With Daredevil: Born Again, The Punisher Special Presentation, and Spider-Man: Brand New Day, Marvel Studios is finally exploring street-level crime in the Marvel Cinematic Universe.
Jon Bernthal's Frank Castle is set to factor heavily into the next Spider-Man movie, but as of now, there's no indication that Charlie Cox's Man Without Fear will join him and Tom Holland's web-slinger.
We may have some insights thanks to The Cosmic Circus, though, as the site's Alex Perez has addressed the supposed timeline for these projects.
"Born Again season 1, Punisher close to season 2, Brand New Day," the scooper said, before addressing how Daredevil: Born Again sets up Spider-Man: Brand New Day. "Kingpin's Rule of Law and how it affects Spider-Man as a hero. Also, J. Jonah Jameson? Not the biggest fan of Kingpin. Sure, he agrees with the politics, but he sees through his web of lies."
The scooper was also asked whether Disney and Marvel Studios have any regrets about canonising Netflix's Defenders after he previously claimed that the House of Mouse wasn't "impressed" with Daredevil: Born Again season 1's performance.
"When I said they weren’t impressed, that was back before the project was overhauled and reshot," he stated. "And I don’t think they regret canonising it because, if anything, they double down on it in seasons 2 and 3."
Krysten Ritter's Jessica Jones is set to appear in Daredevil: Born Again season 2, with Mike Colter's Luke Cage expected to closely follow. As for Iron Fist, his MCU status is very much TBD.
Still, with the way things are going, it's looking increasingly likely that the Defenders will once again assemble (Daredevil: Born Again season 3 being greenlit only serves to make that a stronger possibility).
Back to Spider-Man: Brand New Day, and it sounds like a reunion for Peter Parker and MJ may be in the cards...
Spider-Man: Brand New Day shares a title with a divisive era of storytelling, which, thanks to a deal with Mephisto, saw the wall-crawler get a fresh start when his marriage to Mary Jane Watson ended and his identity became secret again. He faced many new sinister foes during that time and was surrounded by an overhauled supporting cast, including a resurrected Harry Osborn.
Mister Negative, Jackpot, Menace, and Carlie Cooper were some of the standout additions to his world, though they don't currently look set to appear in this movie. Instead, all signs point to Spidey teaming up with (and at some point fighting) The Punisher to take on a Savage Hulk, with The Scorpion thrown in for good measure.
Several other villains are reportedly set to appear in the movie, including Tombstone, Tarantula, Boomerang, and Ramrod. There's been some chatter online about the Venom Symbiote factoring into the story, potentially setting the stage for Mac Gargan to eventually don the alien costume.
Shang-Chi and the Legend of the Ten Rings helmer Destin Daniel Cretton directs Spider-Man: Brand New Day from a script by Chris McKenna and Erik Sommers. Tom Holland leads a cast that also includes Jon Bernthal, Mark Ruffalo, Zendaya, Sadie Sink, Michael Mando, Tramell Tillman, and Liza Colón-Zayas. Thunderbolts* star Florence Pugh is also rumoured to have joined the cast.
Spider-Man: Brand New Day will be released in theaters on July 31, 2026.