It's common knowledge that the Marvel Cinematic Universe is full of surprises. The one franchise where quite literally anything is possible, it has been entertaining, thrilling, shocking, and surprising people for almost two decades now. And, with Avengers: Doomsday and Avengers: Secret Wars set to bring about the conclusion of the Multiverse Saga by reaching into Marvel's past, present and future, we're going to see a whole lot more of anything happening in the near-future.
Returns are everywhere in the MCU these days. Remember when Patrick Stewart's Professor Charles Xavier appeared in Doctor Strange in the Multiverse of Madness? What about when Tobey Maguire and Andrew Garfield's Spideys returned in Spider-Man: No Way Home? And don't forget those multiple Deadpool and Wolverine cameos?Well, something tells us that Avengers: Doomsday is going to have even more than those combined.
All that being said, there is another major return on the Marvel Studios horizon that somewhat caught fans off-guard. And now, after much speculation, it's looking like it is definitely going to happen as the actor himself has confirmed as much.
Spider-Man star Michael Mando confirms Brand New Day return as the Scorpion
There has been a lot of excitement about Spider-Man: Brand New Day starting filming over the weekend, but the excitement truly kicked into gear the day before. The Hollywood Reporter confirmed that Marvel veteran Mark Ruffalo would be officially joining the cast to reprise his role as Bruce Banner / the Incredible Hulk, while also confirming that Michael Mando would reprise his role as the Scorpion, finally giving audiences a chance to see the character in action in the MCU.
Mando previously portrayed the legendary Spider-Man villain in the post-credits scene of 2017's Spider-Man: Homecoming, in which the villain confronted the Vulture / Adrian Toomes (portrayed by Michael Keaton) in prison, looking for the true identity of Spider-Man. Although Toomes didn't betray the young hero who saved his life by giving up the secret, that plot point is somewhat rendered moot now by the fact that nobody knows who Spidey really is after Doctor Strange erased the memory of Peter Parker from everyone's minds in 2021's Spider-Man: No Way Home.
Now, amidst all the speculation, Mando himself has taken to social media to confirm his return, sharing a photo of himself once again donning the character's signature Scorpion tattoo. Better yet, he has also teased in his Instagram Stories that the character might get a new suit, which may or may not be pretty comic-accurate when compared to the villain's classic look in the comics.
Regardless of how Gargan is going to be involved, it's awesome to hear that he will be. The Spider-Man: Homecoming post-credits scene has remained one of the biggest unsolved cliffhangers from the MCU (and one of the only real outstanding ones from the Infinity Saga), so it's great to know that it won't be unresolved for much longer. This will also work in Marvel's favor long-term as it shows that the studio can follow-up on long-hanging threads - which is something that many Marvel fans feel the studio needs to do with its many loose threads from countless Multiverse Saga post-credits scenes.
Spider-Man: Brand New Day is one of the biggest titles yet to come from the Multiverse Saga. Originally set to release between both of the upcoming Avengers movies, it will now release ahead of Doomsday, with the revelation that the events of the two films will take place at the same time. With that in mind, Tom Holland's webslinger isn't expected to appear much in Doomsday (or even at all) as Spidey will have his hands full with Scorpion and whatever else his next solo adventures throws his way. But, with filming underway in Glasgow, we can't wait to learn more about this highly-anticipated outing as the months go on.
Spider-Man: Brand New Day is currently set for release on July 31, 2026.
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