Preview:

• Jon Bernthal is boarding ‘Spider-Man: Brand New Day’.
• Destin Daniel Cretton is directing.
• Tom Holland is returning to star as the titular web-crawler.

Is Spider-Man about to suffer some punishment?

We’ll have to wait and see what this latest casting story for ‘Spider-Man: Brand New Day’ means, but The Hollywood Reporter has now confirmed what John Rocha and his Hot Mic podcast learned a while ago –– Jon Bernthal’s Punisher is headed to movie screens for the next Spidey outing.

The new film, which sees ‘Shang-Chi and the Legend of the Ten Rings’ director Destin Daniel Cretton inheriting the Spider-mantle from Jon Watts (who has been off doing other projects), will see Tom Holland back as Peter Parker/Spider-Man following three of the character’s own movies and a sprinkling of appearances elsewhere.

This casting is a happy full circle moment for Holland and Bernthal; the duo were working on the 2017 movie Pilgrimage when preparing to audition for their Marvel roles, and helped each other with their audition tapes.

Related Article: Jon Bernthal’s The Punisher to Feature in New Marvel TV Special

What’s the story of ‘Spider-Man: Brand New Day’?

Given that ‘Spider-Man: No Way Home’ changed things in a huge way for Peter Parker –– as you’ll likely recall, it ended with a spell that wiped everyone’s memory of him so as to protect the people he loves –– the storyline going forward is naturally something of a mystery.

Here’s what Holland said to The Hollywood Reporter about the movie:

“The first few meetings were about, ‘Why would we do this again?’ And I think we found the reason why.”

What is that reason? It’s only known to those involved with the movie right now and soon to anyone who talks to Tom Holland if his talent for divulging spoilers accidentally continues to hold.

We do at least know that Chris McKenna and Erik Sommers, who contributed to or wrote the previous three Spider-outings, are back on board for this one.

Who else will appear in ‘Spider-Man: Brand New Day’?

Even with the spell affecting Peter, MJ (Zendaya) and Ned (Jacob Batalon) are still likely to return.

Yet with ‘Stranger Things’Sadie Sink’s casting earlier this year, that throws an interesting wrinkle in –– what if the plan is for MJ and Ned to have smaller roles while a new supporting cast rises to importance in Peter’s life?

Sink’s role is a mystery, one that Marvel and Sony will look to keep that way as long as possible.

But speculation has already begun, with a few potentials floating out there.

Sink could be playing Jean Grey, the hugely powerful mutant character from the ‘X-Men’ comics who has enjoyed a variety of storylines in the pages and on screens, including the memorable “Dark Phoenix” arc.

The X-Men, are, of course, the next big group for Marvel to incorporate into the MCU and we’ve already seen examples of them in the dimension-spanning likes of ‘Doctor Strange in the Multiverse of Madness,’‘The Marvels’ and ‘Deadpool & Wolverine,’ though none have been pointed up as the official versions of the characters to make the leap to Earth-616.

Using the new ‘Spider-Man’ movie to introduce one or more characters could work, as the Marvel team has a history of seeding new recruits in other movies.

But if the focus is more on Peter’s story, there’s a chance that Sink might be Gwen Stacey, another famous love interest for our hero, who has appeared in other Spider-stories. Another option is Felicia Hardy, AKA Black Cat.

And, of course, Sink’s red hair could make her a natural fit for classic Peter partner Mary Jane Watson, but with Zendaya’s MJ (albeit not using the same name) filling that role, it seems unlikely.

Elsewhere, ‘The Bear’s Liza Colón-Zayas has also scored a role in the movie, but her character is a mystery for now.

The Punisher: a quick history

Bernthal has been the small-screen version of Marvel’s Frank Castle –– AKA vigilante character The Punisher –– since he showed up on the Netflix version of ‘Daredevil’ back in 2016.

Since then, he’s appeared in his own eponymous spin-off show, which ran on the streaming service between 2017 and 2019, then came a break until he was brought back in to the fold for this year’s Disney+ continuation series ‘Daredevil: Born Again.’

Castle will be back in Season 2 of ‘Born Again’ and there is also a Marvel “Special Episode” (a TV movie along the lines of ‘Werewolf by Night’) on the way, co-written by Bernthal and filmmaker Reinaldo Marcus Green, with the latter directing the one-off.

The story is under wraps for now, here’s what Brad Winderbaum, head of Marvel Television, told EW about it:

“It’s like a shotgun blast of a story, but also has all the pathos and emotion that you want out of a Frank Castle story. It’s so exciting.”

A bigger question for The Punisher in the world of Spider-Man is how his grittier, more violent tone will fit with the family friendlier feel of Spidey and co.

When will ‘Spider-Man: Brand New Day’ be in theaters?

‘Spider-Man: Brand New Day’ will swing into theaters on July 31st, 2026.

Thanks to some recent release date shuffles, the movie will be the next MCU entry to follow ‘Fantastic Four: First Steps’, which lands on July 25th.

Movies and TV Shows Featuring Spider-Man Characters:

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