We know that Sadie Sink will have a major role in Spider-Man: Brand New Day, but the character she'll be playing remains a mystery, which always tends to lead to a lot of speculation and more than a few rumors.
All we really have to go on is a leaked casting call, which describes her character as: "A sharp and free-spirited woman who is strong-willed, intelligent, and not easily intimidated, and will also have a mysterious past."
Doesn't exactly narrow things down!
When the news first broke that the Stranger Things star had joined the project, the trade report mentioned that she could be playing either a new take in Mary Jane Watson or X-Men's Jean Grey (this seems to have been little more than speculation based on a previous rumor). Since then, we've heard that Sink might have been cast as Felicia Hardy/Black Cat or possibly even Mayday Parker, the daughter of Peter B. Parker and Mary Jane Watson from the MC2 Universe.
Now, we can add another name to the list of potential characters. On this week's episode of The Hot Mic, Jeff Sneider mentioned that he's heard Sink is actually playing "an alternate universe Gwen Stacy."
Out of all the possible characters we've heard Sink might be playing, this arguably makes the most sense. Stacy has always been a fan-favorite, but her popularity has really skyrocketed since an animated take on Spider-Gwen (Hailee Steinfeld) was introduced in the Spider-Verse movies. Emma Stone previously played Gwen in live-action in Sony's The Amazing Spider-Man movies, but the character has yet to make her MCU debut.
Again, there are a lot of rumors relating to Sink's role out there, so best not to put too much stock in any of them until we get a few more official details about this movie.
Liza Colón-Zayas is also on board in an undisclosed role, and we have heard that Steven Yeun is in talks, with Michael Mando expected to return as the Scorpion. Mark Ruffalo is also said to play a "significant role" as Bruce Banner/The Hulk.
Unlike the previous films, Homecoming, Far From Home, and No Way Home, Brand New Day is the name of a specific arc from the comics, and focuses on Peter Parker attempting to rebuild his life following the events of the status quo-altering One More Day and Civil War.
Brand New Day features a number of new characters such as Carlie Cooper and Lily Hollister, aka the supervillain Menace (whether they'll appear in the movie remains to be seen).
“I’m spending my time exploring the next stage of this amazing character with a team of the most incredible artists in the world," said director Destin Daniel Cretton during CinemaCon. "We’re all, just daily, nerding out over the suit, how to swing, how to create an event, an emotional story, and a ride that we haven’t really seen before"
Holland did not appear in Las Vegas for the Sony presentation, but did send the following video message.
"I am so sorry I can’t be with you. I am halfway around the world shooting a movie. I know we left you with a massive cliffhanger at the end of No Way Home, so Spider-Man: Brand New Day is a fresh start. It is exactly that. That’s all I can say."
Spider-Man 4 was recently pushed back a week from July 24, 2026 to July 31, 2026.