“With great power there must also come – great responsibility!”
One of the most famous lines and most important lessons, which was delivered by Aunt May in Spider-Man: No Way Home (2021). Yet, for the first time in the Marvel Cinematic Universe (MCU), it felt like we had a crew that took the line to heart. The end result: Spider-Man: Brand New Day (2026).
Spider-Man: Brand New Day (2026), aka Spider-Man: BND, released on July 31, 2026. The film stars Tom Holland as Peter Parker/Spider-Man, Zendaya as Michelle “MJ” Jones-Watson, Jon Bernthal as Frank Castle/The Punisher, Mark Ruffalo as Bruce Banner/The Hulk, and Sadie Sink as a previously undisclosed character.
The film marks Holland’s seventh appearance as the titular character and his fourth solo movie. It also replaced Jon Watts, who directed the “Home” trilogy, with Destin Daniel Cretton, best known for The Glass Castle (2017), as well as other MCU additions in Shang-Chi and the Legend of the Ten Rings (2021). He was also credited as an executive producer for the recently cancelled Wonder Man (2026).
Early behind-the-scenes (BTS) footage and sneak peeks have had fans looking forward to this film since its first day of shooting, so the expectations have been high since the beginning. The promotion worked, and it landed a big payday for Marvel and Sony Pictures, bringing in around $932 million for opening weekend in the global box office, according to The Hollywood Reporter. This performance brings the film in close behind Avengers: Endgame (2019), which opened with $1.2 billion.
Did the film live up to the hype? We went to the theater opening weekend to find out.
Comics come to life
At the end of Spider-Man: No Way Home (2021), the fans were given a look at Peter Parker’s brand new suit, inspired by designs from meeting Peter 2 and Peter 3. It already looked like the next phase of Peter Parker’s journey in the MCU was going to be a big one. The designers opting to make the suit practical, rather than a post-production CGI fest, has been one of the greatest decisions in the history of the MCU.
Spider-Man is my all-time favorite character. Not only in the MCU, but out of everything: TV, film, comic book, videogame, etc. It doesn’t make me an expert by any means, but I’m looking at how he’s presented in these things pretty critically. This iteration of the character may be one of the best we’ve seen yet. Prior to this, I would have said my favorite version appears in Marvel’s Spider-Man Remastered, but this addition gives it some competition.
This version of Peter Parker is how fans remember him. He’s smart, broke, and struggling to accomplish it all. He’s quippy without being annoying, and he’s meaning well but making mistakes along the way, some quite costly. He really is back to being the friendly neighborhood Spider-Man, which I don’t think any of the prior MCU films had really been able to nail.
Aside from Peter Parker, of course, I thought nearly all of the film looked great. It was colorful and felt like we were looking at New York City through Peter’s eyes. There was maybe one or two scenes where the FX doesn’t quite meet expectations, but compared to some of the post-Endgame era MCU films, this feels like a vast improvement.
And, what stood out most to me about this film compared to others, calling it action-packed feels like an understatement
Grab your controller
Fans of the recent Spider-Man videogames are going to feel right at home sitting in the theater for this one. Most of the fight scenes borrow moves from the games that are easily recognized, and even the characters Peter engages with and the weapons used are straight from the game. It was clearly a very intentional decision to lean into the gamer-verse, and it’s one that certainly pays off.
Another interesting decision I noticed that makes this film distinctly different from its predecessors: we see Spider-Man more than we see Peter Parker. It reminded me of Matt Reeves’s The Batman (2022). For this film, it makes total sense. Peter Parker has no one, and it’s a central theme of the movie. He dives headfirst into being Spider-Man, essentially to his own detriment. Peter Parker has problems. Spider-Man’s villains, believe it or not, feel like the easier battle to win comparatively.
A step above
If you’ve ever seen anything Zendaya or Sadie Sink have been in, I don’t need to tell you that they shine in this film. It’s a given. But so does Tom Holland.
I haven’t seen The Odyssey (2026) yet, so I can’t speak to his performance compared to that, but it certainly is his best one yet in the MCU by a mile. This version of Peter is much more complex than we have ever seen him, and Holland really leans into it.
While I wasn’t overly impressed with Bernthal, though it isn’t a dig at him, Frank Castle mostly yells and grunts as a character; most of the cast really delivers strong performances.
Teeing up a new era for the MCU
Without giving away any details, it will be evident to fans of Marvel where the new direction is heading.
Though I can’t say much now, I can say that I’m all-in right now for what’s to come.
Of course, I have my critiques and could give a list of what I would’ve loved to see from this film (but will hopefully see in others). Even still, I genuinely enjoyed the movie from start to finish and could easily be convinced to see it again while it’s still in theaters.
Spider-Man: Brand New Day (2026) is arguably the Spider-Man film fans deserved all along. While I’m glad it’s the film we finally got, it feels like Tom Holland is, unfortunately, hitting his stride with a character who is reaching their ticking clock with Marvel. Though after such a successful opening weekend, he may have just locked himself into the role for another ten years if Sony and Marvel could have their way. Fans certainly wouldn’t complain either.
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