By now most fans are likely aware of the inclusion of Jon Bernthal's Punisher as a fellow hero in the upcoming fourth installment of Sony's MCU-focused Spider-Man franchise starring Tom Holland. He's not the only hero that is going to appear, as Mark Ruffalo's Hulk is set to up the stakes come July as well, promising to deliver a must-see adventure for those who enjoy that corner of the Marvel Cinematic Universe.
This continues a trend of MCU characters crossing over into the Sony-Verse throughout the franchise as part of the deal Sony made with Marvel back in 2015, ahead of Captain America: Civil War and Spider-Man: Homecoming. While Marvel gets to feature the web-head in team-ups like the previously mentioned Civil War as well as Avengers: Infinity War and Avengers: Endgame, Sony gets to utilize popular faces from the wider Marvel Cinematic Universe as seen with Robert Downey Jr.'s Tony Stark/Iron Man, Gwyneth Paltrow's Pepper Potts/Rescue, and Jon Favreau's Happy Hogan, (not to mention a special cameo from Chris Evans' Captain America himself) in 2017's first Holland lefd-solo feature, Spider-Man: Homecoming.
This agreement clearly worked out for both sides because Samuel L. Jackson's Nick Fury, Colbie Smulders' Maria Hill, and Ben Mendelsohn's Talos all appeared in the sequel film, Spider-Man: Far From Home come 2019, with a second appearance from Jon Favreau's Happy Hogan. Meanwhile, the massively successful threequel Spider-Man: No Way Home continued this trend with the inclusion of Benedict Cumberbatch's Stephen Strange/Doctor Strange, Benedict Wong's Sorceror Supreme, Wong, and even a minor cameo by Charlie Cox's Matt Murdock/Daredevil.
It's also worth noting that several characters created by Sony ultimately made the leap to the wider MCU with Zach Cherry's Klev appearing in Shang-Chi and the Legend of the Ten Rings and Your Friendly Neighborhood Spider-Man Season 1. Although it was a mere cameo, Jacob Batalon's Ned Leeds also showed up in Avengers: Infinity War for a moment. Marisa Tomei's Aunt May was present for Tony's funeral in Avengers: Endgame, but it's worth noting that despite her strong presence in the wall-crawler's trilogy, she was initially introduced in Captain America: Civil War, a Marvel Studios title. It's also something to remember that the Department of Damage Control has been present in multiple titles on Disney+ following their introduction in Sony's films.
With that in mind, it should come as no surprise that the new deal made between Sony Pictures and Marvel Studios will continue the habit of featuring wider-MCU heros in the Spidey flicks in mentor roles, with Jon Bernthal's Frank Castle/Punisher and Mark Ruffalo's Bruce Banner/Hulk not being the only ones said to be appearing this July. Many reports and rumors have stated that Florence Pugh's Yelena Belova and Rosario Dawson's Claire Temple/Night Nurse will appear in Brand New Day, with unconfirmed claims that the film will also include Charlie Cox's Matt Murdock, Elodie Yung's Elektra Natchios, and perhaps Sadie Sink as Jean Grey. That's not to mention characters featured in the trailer like The Hand and Zabryna Guevara's Sheila Rivera from Daredevil.
With all of these names in circulation, the film is sure to be spectacular, but one name in particular stands out to us in regards to The Punisher - and that's Rosario Dawson's Claire Temple/Night Nurse. See, in the comics, Punisher inflicted lethal justice on two villains - Jester and Jack'o'Lantern to save a wounded Peter Parker and deliver him to medical attention before taking a subsequent pounding from his hero, Captain America. While it may not have been Night Nurse who helped save Peter's life in the Civil War comic, the fact that she's involved certainly lines up with that particular storyline, as she came from the same Netflix corner of the MCU that Frank originated in.
It only makes sense that Frank Castle would be the link leading Peter to Claire, and that has us wondering how Marvel could live with themselves if they missed the opportunity to deliver an adaptation of the famous scene where Punisher murders two of Spidey's foes in cold blood, especially with as many villains that are confirmed and rumored to make an appearance in Spider-Man: Brand New Day.
With Tarantula, Boomerang, Scorpion, Tombstone, Jackal, and The Hand all set or likely to be involved, there are several contenders for villains who aren't needed to stick around for the long haul that could be dispatched easily, and our money is on Boomerang and Tarantula initially appearing in flashbacks with a subsequent scene in which Frank takes it too far, leaving them for dead. With Scorpion's arc more likely than not to lead him to the Symbiote and possibly a new Thunderbolts/Dark Avengers* line-up, and Tombstone said to be one that Sony has big plans for in the upcoming sequels to Brand New Day, it makes Tarantula and Boomerang the most likely contenders.
While The Hand may be an option, we expect Peter to have a bigger response if the deaths are of two villains he previously dealt with and put away without any need to murder them. And with it nearly impossible for us to expect Captain America to show up to deliver Frank's much-deserved beat-down, it's looking more likely that Spider-Man himself might take it too far against Frank in retaliation, especially if the symbiote is involved in any way with his emotions.
Of course, this is all speculation, so we'd love to hear what you guys think about potentially seeing this panel play out in live-action, so drop a comment wth your thoughts!
If you haven't seen the trailer for Spider-Man: Brand New Day yet, you can do so below.
Peter Parker devotes his life to protecting New York City as a full-time Spider-Man. But as the demands on him intensify, the pressure sparks a surprising physical evolution that threatens his existence, even as a strange new pattern of crimes gives rise to one of the most powerful threats he's ever faced.
Spider-Man: Brand New Day hits theaters on July 31st.