Is Hulk in Spider-Man: Brand New Day? A leaked set image may have the answer

Spider-Man: Brand New Day is gearing up for production, as the movie is still a year away. One of the most persistent rumors about the movie for the past few months is the role of Mark Ruffalo’s Hulk in Brand New Day. It must be noted that as of now, Ruffalo has not been officially confirmed to return in the fourth Spider-Man movie.

But that hasn't stopped rumors from circulating for a while that Bruce Banner is indeed in the movie. Now, another leaked image from the Spider-Man: Brand New Day set hints at Bruce Banner/Hulk's presence in the hotly anticipated 2026 movie.

The latest Spider-Man: Brand New Day leak explained:

It is known that Spider-Man: Brand New Day is prepping for production in Glasgow. As of now, it is unknown if filming has started or not, but we do know that sets are being erected for filming to begin soon. One of these sets supposedly spoils the green giant's role in Brand New Day. A fan account on X (formerly Twitter) posted the said image:

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In the leaked image, we can observe a torn wanted poster featuring Mark Ruffalo’s Hulk. This image supposedly lends credibility to the rumor that Spider-Man: Brand New Day will mark the return of the savage Hulk, who hasn't been seen since the flashback in 2019's Avengers: Endgame.

But as of now, we don't know how the savage Hulk will be returning to the MCU, as Endgame revealed that Banner managed to merge his human side with the Hulk form. Thus, the possible return of the savage Hulk feels a bit regressive.

Hulk is not the only MCU character in Brand New Day, though:

While Hulk's participation in the fourth Spider-Man movie remains unconfirmed, we do know that the movie will feature Jon Bernthal's The Punisher. His inclusion was reported by The Hollywood Reporter on June 20, 2025, but it wasn't until a month later that Kevin Feige confirmed The Punisher's role in the movie.

Plus, Frank Castle/The Punisher's involvement in Brand New Day hints at the bridging of a gap between the Netflix Marvel Universe and the MCU. Feige discussed what we can expect from Frank Castle in the movie.

What is the Punisher's role in the upcoming Spider-Man movie?

Last week, on July 20, 2025, Marvel Studios held a press conference to discuss its future plans. In that conference, the Marvel boss teased a more realistic tone for the upcoming Spider-Man movie. He said:

“I think there’s a promise at the end of No Way Home, that for as sad as it is that Peter is forgotten by everyone in his life, we are seeing for the first time in the Tom Holland Spider-Man stories him being a proper Spider-Man. Him being by himself, dedicated to saving the city, and dealing with — for lack of better terms — street-level crime, as opposed to world-ending events.”

Then, he went on to tease Frank Castle's role in Spider-Man: Brand New Day, saying:

“So when you do that, you say, okay, who are the other street-level characters that we’ve never seen him interact with? And of course, I love that The Punisher started in a Spider-Man comic. That great cover... I don’t want to say too much, but Destin — I will say too much — Destin is doing an amazing job right now on that movie, which starts shooting very soon. And he’s got eight or nine comic covers up on his wall in his art department that he is bringing to life in this movie, which is super cool.”

July 2026 will see not one but two feature films that star Jon Bernthal and Tom Holland together: Christopher Nolan's The Odyssey and Spider-Man: Brand New Day, which is set to be directed by Destin Daniel Cretton.