After years of multiverse chaos and world-ending threats, the MCU’s Spider-Man is heading back to the streets. And this time, he’s teaming up with the Punisher. Marvel Studios President Kevin Feige confirmed that Spider-Man: Brand New Day will bring Tom Holland’s Peter Parker into a more grounded story, with Jon Bernthal returning as Frank Castle.
A “Proper Spider-Man” Era
During a roundtable for Fantastic Four, Feige spoke with Collider and explained that the new film picks up where No Way Home left off. Peter is now alone, forgotten by everyone, living in a small apartment and sewing his own suit. According to Feige, this is the first time we’re seeing a “proper Spider-Man” in the MCU. One who’s focused on helping his city and fighting street-level crime.
This shift in tone also opens the door for Peter to cross paths with other grounded Marvel characters. Feige pointed to Frank Castle as a standout. “I love that The Punisher started in a Spider-Man comic,” he said. He also noted that director Destin Daniel Cretton has a wall of comic covers in the art department that are being used to guide the look and feel of the movie.
Back to Basics
Brand New Day is scheduled to release on July 31, 2026, with Cretton directing. The title references the 2008 comic arc where Peter makes a deal with Mephisto to erase his marriage and secret identity. While it’s unclear if Mephisto will appear, the core idea of Peter starting fresh and living in anonymity is now a key part of the MCU’s version of the character.
The final scenes of No Way Home showed Peter choosing a path of sacrifice, leaving MJ and Ned behind to protect them. With a homemade suit and a police scanner on his desk, it was a moment straight out of the early comics. That same stripped-down, street-level tone will carry through in Brand New Day.
Bringing the Punisher into the mix adds an edge. Frank Castle’s harsh methods will no doubt clash with Peter’s moral code, setting up one of the more compelling pairings in the MCU so far.
Spider-Man: Brand New Day begins filming soon.
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