Is it even considered a break-up if one party literally doesn’t remember the other’s existence? No, we’re not talking Eternal Sunshine Of The Spotless Mind – this is the fate of Tom Holland’s Peter Parker and Zendaya’s MJ as we enter Spider-Man: Brand New Day. Due to the reality-altering events of previous film No Way Home, the MCU at large no longer remembers Parker, nor that he’s the civilian counterpart to New York’s friendly neighbourhood Spider-Man. And that includes Peter’s best mate Ned (Jacob Batalon), and his girlfriend MJ too – who each ventured off to college while the newly-anonymous Peter committed to full-time hero-dom.
It was a bittersweet ending to the Jon Watts-directed Spider-Man trilogy, and true to the sacrificial essence of the character’s ‘great responsibility’. And now, as Brand New Day picks up, MJ has another romantic interest – played by Ahsoka’s Eman Esfandi – while Peter has to simply watch on. Even for its cast, it’s emotionally wrenching. “As someone who cares about the characters and cares about these films, it’s like, ‘Oh my God, it’s so heartbreaking,’” Zendaya tells Empire. “You just feel so bad because you want them to be happy, and you know ultimately they would be happier together.”
While MJ doesn’t remember Peter, she does – of course – still know about Spider-Man, and it seems the pair will cross paths in the more spandex-centric side of Brand New Day. Given the nature of Doctor Strange’s magic spell, get ready for a different kind of MJ-Spidey dynamic. “It’s easy in a way, because I don’t have to play that I know this person,” explains Zendaya. “I don’t have to play all the history that they have together because seemingly, to her, they don’t.” Here’s hoping love, uh, finds a way.
Read Empire’s full Spider-Man: Brand New Day cover story – speaking to Tom Holland, Zendaya, Jon Bernthal, Kevin Feige, Destin Daniel Cretton, Amy Pascal and more – in the July 2026 issue, on sale Thursday June 4. Pre-order a copy online here. Spider-Man: Brand New Day comes to cinemas from July 29.
