Marvel Studios and Sony Pictures have confirmed a striking new status quo for their most recognizable hero: Peter Parker, as the world once knew him, is gone. And as the Marvel Cinematic Universe barrels toward Phase Six and Avengers: Doomsday, that creative decision feels less like an isolated twist and more like part of a larger restructuring.
The Road to Phase Six and Avengers: Doomsday
Nearly 20 years after Iron Man launched the MCU experiment, Marvel finds itself in a moment of recalibration. Phase Five wrapped with mixed results. Captain America: Brave New World (2025) cleared $400 million globally despite production turbulence and off-screen controversy that complicated its financial prospects. Thunderbolts* (2025) capped the phase with solid reviews, though its box office performance fell short of expectations.
Zooming out, Phase Five proved inconsistent. Deadpool & Wolverine (2024) became one of the franchise’s largest global hits, powered by the pairing of Hugh Jackman and Ryan Reynolds. In contrast, Ant-Man and the Wasp: Quantumania (2023) and The Marvels (2023) struggled commercially, signaling audience fatigue in some corners.
Phase Four faced its own hurdles. Released amid pandemic disruptions, it produced a juggernaut in Spider-Man: No Way Home (2021), which grossed $1.953 billion worldwide, and expanded the MCU into streaming with WandaVision. But the sheer volume of interconnected projects left some viewers longing for the tighter narrative arc that culminated in Avengers: Endgame (2019).
Phase Six, however, signals a more assertive pivot. The era launched with The Fantastic Four: First Steps in July 2025, directed by WandaVision’s Matt Shakman and starring Pedro Pascal (Reed Richards/Mister Fantastic), Vanessa Kirby (Sue Storm/Invisible Woman), Ebon Moss-Bachrach (Ben Grimm/Thing), and Joseph Quinn (Johnny Storm/Human Torch). The film closed with an uncredited appearance by Robert Downey Jr. as Doctor Doom, setting the stage for what’s next.
Downey Jr.’s return was formally unveiled at San Diego Comic-Con 2024 alongside news that Anthony and Joe Russo would helm Avengers: Doomsday (2026). The brothers framed their return as the start of something new rather than a victory lap.
“What’s compelling about these two new Avengers movies is they’re a beginning. It’s a new beginning,” they told Omelete. “So we told an ending story, now we’re going to tell a beginning story, and then who knows where we’ll go from there. Maybe there’ll be another five years, but I think we just needed that time and perspective to figure out where it needed to go next, and the only thing that brought us back was the right story.”
Unlike Endgame, Doomsday and Avengers: Secret Wars (2027) are positioned as launchpads. The cast revealed during a marathon live stream underscores the scale, bringing together returning Avengers, X-Men icons, the Fantastic Four, and the Thunderbolts lineup. But one name is conspicuously absent: Tom Holland’s Spider-Man.
According to insider Jeff Sneider, “Marvel Studios and Sony Pictures’ Spider-Man: Brand New Day will take place at the same time on the MCU timeline as Avengers: Doomsday.” That parallel structure, combined with Holland’s production schedule on Christopher Nolan’s The Odyssey (2026), explains why Spider-Man will sit out an Avengers-level event for the first time in his tenure.
What Is Spider-Man: Brand New Day?
At CinemaCon 2025, Holland addressed exhibitors via video. “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 clip hanger 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,” he said, per Variety.
Directed by Destin Daniel Cretton, Spider-Man: Brand New Day picks up after Doctor Strange’s spell erased Peter Parker from the world’s memory. A retail listing for the official art book clarified the premise.
“Four years have gone by since we last caught up with our friendly neighborhood hero. Peter Parker is no more, but Spider-Man is at the top of his game, keeping New York City safe,” the synopsis reads. “Things are going well for our anonymous hero until an unusual trail of crimes pulls him into a web of mystery larger than he’s ever faced before.”
“In order to take on what’s ahead, Spider-Man not only needs to be at the top of his physical and mental game, but he must also be prepared to face the repercussions of his past!”
The emotional fallout traces directly to No Way Home, when Peter asked Doctor Strange to erase him from existence to seal the Multiverse rupture. MJ (Zendaya), Ned (Jacob Batalon), and even Happy Hogan (Jon Favreau) were left with no memory of him. Peter chose solitude over risking their safety.
Brand New Day jumps forward four years. Peter operates without Stark technology, Avengers support, or personal ties. The “Home” trilogy charted his evolution from Tony Stark’s mentee to an independent hero. Now, that independence has hardened into isolation.
The ensemble includes Zendaya, Jacob Batalon, Jon Bernthal as Frank Castle/Punisher, Mark Ruffalo as Bruce Banner/Hulk, Michael Mando as Mac Gargan, Marvin Jones III as Tombstone, Tramell Tillman, Liza Colón-Zayas, and Stranger Things star Sadie Sink in a significant mystery role, with strong expectations for Charlie Cox’s return as Matt Murdock.
One notable character, due to circumstances outside Marvel’s control, will not appear.
Peter Parker may be erased from public memory, but Spider-Man endures. As Marvel reshapes its cinematic architecture in Phase Six, Brand New Day appears poised to test whether its most popular hero can stand entirely on his own.
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