibility. It was said to be the priority for Marvel Studios over a sequel to Shang-Chi and the Legend of the Ten Rings. Feige and Pascal informed Cretton of their plans for a more grounded story that focused on Parker's isolation after the events of No Way Home, and he was interested in exploring the character's loneliness. As Cretton entered talks to direct in September, Holland and Zendaya were also reportedly in talks to return, McKenna and Sommers were confirmed to be writing, and filming was expected to start in early 2025. Holland was cast in The Odyssey (2026), and Sony approved his request to delay filming by six months so he could complete that film first in October 2024. Cretton denied that he only joined the film because of this delay, but appreciated the extra development time. Holland was excited after reading a script draft with Zendaya, but he felt further work was needed, and said the script was "going in a hundred different directions" before Cretton's hiring. He confirmed that filming would now start in mid-2025, and said it would be challenging but achievable to fit into the overall plan for the MCU. At the end of October, Holland and Cretton were confirmed to have signed on and the film was scheduled for release on July 24, 2026. Justin Kuritzkes, who worked with Zendaya on the film Challengers (2024), rewrote the script with Cretton during the additional development period, after McKenna and Sommers left to work on Doomsday and Avengers: Secret Wars (2027). Cretton said Kuritzkes brought a different perspective and wrote "some of the most beautiful scenes", including the memory Parker has of his aunt May. Kuritzkes continued working with Cretton until the film was finished. Despite his contributions, only McKenna and Sommers gained final writing credits. Throughout late 2024, Sneider reported on shifting production schedules and potential changes to Zendaya's role due to her commitments to Euphoria's third season, The Odyssey, and the film Dune: Part Three (2026), which were all scheduled to be filmed in 2025. Katcy Stephan at Variety also reported that Zendaya's role in the next Spider-Man film was unclear after her November 2024 casting in The Odyssey. Sneider reported that Charlie Cox would reprise his role as Matt Murdock / Daredevil from No Way Home and other MCU media, but Cox denied his involvement in October 2025.

Pre-production§

In February 2025, filming was confirmed to start in mid-2025 in London, and the release date was pushed back a week to July 31, 2026, to distance it from the release of The Odyssey earlier that month. Sadie Sink was cast as Jean Grey, a member of the X-Men in the comics in March. She was offered the role without auditioning, having worked with Cretton on the film The Glass Castle (2017). Her character was kept secret until the film's release, and became the subject of speculation, with many believing it to be Jean. Pascal likened this to Tobey Maguire and Andrew Garfield appearing as previous versions of Spider-Man in No Way Home, which was also kept secret until that film's release and became the subject of speculation. Pascal and Cretton both said the secrecy was for the benefit of surprising fans upon the film's release. Before Jean was chosen as the villain, a more obscure comic book character had been selected but was deemed to be unsatisfying. Holland suggested another character that was turned down by Marvel, which led to Jean being considered. The creative team realized she fit the role that had already been settled on: a young telepath who has a similar journey of trauma and loss to Parker, with no mentor figures or community of support. Cretton said Jean became the "perfect" option once Sink's casting was suggested, and denied that the character was included as part of a mandate to set-up Marvel Studios' untitled X-Men film (2028).

At Sony's CinemaCon panel at the end of March 2025, Holland and Cretton announced the title as Spider-Man: Brand New Day, derived from the 2008 comic book storyline "Brand New Day". Liza Colón-Zayas joined the cast in May, as detective Jean DeWolff, while Zendaya and Jacob Batalon—who portrays Ned Leeds—were confirmed to be returning in June. Filming was set to start that August, and Jon Bernthal was revealed to be reprising his MCU role of Frank Castle / Punisher. Holland and Bernthal worked together on the film Pilgrimage (2017) and helped each other during the casting process for their respective MCU roles. Holland said it was challenging to include a R-rated character like the Punisher in Brand New Day, and they worked to ensure an "authentic" portrayal of Castle, including by finding workarounds for his profanity and violence; in one example, Spider-Man covers Castle's mouth with webs when he tries to swear. Bernthal said it was important to himself, Holland, and Cretton that the film's portrayal feel like the same character that is seen in the Disney+ television special The Punisher: One Last Kill (2026). The filmmakers were in constant discussions with the creative team behind the Disney+ series Daredevil: Born Again (2025–present), to ensure "impacts are felt" between the two projects and events line up for their shared characters, such as Castle and Sheila Rivera. Marvel Television head Brad Winderbaum said the tones of each project were different but they exist in the same world. After rumors that Mark Ruffalo would reprise his MCU role of Bruce Banner / Hulk, his casting was confirmed with the start of filming in August 2025. Couch and Borys Kit at The Hollywood Reporter said Ruffalo's role only "firmed up" as the script came together in the lead-up to filming. They noted that the previous MCU Spider-Man films each featured a leading MCU co-star as part of Sony's deal with Marvel Studios, similar to the Marvel Team-Up comic books which feature Spider-Man teaming-up with different heroes. They felt Brand New Day was "stacking the deck" by featuring both Bernthal and Ruffalo. Holland previously expressed interest in Spider-Man teaming-up with the Hulk, enjoying an image from the comics of the pair together and believing they should have a "big brother–little brother" dynamic. Bringing the two characters together on screen was a long-held dream for Feige. Also in August, Michael Mando was set to reprise his role as Mac Gargan / Scorpion from Homecoming, after up on that film's mid-credits scene.

Story§

Holland and Cretton described Brand New Day as the start of a new chapter for Parker that would have a more mature tone than the previous trilogy. Feige said those films explore an expanded version of the first act of Sam Raimi's film Spider-Man (2002), which shows Maguire's Peter Parker in high school. This story culminates at the end of No Way Home with Holland's Parker living on his own, which Feige said was a promise that audiences would see him as a "proper Spider-Man" for the first time, with "classic elements" from the comics and Spider-Man fighting street-level crime rather than dealing with "world-ending events". Marvel wanted to include other street-level heroes that Holland's Spider-Man had not interacted with before, such as the Punisher. Unlike the previous trilogy, which used each film's leading MCU co-star as a mentor for Parker, Brand New Day depicts him having more of a coworker relationship with the supporting characters. McKenna and Sommers said this was part of Parker growing up and no longer looking to more experienced heroes for guidance. No Way Home ends with Dr. Stephen Strange casting a spell to make the world forget that Parker exists. MJ and Ned remember their interactions with Spider-Man but not who he is. Cretton said there were many discussions around the mechanics of the spell, and there were set rules that they followed such as not showing any pictures that Parker should appear in. He believed the exact mechanics were not as important as the key idea that Parker had been erased from people's memories. Brand New Day is set four years after the spell was cast, allowing the characters to grow up since No Way Home. Holland said Parker is in "the darkest chapter of his life" at the start of Brand New Day, fully dedicating himself to being Spider-Man and neglecting his civilian life to suppress the trauma of being forgotten. He does not realize that who he is under the mask is what makes him "the hero that [fans] love". Holland said Parker's inability to balance professional and personal life was one of the film's core themes, and an important message for young people in the digital age. His trauma and overworking trigger an evolution in his superpowers, including gaining the ability to shoot organic webs from his wrists. The filmmakers drew inspiration for this from the 2005–2006 comic book storyline "The Other". Cretton said it is a frightening transformation and Parker initially believes he is becoming a monster, but ultimately learns to accept the changes. Holland said the "brand new day" in the title describes the end of the film. Brand New Day takes place before Doomsday, which was originally scheduled to be released first. Cretton said its delay to December 2026 allowed Brand New Day to stand alone and include elements that would not have been possible if it came after Doomsday. Pascal said the Punisher and the Hulk were included because they face similar problems to Parker, with McKenna adding that Banner was the perfect character to help Parker with his mutating powers. MCU character Yelena Belova / Black Widow was featured in the script from the first draft, including her introduction in a New York bathhouse. The writers enjoyed how she was "putting [Parker] on his heels" in the scene, which depicts the two characters naked or partially clothed. The sexual undertones of this scene were discussed, and the creative team decided it felt right for a more grown-up Spider-Man. The creative team wanted Parker to realistically be able to the defeat the film's minor villains, combining Spider-Man antagonists with lesser-known ones, within a day or two. They include Tombstone, Boomerang, Tarantula, Ramrod, and the Hand ninjas. The Hand are revealed to have been leaderless since their last MCU appearance in Marvel's Netflix television series. Paste-Pot Pete was considered, while Shocker does not appear but Parker uses his gauntlet from Homecoming to fight the Hulk. Cretton said there were discussions around many other characters being added, including Shang-Chi and the Legend of the Ten Rings protagonist Xu Shang-Chi.

Design§

Costume designer Sanja Milkovic Hays returned from No Way Home and other MCU films, and production designer Charles Wood also returned from previous MCU media. Holland was involved in designing the new Spider-Man suit, focusing on the story reasons for why it looks the way it does. It is similar to the suit that was introduced at the end of No Way Home, which was made by Holland's Parker after his interactions with Maguire's and Garfield's Spider-Men in that film. The script for No Way Home explains that Parker took inspiration from the suits worn by those character when designing his own. Holland liked the idea of Parker "trying to be his big brothers, that he looks up to them and sees little details on their suits that he thinks are really cool", especially now that he is no longer connected to the Avengers and is making his own suit. He tried on costumes originally made for Maguire and Garfield, and researched which details fans liked most around those suits. The new design has a tighter-fitting mask to give Holland's Parker a more mature silhouette, with proportions that evoke artist John Romita Sr.'s portrayal of Spider-Man. The belt was positioned lower to build the illusion of a longer torso, and the boots were also designed to make the legs look longer. Holland said the suit was constructed in a completely different way from his previous costumes which made it comfier and more flexible. Because Parker no longer has access to Tony Stark's money and resources, he builds his own technology. This includes an artificial intelligence (AI) called E.V., voiced by Naomi Watts who worked with Holland on the film The Impossible (2012); and a homemade "Fabricator", a combination of a sewing machine and a 3D printer that builds and repairs his suit. Castle's appearance draws inspiration from several Punisher comic books, including the cover of The Punisher War Journal #15. The creative team experimented with several versions of the Punisher's skull emblem before settling on a design that evoked artist John Buscema's look. The Hulk was given a more frightening appearance, inspired by his early comic book stories, with Ruffalo's facial features becoming less recognizable during the transformation to emphasize the character's monstrous nature. The filmmakers considered using the Hulk's original gray look from the comics, dubbed "Gray Hulk", before deciding that the audience should see the more familiar green "Savage Hulk". The tank seen in the film features a red devil logo that Bradley Russell of Total Film compared to the symbol for Mister Negative's Inner Demons gang from the comics. Prop modeler William Osborne said Wood requested several symbols on the tank, including the devil and a panther.

Filming§

Principal photography started on August 3, 2025, in Glasgow, Scotland, under the working title Blue Oasis, with Brett Pawlak returning as cinematographer from many of Cretton's previous films. Holland was inspired by director Christopher Nolan's efficient approach on The Odyssey and wanted to bring a similar work ethic to Brand New Day, insisting that they have each day's filming planned ahead of time, and that practical stunts be performed whenever possible. Peng Zhang coordinated the fight sequences, returning from Shang-Chi and the Legend of the Ten Rings. Some stunts were inspired by the Marvel's Spider-Man video game series, including its finishing moves. The production team analyzed footage of wingsuit flyers and parkour athletes as reference for the scenes where Spider-Man swings on his webs. Dance choreographer Nathan Kim designed the body movements for when Jean is body hopping.

Production was scheduled for around two weeks throughout Glasgow city centre—including Merchant City, George Square, and Trongate—for scenes set in New York, and one of the film's action set pieces. Holland was excited to start principal photography with location shooting, returning to the feeling of making Homecoming after production on No Way Home was restricted to soundstages due to shifts in the film industry caused by the COVID-19 pandemic. He was glad that fans could experience the start of filming with the cast and crew. The production team recreated the New York City borough of Queens both on the streets of Glasgow and on sets at Pinewood Studios in Buckinghamshire, England. For the latter, they built the equivalent of around three city blocks, basing the design of the buildings on carefully selected areas near Queensboro Bridge and focusing on rooftops rather than street-level locations. Bernthal was set to film his scenes back-to-back with One Last Kill, which finished filming in early August 2025. Filming for Brand New Day took place at Brookwood Cemetery in Surrey, England, on August 7, for scenes of Parker visiting May's grave. These were some of the first non-stunt scenes filmed. After filming the cemetery shots they needed for the opening montage, Cretton asked Holland to do another take that could be used for the end of the film. Holland improvised a line around deciding not to go it alone anymore, which Cretton kept in the film. He said this became their "north star", distilling the film to a core idea that they could work backward from. Tramell Tillman joined the cast at the end of August, as Bill Metzger, the head of the Department of Damage Control (DODC). Soundstage work took place at Pinewood for most of September. For the scene where Parker is bonding with Ned, Holland asked to stop filming because it did not feel organic and he felt it needed to be reworked; filming was stopped for the day and the actors all contributed ideas before Cretton and Kuritzkes rewrote the scene. At the start of September, Ruffalo said he had still not seen a script. Sink did not get a script until she arrived in London for filming, which took place in the city's Battersea Park between early and mid-September. On September 19, Holland suffered a mild concussion while filming a stunt on the Pinewood set. Filming at Pinewood was later paused until September 29 while Holland recovered. Also in late September 2025, Marvin Jones III was revealed to be portraying Lonnie Lincoln / Tombstone after voicing a version of the character in Sony's animated film Spider-Man: Into the Spider-Verse (2018). Filming took place at Fanum House in Basingstoke, England, with one of Holland's stunt doubles. Filming at Basingstoke continued in early October, with Holland joining the filming there, along with Mando. Later that month, Holland, Sink, and Ruffalo were seen filming at Senate House in London. In early November, filming took place at Ravenscourt Park in London. Throughout November, filming took place at HM Prison Dorchester in Dorchester, England. Cretton announced on December 19, 2025, that filming had wrapped. Brand New Day is the first film to have particular sequences filmed specifically for ScreenX, with its manufacturer CJ 4DPlex coming to set to shoot the footage that would appear on ScreenX's side screens. The film was shot in the 2.39:1 aspect ratio, with select sequences shot for IMAX. Cretton designed several shots that recreate comic book covers or images, including Spider-Man swinging with a civilian from the character's debut comic Amazing Fantasy vol. 1 #15 (August 1962); Spider-Man fighting Tarantula from The Amazing Spider-Man vol. 1 #134 (July 1974); Spider-Man dodging Ramrod from The Amazing Spider-Man vol. 1 #221 (July 1981); Tombstone holding Spider-Man from the side of a building from The Spectacular Spider-Man vol. 1 #142 (May 1988); guns aimed at Spider-Man and the Punisher from The Punisher War Journal vol. 1 #15 (December 1989); Spider-Man being attacked by Boomerang from The Amazing Spider-Man vol. 1 #345 (March 1991); Scorpion's mechanical tail striking Spider-Man from Spider-Man Adventures #2 (November 1994); Spider-Man facing members of the Hand, based on The New Avengers vol. 1 #27 (February 2007) which shows Ronin facing the organization; and Castle carrying an injured Spider-Man from Civil War vol. 1 #5 (February 2006). Many of these shots appear in the opening montage that shows what Parker has since been doing since the end of No Way Home. Cretton enjoyed imaging what happens before or after each of the comic images. Some of the shots were filmed at 420 frames per second, and Cretton said it was "virtually impossible" for an actor to perform at that rate. The shot of Spider-Man and the Hand required at least 65 takes. In contrast, Holland achieved the desired pose for the Scorpion shot in two or three takes.

Post-production§

In January 2026, Justin Kroll from Deadline Hollywood reported that Feige had been solely focused on the production of Doomsday and Secret Wars for the last year, and had let Pascal handle much of the production for Brand New Day. Cretton disputed this, saying Feige had been busy but he had not deprioritized Brand New Day. Cretton said Feige, Pascal, and Rothman were all involved in the film's production. Also to Feige and Pascal, other producers on the film included frequent Spider-Man film producer Avi Arad and Pascal's producing partner Rachel O'Connor. The first trailer was released in March 2026, publicly revealing the Hand's return from the Marvel Netflix series; Zabryna Guevara reprising her role as Sheila Rivera from Born Again for a shot in which her character hands Spider-Man the key to New York City; Eman Esfandi as a new love interest for MJ; and Keith David as the narrator of a nature documentary around spiders. Feige indicated in mid-July that Florence Pugh would reprise her MCU role of Yelena Belova ahead of her appearance in Doomsday, which was confirmed at the end of the month, when Rosario Dawson revealed that she reprised her role as Claire Temple from Marvel's Netflix series for a scene that had been cut. It showed her meeting Parker at a hospital after he fights Scorpion and before he seeks advice from Banner. Also, Marisa Tomei reprised her MCU role as Aunt May. In April 2026, Holland said additional photography was taking place in London to add more humor and incorporate a villain plotline in a new way. He said the film already worked and they were just putting "icing on the cake". Nat Sanders, Gina Sansom, and Harry Yoon edited Brand New Day. Cretton worked with Sanders and Yoon on Shang-Chi and the Legend of the Ten Rings, and with Sansom on Wonder Man. The first assembly cut was around 170 to 180 minutes, which was edited into a final cut of around 144 minutes without removing any scenes. Holland said there was a cut that was influenced by test screening responses and "totally didn't work". Cretton said this version still performed well in screenings and was not dissimilar to the theatrical release, but had been "overcut". The film's version of Marvel Studios' opening logo explains the impact of Strange's spell on MJ and Ned's memories. It includes scenes from the previous MCU Spider-Man films where Parker is with those characters, and shows him disappearing from the footage. The main-on-end credits depict casual images of New York City captured by director Lloyd Lee Choi for the film. Cretton said this simple approach to the credits tied in with the film's theme around connection. After the credits, Ned's "Spidey Tracker" app is seen detecting a Spider-Man sighting away from Earth. Jerome Chen was the visual effects supervisor and David Bosco was the visual effects producer. Visual effects were provided by Sony Pictures Imageworks, Framestore, Industrial Light & Magic (ILM), Rise FX, Cantina Creative, Soho VFX, and SDFX Studios.

Music§

Michael Giacchino was confirmed in December 2025 to be returning as composer from the previous MCU Spider-Man films. He removed some musical notes from his Spider-Man theme to represent the pieces of Parker's life that he has lost. A soundtrack album was released by Sony Classical on July 31, 2026. Ned's "Spidey Tracker" app uses the theme song from the animated series Spider-Man (1967–1970).

Marketing§

Cretton discussed the film at Sony's CinemaCon panel in March 2025, where Holland appeared via a video message to announce the title. Commentators noted the appropriateness of the title considering the "Brand New Day" comic book storyline explores a reset for Spider-Man after the events of the 2007–2008 "One More Day" storyline. There was speculation around what impact the events of Doomsday would have on the film, and whether specific elements from "Brand New Day" would be adapted such as having Parker make a deal with Mephisto to resurrect Aunt May. Kevin Erdmann of Screen Rant said the "One More Day" and "Brand New Day" storylines were controversial, in part because they reverted Spider-Man's character growth and relationships. He felt the film could follow a similar storyline without undoing the character growth.

On August 1, 2025—known as "Spider-Man Day"—Sony released an eight-second teaser showing glimpses of the new Spider-Man costume, featuring raised webbing similar to Maguire's suits, and the same faint hexagonal design on the red-and-blue fabric from Holland's previous suits. A 22-second teaser giving a full view of Holland in costume, directed by his brother Harry, was released the next day. Justin Carter at Gizmodo said the biggest change other than the raised webbing was the larger spider logo on the chest. Carter also noted the use of Giacchino's MCU Spider-Man theme in the teaser. Jordan Moreau at Variety said the full costume was closer to the comics than Holland's previous costumes, while McKinley Franklin of The Hollywood Reporter said it resembled the suits worn by Maguire and Garfield. On August 10, Sony released a behind-the-scenes video recapping the first day of filming. Variety's Jack Dunn felt Sony and Marvel had been generous with the amount of looks at the film so far. The first trailer was released on March 18, 2026. Sony partnered with fans and content creators to release short clips of the trailer on the previous day. Tom Bacon at ComicBook.com compared this release strategy to a cast announcement livestream that Marvel Studios used for Doomsday the prior year, noting how both were intended to "maximize engagement" throughout the day. Rebecah Jacobs at Men's Journal and Kaitlyn Booth of Bleeding Cool both described the rollout as a scavenger hunt. Commentators noted that the footage includes the film's homage to the cover of Amazing Fantasy #15, and revealed that Parker's superpowers are mutating to include organic web shooters and black eyes. Some believed this was an adaptation of "The Other" or "The Six Arms Saga" from The Amazing Spider-Man vol. 1 #100–102 (1971). Sony said the trailer became the most-viewed ever, with 718.6 million views in 24 hours according to market research firm WaveMetrix. It surpassed the record for a film trailer, Deadpool & Wolverine's 365 million views, in eight hours, and surpassed the overall 24-hour record set by the video game Grand Theft Auto VI (2026). WaveMetrix further reported that the trailer surpassed 1.1 billion views within four days, the first film trailer to cross that threshold. Rothman and Holland introduced footage from the film at CinemaCon in April 2026. A second trailer was released on June 17, which gave a better understanding of the film's plot according to Casey Loving at TheWrap. He highlighted the return of Banner's uncontrollable "Savage Hulk" persona, and noted the apparent narration from Marisa Tomei's May Parker. Commentators discussed the appearance of a mysterious hooded figure in the trailer, whom they believed to be Sink's character. WaveMetrix reported that, in one week, the second trailer gathered 590.8 million views, becoming the second most-viewed trailer of all time. Sony screened the first 18 minutes of the film at the CineEurope convention later that month. A final trailer was released on July 21. It largely contained footage from the three previous MCU Spider-Man films, which Germain Lussier from Gizmodo said worked well to set up the emotional stakes of Brand New Day. Bernthal presented a clip from the film at the 2026 San Diego Comic-Con in late July, showing Spider-Man and the Punisher fighting the Hulk.

The promotional campaign included $309 million worth of "media value" from promotional partners, the most ever for a film surpassing the $288 million for Far From Home, with Little Caesars and McDonald's providing the most value. Sony partnered with 165 brands, with Little Caesars, Samsung, Asus, BMW (with their BMW iX3 and 5 Series Sedan), and Liquid I.V. receiving promotional placement within the film. On June 17, 2026, Samsung launched an online interactive fan experience of the Spidey Tracker, allowing fans to follow updates for the film and submit real-world Spider-Man sightings. On June 27, Sony and Little Caesars opened a replica of Parker's apartment as a fan experience in Greenpoint, Brooklyn. The space featured Easter eggs from the film, including a first look at Jones as Tombstone and the reveal of Colón-Zayas's role, and promoted Little Caesars's Spider-Man-inspired "Webberoni" Pizza. A Zillow listing was also built for the apartment. The experience gained a "massive" 20,000 reservations to attend. At the end of June 2026, Sony released a promotional video in conjunction with the start of the 2026 FIFA World Cup knockout stage which saw Argentina national football team player Lionel Messi meeting Parker in a café while searching for Spider-Man using the Spidey Tracker app. Commercials for Samsung and Liquid I.V., both featuring Batalon as Ned alongside Spider-Man, were released in mid-July. The Samsung commercial, promoting the eighth Galaxy Z series, was directed by Kasra Farahani with cinematography by Pawlak, while the Liquid I.V. commercial promoted the brand's limited-release flavors built for the film. Batalon, in character as Ned, and Spider-Man appeared at Samsung's July 2026 Galaxy Unpacked event in London to further promote the phones. A commercial for Leading League Baseball (MLB) showed Spider-Man interacting with Juan Soto of the New York Mets and the team's mascot, Mr. Met, at Citi Field. The Spider-Man suit from Brand New Day, referred to as the "Fresh Start" suit, was added as a free update for the video game Marvel's Spider-Man 2 (2023) on July 28, with skins and accessories related to the film also being added to the video game Fortnite Battle Royale (2017). Brand New Day also partnered with Google for its Street View and Search, and TikTok's Spotlight program in 48 international markets. It had a social media reach of 2.86 billion according to social media analytics firm RelishMix, which was the most ever recorded, surpassing the 2.4 billion of Avengers: Endgame (2019) by the film's release.

Theatrical§

Spider-Man: Brand New Day premiered at the Dolby Theatre in Hollywood, Los Angeles, on July 27, 2026. Distributed by Sony Pictures Releasing, the film started its international release on July 29, including in the United Kingdom, opening in most its markets over the next two days into the weekend. In the United States, early screenings occurred for Amazon Prime members on July 29, before opening on July 31 in 4,487 theaters. It was released in ScreenX, being the first film to be specifically shot for that format and marketed under the "Shot for ScreenX" program, along with RealD 3D, D-Box, Dolby Cinema, and 4DX. It was also initially released in IMAX in select international markets, such as China, Japan, and Korea. Brand New Day was previously scheduled for release on July 24 but was pushed back a week so it would be released two weeks after The Odyssey instead of one, avoiding contention for most IMAX screens, which The Odyssey had exclusively for four weeks. After Brand New Day's opening weekend, it was announced that the film would become available in IMAX globally starting August 6, sharing digital screens with The Odyssey while that film retained exclusive use of IMAX's 70 mm theaters. Disney had intended to release an unspecified Marvel Studios film on that initial July date, but removed this from their release schedule in August 2024, which allowed Sony to schedule Brand New Day then. It is part of Phase Six of the MCU.

Home media§

In April 2021, Sony signed deals with Netflix and Disney for the rights to their 2022 to 2026 film slate, after the films's theatrical and home media windows. Netflix signed for exclusive "pay 1 window" streaming rights, which is typically an 18-month window and included future Spider-Man films after No Way Home. Disney signed for "pay 2 window" rights for the films, which would be streamed on Disney+ and Hulu along with broadcast on Disney's linear television networks. Sony and Netflix announced a new agreement giving Netflix "pay 1 window" rights globally, an increase from just the United States, Germany, and Southeast Asia in the previous deal in January 2026. The new agreement would start later in 2026 as territory rights become available, before being fully in effect in early 2029.