The Marvel Cinematic Universe may only have two movies releasing this year, but there's a lot riding on their success. It is no secret that the superhero giant had a very uneven Multiverse Saga, as multiple projects received mixed-to-negative reactions.
Disney eventually made the decision to lower the number of films and TV shows released on a yearly basis to focus on the quality of the few that see the light of day. Still, the damage was already done, as critically acclaimed projects like The Fantastic Four: First Steps and Thunderbolts* failed to break even at the box office.
Fortunately, 2026 might be the MCU's biggest year in recent memory thanks to the wall-crawler and Earth's Mightiest Heroes. However, it's instrumental that each of their movies receives positive reactions to truly take over the box office. Fortunately, it seems that might just be the case. Avengers: Doomsday reportedly had an internal screening at Marvel and tested at the same level as Avengers: Infinity War, which is nothing short of an impressive feat. Furthermore, the first reactions to Spider-Man: Brand New Day are here, and they couldn't be any more positive (with one big exception, that is).
Spider-Man: Brand New Day reportedly tested "off the charts", but it has a divisive ending
According to multiple sources, Spider-Man: Brand New Day had a test screening, and reactions were over the moon. Insider Daniel Richtman mentions: "I've heard nothing but great things about the quality of Spider-Man Brand New Day." Furthermore, The Ringer-Verse stated that the movie is testing "off the charts", although people seem divided on its ending. Additionally, scooper MyTimeToShineHello reveals that "Brand New Day is Spider-Man 2 level good".
If there were any doubts, it seems director Destin Daniel Cretton and Tom Holland have crafted a must-watch movie for Spidey fans around the world.
Perhaps the biggest worry most people have about Spider-Man: Brand New Day is that it could be a convoluted movie given the number of characters it has. Antiheroes like the Punisher and the Hulk are confirmed to make an appearance, while it has been rumored that Yelena Belova will show up to the party as well.
Furthermore, Sadie Sink has been heavily speculated to play the role of Jean Grey, who will no doubt prove to be instrumental to the future of the MCU. Additionally, the Hand, Tombstone, Scorpion, Boomerang, and Tarantula are bound to wreak havoc on the streets of New York.
Spider-Man movies have previously been heavily criticized for having too much on their plates, with Sam Raimi's Spider-Man 3 and The Amazing Spider-Man 2 being the best examples (and also franchise enders). Fortunately, it seems that Brand New Day will manage to avoid the curse and rise above the rest. What might be a little bit worrying, however, is the ending.
Given that Spider-Man: Brand New Day is the last MCU movie to be released before Avengers: Doomsday, there's always a chance that there will be an "out-of-place" sequence meant to set up the events to come. After all, Marvel has done this in the past (remember when Thor had random visions about the Infinity Stones in Avengers: Age of Ultron?). Maybe audiences weren't happy witnessing a street-level story almost all the way through, only for the ending to be about the multiverse's fallout.
Another option is that Brand New Day sets up a future Spider-Man movie by having an open ending. Maybe it is revealed that the true big bad of the tale is Tombstone, yet audiences only see him for a couple of seconds before the credits roll.
Fortunately, it seems like we'll be in for a memorable adventure nonetheless, even if it doesn't quite manage to end things with a bang. The best part? It won't be long before we finally witness the movie for ourselves.
Spider-Man: Brand New Day will be released on July 31, 2026.
Add us as a preferred source on Google