RESOLVING THE LEDGER
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Spider-Man: Brand New Day has finally swung into theaters worldwide — and I bet you've got questions about Tom Holland's latest Marvel movie.
Haven't seen it yet? Read my Spider-Man: Brand New Day review for a spoiler-light insight into the newly released film. Then, bookmark this page, go and see it, and come back to carry on reading this article, because I'm not kidding when I say full spoilers immediately follow for Spider-Man: Brand New Day .
Of course, if you have watched it, by all means scroll on — it's worth the read, I promise!
Does Sadie Sink play Jean Grey in Spider-Man: Brand New Day?
There have been myriad rumors about who Sadie Sink is playing in the MCU (Image credit: Sony Pictures/Marvel Entertainment)
Yes. One of the worst-kept secrets in Hollywood is finally confirmed about 70 minutes into Spider-Man 4 : Sink is playing the Marvel Cinematic Universe's ( MCU ) version of iconic X-Men member Jean Grey.
It's a reveal that's been a long time coming. Sink was first rumored to appear in Spider-Man: Brand New Day last March, so we've had to wait 16 months to learn which Marvel character she was actually playing.
Of course, there's been all manner of speculation about the identity of her character, with everyone from Mayday Parker — aka Peter Parker and Mary Jane Watson's daughter in the comics — and Typhoid Mary to Firestar and Shathra mentioned as potential candidates.
Now that we know Sink is playing Grey, she's a shoo-in to appear in Marvel's new X-Men movie (more on this later). Her next outing as Jean Grey is expected to be in Avengers: Secret Wars , though, so we'll see her again when that film arrives next December.
Who is the real villain in Spider-Man: Brand New Day?
You messed up, Metzger (Image credit: Sony Pictures/Marvel Entertainment)
That'll be William Metzger, aka the head of the Department of Damage Control (DoDC).
Metzger is played by Tramell Tillman, the Severance star signing on to appear in Spider-Man: Brand New Day last August. It's unclear when or where he'll appear in the MCU next, but I have my suspicions about his next appearance, which I cover later in this article.
Anyway, Metzger is revealed to be the Marvel Phase 6 flick's actual villain in its third act. Initially positioning himself and the DoDC as an ally of Spider-Man's, we eventually learn that Metzger was the one who kidnapped, experimented on, and ultimately killed Jean's older sister Sarah. A fellow telepath, Sarah was taken to the DoDC's main testing facility on Staten Island, where she was used as a lab rat for the company's investigations into new tech powered by superhuman abilities.
Of course, as soon as Spidey learns the truth, our friendly neighborhood hero sets out to rescue Jean, whom he naively helped the DoDC to capture earlier in Brand New Day . Little does Peter Parker know, though, that it could've been his last mission...
Does Peter Parker die in Spider-Man: Brand New Day?
Don't worry, Spidey lives to fight another day (Image credit: Sony Pictures/Marvel Entertainment)
No, but he comes mightily close to losing his life.
After he infiltrates the DoDC's Staten Island headquarters, Spidey uses his upgraded powers to defeat members of The Hand controlled by an antagonistic Jean — remember, she still thinks Spider-Man is the enemy at this point.
Eventually, Peter tracks down Jean, who's holding Metzger hostage. Metzger tried to experiment on Jean as he did with Sarah, but the test not only goes awry, it unlocks Jean's full powerset. No longer limited by the 33-foot radius that her telepathic abilities had, Jean utilizes her powers to paralyze a large part of New York's human population, and threatens Peter that she'll hurt them all — including his former girlfriend M.J. and best friend Ned, who are caught in her paralyzing telepathic wave — if he tries to stop her from enacting revenge on Metzger.
I wonder if Frank will stop being so reckless from now on... (Image credit: Sony Pictures/Marvel Entertainment)
Being the good guy that he is, Peter manages to talk her down. He does so by allowing the souped-up Jean to enter his mind, where he shows her a very specific memory of Aunt May that helps Jean understand that, despite Sarah's death, she's not alone.
Happy ending, right? Not exactly. Like Spider-Man, Frank Castle, aka The Punisher, sprang into action when Jean used her upgraded powers on New York's residents. Unable to reach DoDC HQ, he heads to a nearby rooftop outside of the impacted zone. There, he uses his marksmanship skills to take a shot at Jean with a heavy-duty sniper rifle.
Sensing the incoming bullet, Spidey shields Jean from the sniper round and is critically injured by it. As he bleeds out, Jean employs her powers to keep him alive before Frank races him to a nearby hospital to undergo life-saving surgery.
Some time later, Peter wakes from his coma. After a heart-to-heart — and some light banter — with an apologetic and remorseful Frank, Peter checks himself out of the hospital.
A crowd of dedicated Spider-Man fans, who've congregated outside the hospital to hold a vigil for his swift recovery, awaits him. Fortunately, Frank stays behind, dons the Spider-Man mask, and waves to the assembled crowd from Spidey's hospital room, allowing a profoundly moved Peter to walk away without anyone knowing he's the real wallcrawler.
Does Jean Grey make M.J. and Ned remember Peter Parker in Spider-Man 4?
M.J. and Ned remember Peter Parker without Jean Grey's help (Image credit: Sony Pictures/Marvel Entertainment)
No — she doesn't need to, because the pair end up finding out that Peter is Spider-Man.
M.J. learns who he is when she discovers the note Peter had written back in 2021's Spider-Man: No Way Home . Meanwhile, Ned appears to remember Peter when the duo performs their secret handshake in Brand New Day 's final scene. Ultimately, then, Jean's possible intervention wasn't necessary.
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