A new, potentially final trailer for Spider-Man: Brand New Day dropped Wednesday, and it’s fascinating. Mostly, that’s because while it consists of almost all new footage, we still have very, very little idea how this all comes together.
We know that Tom Holland, Zendaya, Mark Ruffalo, Jon Bernthal, and many more reprise their roles from previous films, while the likes of Sadie Sink and Tramell Tillman join the crew. But how does a new Spider-Man story fit around all the stakes set up by the previous film?
Grab a snack and go through this trailer with us to see what we can find out.
We’re in New York with a bunch of “we-wish-they-were Easter egg” type signs that get crashed through by Spider-Man. “What is happening to me?” Peter asks as he gets thrown around by Scorpion, played by Michael Mando. “Did you miss me, Spidey?” he asks. Of course, we last saw this character in Spider-Man: Homecoming, inquiring with Vulture (Michael Keaton, who is now in the Morbius universe) about who Spidey is. Seems like he still holds a grudge.
Scorpion has Spidey in his grasp, but something happens to Peter. His eyes go black. “I’m losing my mind,” he says as he very easily tosses Scorpion away. “I am totally out of control, and I’ve got to fix whatever this is right now.”
Peter, now sporting some post-fight injuries, watches MJ and Ned on his phone. They’re talking about graduating from MIT, which means it has been about four years since No Way Home. Also, Peter might actually be the only person watching, which is creepy. “Bye, someone,” MJ says.
Peter slaps a few devices onto his wrists (similar to devices we see later in the trailer, more on that in a second), but they get pushed off by the fact that he can now organically produce web fluid.
Gooey! Peter goes to “Empire State University,” where Bruce Banner is teaching. “You found a way to suppress mutating DNA, right?” Peter asks.
“If you see me with this off, run,” he replies.
Banner shows off a device he has apparently created to suppress his Hulk urges. And, it seems as per the previous scene, he gives something similar to Peter later on. We can’t quite make out what it says on it, but you can see that he’s in the green.
“Could you get rid of the bad aspects but keep the good?” Peter asks. Banner replies, “How would you decide which parts of nature are good or bad?”
As they talk, we see Peter swinging, hitting some birds, crashing into a water tower, and smashing into a fancy wedding. Is anyone of importance getting married, or is this just a random event?
“You’re not one of my students, are you?” Banner asks, heavily implying he’s going to share some Avengers-level secrets with him.
Peter is fighting someone in a tank (a scene from the opening of the movie, we believe) as we hear from a character named Metzger, played by Severance‘s Tramel Tillman, which is confirmed by subtitles. In the comics, the character is an anti-mutant activist, which certainly lines up with what we hear him say to Spider-Man. “It appears we’re faced with a threat we can’t control. One we can’t even see.”
Enter the faceless, nameless (so far) character, likely played by Sadie Sink. If you think back to the scene of Peter with the organic webshooters, we can clearly see this is the same place. She’s in Peter Parker’s lab.
It appears Sink’s character has some major abilities, including moving things (like tanks) with her mind. The trailer also implies she is behind this huge wave coming from (what we think is) Roosevelt Island.
The wave, which continues into the city, basically either freezes people or freezes time. Frank Castle, the Punisher, looks like he moves, but we don’t think he’s immune. Unlike…
Spider-Man seems to track this villain’s ability to jump between other people as Metzger continues. “You’re the only one who is immune to it. You’re the only one who can sense it.” It sure seems like Metzger is recruiting Spider-Man to help him find this villain.
Worth noting is the helicopter we see here, which Peter will subsequently swing after, is part of the wedding he disrupted earlier. So, it seems, the footage of him crashing into the birds, the water, and then into the event is a result of the villain’s powers.
Peter goes to a party being thrown by MJ and Ned, who have since moved back to New York after MIT. (You can read more about the scene in full here). The most interesting thing, though, is that Ned has become Spider-Man obsessed and is trying to figure out who he is. Could it be Carlos Rodriguez? No, it’s not. But the idea that people think parkour plays a role in Spider-Man shows the world does not understand his powers.
At the party, Peter sees MJ with her new man, played by Star Wars star Eman Esfandi. It’s still unclear who, specifically, he’s playing, or if he’s a known character or not. Suffice to say, though, Peter isn’t happy.
An explosion of webs as Spider-Man is having some problems. “Are you okay?” asks a passerby. “You get rid of that monster inside of you?” The person’s persona begins changing to different random people, clearly the work of the villain. “I think I might go see how MJ is doing,” one says. How does this person know about MJ?
A really cool shot of Spider-Man’s reflection in a puddle of some kind of broken-down building. “You’re not going to get away with this,” Peter says as we see Dr. Banner’s device off his wrist. “But he might,” Banner says.
Banner referring to himself in the third person, and the above shot followed by this shot…
Implies that it’s the villain, not Bruce Banner, who unleashes the Hulk. How Loki on the Helicarrier of her.
It’s Spider-Man vs. Hulk time as Hulk uses a thunderclap to send him flying. Peter then goes to visit someone he probably shouldn’t.
It’s MJ. Peter knows she doesn’t know him, but he tells her she’s in danger and asks for her trust. She agrees. Does this happen right after the Hulk fight, as implied, or at another time? It’s unclear.
Peter takes MJ to Frank Castle’s hideout on some boat (not where he is in the short film) and tells him he has nowhere else to go. As this happens, the voice of Aunt May begins to talk over the rest of the trailer. “This whole thing can get really scary,” she says. “But the people who love you love you because you’re you.” May is dead, of course, so it’s unclear if this is a flashback or a memory.
MJ guilts Frank into going to help Spider-Man, as we see Peter falling out of costume. Is this real? Is this part of the dream where he hears May’s words of advice? Again, unclear.
The Hand. An army that we’ve seen Peter fight in previous trailers, posters, and more. Who are they fighting for? We still do not know.
“If you’re going to do something, you better do it now,” Frank says. He’s driving a truck from, we think, the beginning of the movie, so we don’t think he’s actually reacting to this above shot. But the above shot sure looks like it’s Peter embracing that monster inside him. Learning to control it.
May continues. “Never forget that, no matter how powerful you become.” So, the full statement is:
“This whole thing can get really scary. But the people who love you love you because you’re you. Never forget that, no matter how powerful you become.”
And that’s pretty powerful considering we watch Peter use a bunch of brand new moves to fight the multiple members of the Hand, including webbing them all up as he falls from the ceiling.
Peter kisses May’s grave, telling her he misses her, as we cut back to the Spider-Man vs. Hulk fight. It’s gonna be massive.
After the title card, we end with a more classic Spidey scene, him stretching and talking about his age.
Okay, so what did we learn? Frankly, not too much. Peter is going through major issues with his body. He seeks out the help of Bruce Banner. This new villain somehow emerges onto the scene who can control people’s minds (Jean Grey?). She’s being sought after by an anti-mutant group, but she’s after Spider-Man and seems to know a lot about him. She attacks him, turns the Hulk against him, and ultimately he has to save MJ with the help of the Punisher. That’s pretty bare-bones, but it’s what’s in here. We’re guessing there is much, much more to it.
What did we miss? Let us know below.
Spider-Man: Brand New Day opens July 31, and tickets are on sale now.
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