At the end of 2021's Spider-Man: Brand New Day, the world forgot Peter Parker existed when Doctor Strange unleashed a spell that prevented Earth-616 from being invaded by every variant that knows the web-slinger's secret identity.
Tragically, this meant that while the likes of Happy Hogan, Ned Leeds, and MJ remembered their adventures with Spider-Man, they could no longer recall who was under the mask or their history with Peter. However, there was a glimmer of hope at the end of the movie when MJ seemed to have some faint recognition of her boyfriend (suggesting their love might be strong enough to overpower Strange's spell).
We've repeatedly heard that MJ, who ended up going to MIT, will have a new boyfriend in Spider-Man: Brand New Day. Now, though, we may know who is playing the unnamed love interest.
According to Daniel Richtman, Ahsoka star Eman Esfandi may have been cast as MJ's boyfriend in the movie. There's no word on which character he'll play, but we can't imagine Marvel Studios would use Paul Rabin, perhaps one of the most reviled Amazing Spider-Man supporting players in the web-slinger's long-running history.
Harry Osborn is a name we've seen thrown around a fair few times, and it's hard to imagine Esfandi being cast as a character with no links to the comics.
Either way, his MCU debut is exciting. The Ezra Bridger actor is one of Hollywood's rising stars, and we'd imagine he found time to shoot a small role in Spider-Man: Brand New Day, as Ahsoka Season 2 was in production in the UK around the same time.
MJ hasn't had many love interests outside of Peter on the page, but Rick Turk, Bobby Carr, and Pedro Olivera are among the possibilities for Esfandi's rumoured Spider-Man: Brand New Day role. Hopefully, we'll learn more when the movie's first trailer is released (possibly as soon as later this month).
Shang-Chi and the Legend of the Ten Rings helmer Destin Daniel Cretton directs Spider-Man: Brand New Day from a script by returning Spider-Man franchise writers Chris McKenna and Erik Sommers.
Tom Holland plays Spider-Man in a cast that also includes Jon Bernthal (The Punisher), Mark Ruffalo (The Hulk), Zendaya (MJ), Sadie Sink, Michael Mando (The Scorpion), Tramell Tillman, Marvin Jones III (Tombstone), Jacob Batalon (Ned Leeds), and Liza Colón-Zayas. Avengers: Doomsday star Florence Pugh is expected to reprise her Thunderbolts* role as Yelena Belova.
Spider-Man: Brand New Day will be released in theaters on July 31, 2026.