It may not always be outright stated, but Marvel Studios has a history of (quietly) representing disability with their movie characters. From Tony Stark's chest prosthetic and Steve Rogers's intial pre-serum laundry list of physical disabilities to Stephen Strange's broken hands and Matt Murdock's blindness, disabilities have consistenly been present even if not outright at all times, like with Deadpool and Wolverine's titular protagonists suffering schizophrenia and post traumatic stress disorder.
Disney+ series have been louder about the struggles some of these characters face, with Hawkeye and Echo dealing with deafness and Daredevil: Born Again with blindness. Meanwhile, Moon Knight was a big step forward with the entire plot being focused on Marc Specter and Stephen Grant's Dissociative Identity Disorder, but he was far from the first character in the Marvel Cinematic Universe to represent this struggle.
Sure, Bob Reynolds/Sentry (Lewis Pullman) was shown to deal with DID as well in Thunderbolts, but there is a much more popular character that struggles with the disorder in the form of The Jade Giant. It was confirmed in Thor: Ragnarok that Hulk contains a separate identity when he is the one in control and is not just an out of control Bruce Banner, but with the controversial handling of Smart-Hulk in Avengers: Endgame, that idea was quickly swept under the rug.
Today we are taking a look at how Hulk's Dissociative Identity Disorder is likely to play a part in the plot of next year's Spider-Man: Brand New Day, and how he's probably not the only character in this upcoming film that will suffer from the disability. See the panel below for source material showing precisely why this condition is likely to be relevant to the plot of the fourth Spidey outing.
It has been stated that this movie's focus will be on the world having forgotten Peter Parker and how for the first time he is completely alone and living primarily as Spider-Man with the baggage of his secret identity and the people that knew it falling by the wayside. This leaves open the window to see how new characters will inevitably uncover the face hidden beneath the mask just as Adrian Toomes and Quentin Beck did in Homecoming and Far From Home respectively.
Before we explore which ways new characters will discover who Peter really is, which is traditionally a major recurring plot device that qualms the wall-crawler, let's take a look at two specific characters who might actually remember who Peter is despite Doctor Strange wiping the world's memory clean of his secret.
As we showed above, the nature of Dissociative Identity Disorder allows Hulk, in the comics, to remember who Peter really is. It's a shame these two characters have never shared the screen in the MCU before this upcoming film, but with Bruce being a central part of the remaining Avengers, and Peter's identity being covered on the news, it's likely that he was privy to this information off-screen.
If DID allows him to retain this knowledge, then it will likely do the same injustice for one of the rumored foes said to appear in the upcoming flick. Mister Negative AKA Martin Li also suffers from dual identities, but in a much more treachorous way, with one alter being a villainous crime lord and the other a kind-hearted philanthropist that runs F.E.A.S.T.
For those who watched No Way Home, F.E.A.S.T. will be familiar as the non-profit organization that Aunt May Parker was involved at the time of her death, so it is almost impossible that the founder of this company would have no clue that one of his own associates was the caretaker of the most famous man in the world when the news broke. If Dissociative Identity Disorder can allow Hulk to remember who Peter is, it would be odd that the same didn't apply to the soon-to-be-introduced baddie in the fourth film.
It is still just a report and a rumor that Mister Negative will be involved in the movie at the time we write this article, but all signs point to that being the case. With a tank brandishing the Inner Demons logo, a group led by the villain himself, and with Rio Morales being announced as having a role in the flick that sees her involved with F.E.A.S.T. as well, it looks more likely than not. Add to that the report that Scorpion is supposedly a major player in the film but not the primary antagonist, and all signs are pointing to the introduction of Martin Li.
Speaking of Scorpion, he's another character set to appear with disabilities, as his suit will likely at leas in part be key to covering up the physical malformation that Michael Mando's character suffered in Spider-Man: Homecoming, while that film also provided a post-credits sequence that previewed the mental instability that the villain also deals with by teasing the descent into madness his accident causes him to spiral down in an effort to enact revenge on Spidey himself.
Relatively obscure villain Ramrod is another character with a physical disability that is said to make an appearance in Spider-Man: Brand New Day, though many fans are expecting him to meet a quick demise by the hands of The Punisher. Lonnie Lincoln's Tombstone, however, is an upcoming villain said to be involved that represents people with albinism with the disability that often comes with photophobia.
As we already mentioned The Punisher, and you have likely already learned of his announced inclusion in the fourth Spidey installment, it is likely that we will visit the character's own disability of post traumatic stress disorder. This will be the most likely thing to provide sympathetic reasoning for Peter to forgive what is said to be lethal measures taken by Frank Castle in the film.
In turn, Frank is potentially likely to show similar sympathy for Banner if he takes human form due to his own previously mentioned struggle with Dissociative Identity Disorder. That's not to suggest that Castle would be likely to be capable of exterminating the Jade Giant even in human form, but it will be interesting to see how this applies to Punisher's consideration for Martin Li/Mister Negative as well.
What do you think of the potential disability representation in Spider-Man: Brand New Day? Which villains are you excited for and what characters are you not looking forward to respectively?
Let us know all your thoughts in the comments section and take a peek at the new suit Tom Holland's wall-crawler is donning in the flick in the video below!
Spider-Man: Brand New Day swings into theaters on July 31st, 2026.