We first heard that Marvel Studios/Sony Pictures might be planning to introduce the Punisher to the mix in the then untitled Spider-Man 4 earlier this year, but with so many rumors relating to the project doing the rounds at the time, nobody really believed that we'd see the ultra-violent vigilante in the same movie as Tom Holland's Friendly Neighbourhood wall-crawler.
However, THR confirmed that Frank Castle will indeed appear in Spider-Man: Brand New Day last month.
Daredevil: Born Again actor Jon Bernthal is set to make his big-screen debut as the character in the movie. It's believed that Castle have a major role, and might well end up joining forces with Spidey to do battle with a rampaging Savage Hulk (Mark Ruffalo).
The news was obviously met with a lot of excitement, but there were also some concerns that Castle will need to be watered down to a significant degree in order to function in the movie's PG-13 setting. Even putting the less visceral on-screen depictions of violence aside, at his core, Frank is a dark, disturbed and disturbing individual, and it's difficult to imagine him fitting in to the relatively wholesome and family-friendly world of the Spider-Man franchise - at least not without stripping away a lot of the things that make this character who he is.
Kevin Feige was asked about Bernthal's role in the movie during an extensive media roundtable interview, and admitted that, “When Punisher is in the Spider-Man movie, it’ll be a different tonality.”
Feige went on to dispel some of the rumors we'll been hearing about Brand New Day being a Multiverse-focused story, confirming that Holland's Spidey will be embarking on a street-level adventure when he returns to the big screen for his next solo outing.
“I think there’s a promise at the end of No Way Home, that for as sad as it is that Peter is forgotten by everyone in his life, we are seeing for the first time in the Tom Holland Spider-Man stories him being a proper Spider-Man. Him being by himself, dedicated to saving the city, and dealing with, for lack of better terms, street-level crime, as opposed to world-ending events. So when you do that, you say, okay, who are the other street-level characters that we’ve never seen him interact with? And of course, I love that The Punisher started in a Spider-Man comic. That great cover…I don’t want to say too much, but Destin, I will say too much, Destin is doing an amazing job right now on that movie, which starts shooting very soon. And he’s got eight or nine comic covers up on his wall in his art department that he is bringing to life in this movie, which is super cool.”
Spider-Man: Brand New Day is set to begin filming in Scotland next month. Sadie Sink and Liza Colón-Zayas are also on board, and we have heard that Steven Yeun is in talks for an undisclosed role, with Michael Mando is expected to return as the Scorpion.
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, which has led to speculation that Sink may have been cast in one of these roles.
“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.