I Was Disappointed In The Hulk's Role In Spider-Man: Brand New Day

Aug 03, 2026 - 07:16

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Published Aug 2, 2026, 10:30 PM EDT

Josh is a film critic and journalist with over nine years of experience in the entertainment industry. Entering the field at just 17 years old, Josh went on to make his own website, The HoloFiles, and social media brand Star Wars Holocron, the most followed Star Wars fan account on Twitter/X.

A member of both the Chicago Indie Critics and the Hollywood Critics Alliance, Josh has covered major industry events including Star Wars Celebration and, most recently, CinemaCon for ScreenRant. His work has appeared in outlets such as Game Rant and Comic Book Resources (CBR), and he has been featured in publications including the BBC and The New York Times.

After months of hype and speculation, Marvel Studios’ most famous hero finally returns to the big screen this weekend. Spider-Man: Brand New Day is now in theaters, telling the continuation of the story of Tom Holland’s Spider-Man in the Marvel Cinematic Universe. Holland is joined once again by Zendaya and Jacob Batalon, and the trio together make up the heart of MCU Spider-Man.

While on the press tour for the film, Marvel Studios president Kevin Feige discussed the evolution of Spider-Man in the MCU. Feige described the Home trilogy as “the first act” of the first Sam Raimi movie spread out across three films. Feige also clarified that the goal for the Home trilogy was to cement Spider-Man as part of the MCU, focusing on him interacting with other heroes and the broader established world around him.

As part of that, Holland’s Spider-Man has met a number of Marvel heroes (and villains). Even as Brand New Day represents the beginning of a new era for the character, Spider-Man still has plenty of time with other Marvel heroes in the film. Characters like The Hulk, Punisher, and even (spoiler) Jean Grey are all seen interacting with Spider-Man in the new film.

That the Hulk and the Punisher are in Brand New Day is no surprise, as the two appeared extensively in the film’s trailers and broader promotional campaign. Hulk in particular has been teased as a big part of the film, but some viewers may find themselves disappointed by the character’s role in Brand New Day.

Hulk Has Limited Screen Time In Brand New Day

Mark Ruffalo first debuted as the Hulk in The Avengers in 2012, and the actor has gone on to appear in a number of projects in the MCU ever since. The character played a huge role in the Infinity Saga, and was a key player in the culmination installment, Avengers: Endgame. Hulk was the character that was strong enough to withstand the power that comes from snapping fingers with the infinity stones, thus bringing all of the dead heroes back to life.

Since that film, Hulk has appeared more sparingly in the MCU. He had a supporting role in the 2022 Disney+ series She-Hulk, and was even shown to have a son in the show’s finale (a plot line that Brand New Day opts not to follow up on). One year before that show, Hulk also had a very brief role in the post credits scene of Shang-Chi and the Legend of the Ten Rings.

Because it has been a few years since Hulk has made an appearance in the franchise, anticipation has been high regarding the character’s reemergence in Brand New Day. Excitement has been especially strong as this is the first time that the Hulk and Spider-Man interact in live action, as even though they are both on the Avengers team in Endgame, they don’t share any direct screen time.

Some may find themselves disappointed, then, in Hulk’s role in Brand New Day. It’s not as big of a role for Mark Ruffalo as the trailers made it out to be, and the character is instead used more so as an action set piece more than anything else. Hulk’s first appearance is as Bruce Banner, when Peter Parker visits him after a class at the university he’s now teaching at (and fielding Thanos-related questions from his students).

Peter doesn’t want to ask about Thanos, however, and instead wants to know about gene modification and suppressing certain traits. Banner quickly deduces that Peter isn’t actually a student in his class, but because of the spell in No Way Home, he can’t quite place where he knows the young hero from. After speaking with Bruce, Peter then gets the idea to create a universal chip that can control the powers of anyone it’s attached to.

From there, Bruce Banner isn’t seen again until an action sequence in the film’s second act. Jean Grey finds him and removes the device from his wrist that keeps Hulk at bay. During this sequence, it’s no longer Bruce in charge, as the Hulk comes out and causes chaos. Spider-Man and the Punisher then team up to stop him, with the latter appearing particularly fearful of the Hulk’s strength and power.

The Hulk eventually calms down, and Bruce Banner is then transported to a hospital in an ambulance. That’s the last time he’s seen in the film, as the story then narrows its focus to Peter’s personal life and the Jean Grey/Department of Damage Control plot lines.

Hulk’s Role Feels Inconsequential To The Film Overall

All in all, Bruce Banner/Hulk only appears in two major scenes in the entirety of Brand New Day. The character is a major part of the action sequence that dominates the second act of the film, but is largely absent from the story beyond that. The action scene itself is incredibly memorable (and is one of the best Hulk-related scenes in the history of the MCU), but that doesn’t erase the fact that the character’s role feels somewhat meaningless come the end of the film.

In many ways, then, it feels as if Hulk’s inclusion was one designed to link Spider-Man to the rest of the MCU more than anything else. Ironically, that’s what Kevin Feige said the Home trilogy was focused on, and teased that Brand New Day would hone in on Peter Parker/Spider-Man as a character. However, Brand New Day still follows the Home trilogy closely in this regard, as Hulk has similar screen time to Iron Man, Nick Fury, and Doctor Strange in those films.

Yet, all of those heroes had more of an impact on their respective films’ story than Hulk does in Brand New Day. That may leave some audiences disappointed, especially those looking for a more substantial role for the Hulk in the new film.

Almost All Of Hulk’s Scenes Are Shown In The Trailers

Making matters worse is the fact that almost every scene featuring the Hulk is shown in the trailers. Peter and Bruce meeting in the college lecture hall, along with their conversation around campus, can be seen in various trailers/TV spots, and the Hulk’s action sequence is a big part of the film’s marketing as well.

Sony has developed a reputation for showing almost too much from their films (even as they had the restraint to hold back on highlighting Tobey Maguire and Andrew Garfield in the trailers of No Way Home). This habit can be seen once again with how much Hulk is seen in the advertising for Spider-Man: Brand New Day, which ends up having a negative impact on the film as a whole.