Everyone’s favourite friendly neighbourhood Spider-Man is swinging back onto our screens this July with the hotly anticipated release of Spider-Man: Brand New Day! Finally breaking the “trilogy reboot curse,” Tom Holland is returning to the title character—and he is not alone. Today we got our first proper look at the film with Sony and Marvel dropping its very first trailer.
Four years have passed since the events of No Way Home, where Peter willingly erased his existence from everyone’s memory. Now entirely alone, he is devoted to protecting the city as a full-time Spider-Man. However, multiple threats and an internal crisis put Peter on a path toward one of the most powerful threats he has ever faced.
Firstly, here is the trailer again!
Let’s break down what we spotted in this first trailer!
While it seems he is “killing it” as Spider-Man—even earning a key to the city (noting from what looks to be from the Deputy Mayor rather than Wilson Fisk currently seen in Daredevil: Born Again Season 1)—it’s clear he is still torn up over losing his life as Peter Parker. We see him following his school friend Ned and ex-girlfriend MJ on social media, keeping tabs on their progress at MIT.
We see MJ and Ned living in an apartment together, watching Spider-Man’s exploits on TV. Interestingly, MJ seems to have some form of remnant feelings she can’t quite process.
Then we’re thrown into the first “big cheer” moment of the trailer: Jon Bernthal, aka Frank Castle, aka The Punisher, is giving chase to a criminal who is rampaging through New York City in—of all things—a tank! Peter clearly has had run-ins with Frank during these last four years, as he addresses him by name. It’s obvious they don’t get along; Frank straight-up shoots at him at point-blank range before Spider-Man returns the favour, throwing him from a van and webbing up his mouth before Frank can even drop a swear word.
We had heard rumours that Punisher was going to appear, and this is exactly what the fans were crying out for! You can never have enough Punisher in the MCU.
Next, we see that Peter is actually living in the same apartment building as Ned and MJ. He even joins their housewarming party, albeit as a “strange neighbor” rather than a lifelong friend. He witnesses MJ with another guy, which truly breaks your heart considering the sacrifice he made four years prior.
This is when things get truly crazy for the web-head. Peter, looking worse for wear, passes out in his apartment and wakes up to find the room covered in webbing—almost like a spider’s nest. We then see him almost falling to the street below before seemingly creating organic webbing from his hands (much like Tobey Maguire’s Spider-Man). It’s worth noting these appear to be at least two separate scenes spliced together, as he is fully dressed when he passes out but in his boxers when he wakes up.
Moving on, we get our next big-name appearance: Mark Ruffalo reprising his role as Bruce Banner. He is working as a teacher, giving a class on Lattice Quantum Chromodynamics (don’t ask what it means; I just copied what was on the screen behind him!). Peter approaches him for help with whatever is happening to his body, most likely revealing his identity to him in the process. It’s worth noting a strange device on his wrist, my first guess, it’s used to measure and control the gamma within him so he can slip between his human form and his smart Hulk form.
It’s here we learn that Peter’s DNA is mutating. It is incredibly dangerous, and Bruce has no idea what the endgame of this mutation could be.
A voiceover which sounds distinctly like Keith David in an undisclosed role, explains that spiders have three life cycles, and between these cycles, the spider is vulnerable to threats. However, for the spiders that survive the process, it amounts to a form of rebirth. Fans of the comics can already see where this is leading; Peter has gone through various changes over the years, including one famous storyline where he sprouted four extra arms and even turned into a full-on spider monster (Man-Spider). The trailer alludes to this path, though we haven’t seen any physical mutations beyond the possibility of organic webbing yet.
During this voiceover, we see Peter visiting the grave of May Parker (killed by the Green Goblin in No Way Home) and taking down that out-of-control tank wrecking New York.
This is another moment where things get real interesting. Spider-Man rips open the tank to reveal an older woman who smiles—suddenly, it’s implied she is possessed. This “entity” invisibly leaps from one police officer to another. A voiceover from actor Tramell Tillman mentions it’s a danger they can’t see or control.
I believe this entity might be the same person we briefly saw earlier in a locked, high-security containment cell, wearing a green jumpsuit. While we don’t see a face, the hands appear to be female. While I doubt this is a version of Doc Ock (despite the green jumpsuit), I can’t quite pin down who it is. I’m interested to hear your thoughts in the comments on whether this is the “possessor.” This could also be the same person we see from behind later wearing a jacket, gloves, and a hoodie.
Then we get a shot of a returning character from the Spider-Man: Homecoming post-credits scene: The Scorpion! He finally has his full mechanical suit and tail, which he uses to absolutely fling Spider-Man. Talk about a long payoff for what felt like a forgotten character cameo!
Frank Castle reappears to tell Peter he is “losing it.” The setting seems to echo the tank scene, suggesting they are all tied together. Perhaps the possessor takes over Frank’s body, leading to a Punisher vs. Spider-Man fight?
We see an intimate shot of Spider-Man and MJ on a rooftop, suggesting she catches Peter returning home one night and talks to him about her strange feelings.
The trailer wraps up with more action: Spider-Man trying to stop the tank, a comical moment of a hero slammed against a bus (a nod to Doctor Strange and the classic Stan Lee cameo), and some 1:1 recreations of iconic Spider-Man comic covers! It is here we catch a glimpse of an obscure character Boomerang in a blink and miss it moment as well as fight with Tarantula (according to leaked Spider-Man: Brand New Day merch!).
Finally, we have one more insane appearance: The Hand! Daredevil and Elektra’s ancient enemies are shown fighting Spider-Man in what looks like a prison. This begs the question: who are they there to free? Not only that, but Peter is fighting them with his face fully exposed! It also appears in the trailer that this is another awakening moment for his mutation which might bring out his darker side.
The trailer ends on a comedic note with MJ and Ned “meeting” their new neighbor, Peter. When they ask why he brought flowers, they joke about him being a “friendly neighbor” causing Peter to choke on his drink.
As far as first trailers go, this is a huge one. Any doubts people had about the film have been snuffed out. This looks like another massive success for the multi-billion dollar MCU Spider-Man franchise!
We have yet to see Tombstone make his appearance in this trailer, though we know he is confirmed for the film and being played by Marvin Jones III who voiced the same character in Spider-Man: Into The Spiderverse.
Be sure to check out more coverage of Spider-Man: Brand New Day right up until it’s release on 31st July 2026 along with a review!
