Tom Holland reveals Spider-Man’s surprising inspiration in ‘Spider-Man: Behind Brand New Day’
Tom Holland is prepping a Spider-Man return — and, surprisingly, it’s another superhero shaping how he thinks about it.
Tom Holland says a single joke from The Lego Batman Movie became the compass for Peter Parker’s off-duty life in Spider- Man: Brand New Day . He sent director Destin Daniel Cretton the clip where Gotham assumes Bruce Wayne is living it up — smash cut to him microwaving lobster alone — as the vibe check for a quieter, lonelier Peter back in Queens.
“When they think ‘Batman must be going home and having parties with all his friends and dating supermodels’ and then it cuts to him in his house alone,”
“I remember sending that to Destin being like ‘we should do something like this.’”
Holland said that in an interview with Accion Cine Series.
This time around, Holland wasn’t just the guy in the suit — he was in the room shaping it. He took a real turn in the writers’ room, pitching ideas pulled from places fans actually live with Spider-Man.
- Fan feedback
- Classic comics
- Insomniac’s PlayStation games
- Earlier Spider-Man suits
A lonelier Peter Parker
Brand New Day picks up after No Way Home’s memory wipe, where the world no longer knows Peter Parker. MJ and Ned moved on without him, and he’s patrolling New York solo. That’s where the Lego Batman inspiration lands — not as a gag, but as a rhythm: a hero everyone assumes is thriving, who goes home to a one-bedroom and dead silence.
What’s next for Spidey
The quieter tone didn’t slow the movie down. Brand New Day opened to $360 million domestically, edging past the Avengers: Endgame benchmark, and hit $932 million worldwide in three days. The global haul has since crossed $2.4 billion.
There’s no release date yet for a fifth Spider-Man, but Marvel boss Kevin Feige told Variety there are always plans in motion — and that Holland and Zendaya will get a well-earned breather after the press blitz. Feige also noted the next stretch of the Multiverse Saga needs to land before Spidey swings back in.
- Avengers: Doomsday — due this December
- Another Avengers film — December 2027
- Sony’s animated Spider-Man: Beyond the Spider-Verse — June 2027
- Spider-Man 5 — release date TBA
Holland has said he wants to play Peter as long as he can — and that there’s already a plan for the eventual handoff when the time comes.