Making Hulk Part of Spider-Man’s Origin Story Would Be the Smartest Thing the MCU Has Done in 6 Years

Changing a superhero’s origin story is a challenging task. James Gunn is learning that the hard way, as he’s dealing with backlash after taking creative liberty with the Man of Steel’s backstory, making it so his parents send him to Earth to conquer rather than protect humanity. How the reception to Superman‘s big chance will affect the rest of the DC Universe is a mystery. Still, it’s hard to believe that Gunn will take many more big swings with his icons, including Batman, whose origin is typically set in stone. Another hero who rarely has his circumstances change is Spider-Man, who is about to release his first movie in his second Marvel Cinematic Universe trilogy.

To avoid retreading old ground, the MCU skips over the beginning of Peter Parker’s superhero career. Spider-Man: Homecoming doesn’t feature the spider bite or Uncle Ben’s death, only alluding to the events. However, a new rumor claims that the MCU is about to rock the Wall-Crawler’s world in Spider-Man: Brand New Day by adding a familiar face to his origin story. It would be a significant risk, but one that could pay off and make Marvel Studios’ version of the character one of the most unique ever.

Spider-Man Might Have Serious Beef With the Hulk in Brand New Day

While he’s yet to appear in any of the set photos, Mark Ruffalo is dusting off his mo-cap suit and returning to the MCU in Brand New Day. The actor and the rest of the production have been tight-lipped about Hulk’s role in the film. Reports claim that one of the movie’s villains will get inside the former Avenger’s mind and unleash the Savage Hulk, the most dangerous version of the character. Facing off against someone that powerful is going to be a tall task for Spider-Man, mainly because he doesn’t have Doctor Strange or Iron Man to lean on this time around. However, there isn’t a lot of personal conflict for Peter in that scenario. Sure, he’ll want to protect the people of New York City, but that’s always his motivation.

Well, Marvel Studios may be aware of that conundrum, as a new rumor claims that Peter’s fight with Hulk will be more about revenge than saving lives. While it’s essential to take everything on social media with a grain of salt, it’s hard to look past a post that claims that Brand New Day is going to reveal that Hulk is responsible for the death of Peter’s parents. Apparently, they were present during the Battle of New York in The Avengers and lost their lives during the conflict between Earth’s Mightiest Heroes and the Chitauri. It’s hard to believe a bombshell this big would stay a secret for so long, but if it comes to pass, it will be proof that the MCU is no longer playing scared.

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While it may seem like the MCU has taken plenty of risks over the last couple of years, that’s not really the case. The truth is that it’s been more or less business as usual, just with a few TV shows thrown in. Marvel Studios has been introducing new characters that it hopes will be a significant part of its story going forward, but any misstep feels like the end of the world. Eternals wasn’t a box office or critical success by any stretch of the imagination, being the first MCU movie to land on the Rotten end of the Tomatometer. However, the movie was still full of interesting concepts and characters that had considerable potential. The same goes for Shang-Chi and the Legend of the Ten Rings, which has yet to receive a sequel, likely because the powers that be can’t prioritize something that isn’t a guaranteed hit.

Brand New Day isn’t in danger of failing at the box office, and that means the creative team doesn’t have to stick its neck out. It can tell a paint-by-numbers story and still go home a winner at the end of the day. But by embracing something new, such as the Hulk tearing Spider-Man’s life apart, the movie would be telling the world that, for better or worse, it’s willing to touch the untouchable.

Spider-Man: Brand New Day hits theaters on July 31, 2026.

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