Spider-man: Brand New Day Trailer: Peter Parker's The Only One Who Can Sense A Mysterious Villain

Peter Parker is having a rough go of it. Not only is his mentor, Tony Stark/Iron Man, long dead, but thanks to a spell cast by Doctor Strange at the end of "Spider-Man: No Way Home," no one in the world remembers him — even the people closest to him, including his girlfriend, best friend, and the Avengers.

As we see in the newest trailer for "Spider-Man: Brand New Day," our friendly neighborhood webslinger has had to carve out a new identity for himself. He now more closely resembles the classic depiction of the character from the comics — a New Yorker struggling to make ends meet who also happens to have spider powers and the relentless willingness to do the right thing, especially when times get tough. (He could still use a bit more of that wise-cracking attitude, though.)

But things have gone from bad to worse for poor Peter. He seems to be experiencing signs of some sort of mutation (a loaded word in any Marvel project), and the consequences are not what we'd call ideal. Plus, he's facing off against Scorpion, a horde of ninjas, and the Hulk, and he's the only one who can sense the mysterious villain who seems to be at the center of this story. Take a look at the trailer above, which spends a good chunk of its runtime reminding you about previous Spidey adventures.

Sony Pictures/Marvel Studios

It's extremely easy to look at the Marvel Cinematic Universe as a corporate behemoth that's past its prime, continuing to churn out superhero movies that don't have the same cultural staying power as the ones that came out during the MCU's heyday. But even though conventional wisdom says Marvel should have put the MCU on a long break after its triumphant culmination in 2019's "Avengers: Endgame," we know that Sony is going to keep making Spider-Man movies so the rights don't revert back to Marvel. But even though these decisions are frequently analyzed as corporate maneuvering, it's also true that some moments in the post-"Endgame" films are as effective as anything that came before it. I know that because I found myself weeping after rewatching the final few minutes of "Spider-Man: No Way Home" to prepare to write this article. 

Yes, I remembered that Peter Parker (Tom Holland) comes face to face with MJ (Zendaya) and Ned (Jacob Batalon) and tells them that Doctor Strange's spell is going to make them forget he ever existed, but having not revisited the film since it came out, I forgot how powerful that exchange is in its execution, and how strong Holland and Zendaya's performances are in that moment. It got me all over again, and got me fired up anew about seeing the next chapter of that story unfold in "Spider-Man: Brand New Day." This trailer? Not so much. The recycled footage feels a little desperate. But if the film can continue to focus on its characters and make the audience continue to care about them amid all the action scenes, "Brand New Day" could be a truly worthy follow-up.

"Spider-Man: Brand New Day" will hit theaters on July 31, 2026.