Spider-Man: Brand New Day was released on July 31, 2026, and is currently the highest-grossing movie of the year, per The Numbers. While Anne Hathaway is not a part of the film, writers have reflected on whether the rumors around her joining Spider-Man 4 as a supervillain were true.
Just two months before Spider-Man: Brand New Day, industry insider MyTimeToShineHello stated that Hathway would play a major role in the upcoming MCU projects (via Comic Basics). Before this, journalist Jeff Sneider reported that the 43-year-old was offered a role as a supervillain in Brand New Day, which she reportedly rejected. Sneider said, “Those were like legit rumors, and I’d heard that basically Anne Hathaway passed, and… Sarah Snook passed.” Now, weeks after the release of Spider-Man 4, the writers have addressed the rumors.
Co-writers of Spider-Man: Brand New Day, Chris McKenna and Erik Sommers, sat for a candid conversation on The Q&A with Jeff Goldsmith podcast. Host Jeff Goldsmith asked the writers about the rumors around Anne Hathaway joining the MCU as a supervillain in Spider-Man 4. To this, Sommers replied, “I don’t recall anything about that specific character, but that doesn’t mean that it wasn’t discussed. I don’t recall anything specifically. I don’t know about you, Chris.”
“We had a draft that was like, oh, we need another antagonist here. That’s when the idea of Damage Control came in, and the idea of Metzger came in. That came into a draft, and it really helped as we were developing the dynamics of the story. But I don’t remember that specific idea of Hathaway,” added co-writer McKenna.
What villains were featured in Spider-Man 4?
Spider-Man: Brand New Day introduced the character of Jean Grey, played by Sadie Sink. While the narrative initially established Grey as a villain, the character earned her redemption arc by the film’s end.
Alongside Grey, the major villain who made an appearance was Scorpion, aka Mac Gargan. Michael Mando reprised his role as Scorpion from Spider-Man: Homecoming. He was manipulated by Grey as she wreaked havoc in the film’s opening.
Alongside Grey and Scorpion, Peter Parker fought a few more street-level villains in the film. In the opening montage, Spider-Man fought the team of ninjas, the Hand, who again reappeared for a fight sequence in the later part of the film. The Avenger defeated the superhumanly strong cyborg, Ramrod. Parker had a brief fight sequence with Tarantula in the opening segment. He also fought the athlete-turned-villain Boomerang and crime boss Tombstone.
