How Spider-Man: Brand New Day Connects to Daredevil: Born Again
How Marvel Can Connect Spider-Man: Brand New Day to Daredevil: Born Again
Image via Marvel Studios/Sony/Everett Collection
Published 5 hours ago
Jordan Iacobucci has been an avid reader and movie fan since childhood. Jordan is known among his friends as the Marvel and Star Wars nerd, and even wrote a thirty-page college dissertation about Spider-Man! He has been a staff writer at both Screen Rant and CBR, where he enjoys sharing his love for pop culture with the world.
Daredevil: Born Again and Spider-Man: Brand New Day are two of Marvel's most highly anticipated projects of 2026--and they may be more closely connected than anyone realizes. For years, fans have been looking for greater connections between Daredevil and Spider-Man, whose adventures have never crossed paths save for in their civilian lives. As Born Again Season 2 and Brand New Day inch closer, new story theories could hint at a greater connection between the two heroes.
While Marvel has confirmed very little about the second season of Born Again and the upcoming Spider-Man sequel, certain details hint at a close tie between the series and the film. The two street-level MCU stories are both set in a New York City ravaged by criminal enterprises, but there could be a larger narrative throughline that feeds directly from one project to the next. If these assertions prove true, it could hint at clashing mobsters, a brutal gang war, and the long-awaited team-up between Daredevil and Spider-Man for the first time in live-action.
Image via Marvel Studios/The Everett Collection
Although very little of Spider-Man: Brand New Day's plot has been made public, everything Marvel has revealed about the film points toward a gang war breaking out in New York City. The sequel is confirmed to include several key villains with ties to the New York underworld, including Michael Mando's Mac Gargan/Scorpion and Krondon's Lonnie Lincoln/Tombstone. Also rumored to appear in Brand New Day are other villains with known gang affiliations, including Tarantula, Black Cat, and Mister Negative. While it is possible that these characters could all be working together for a single crime syndicate, it seems far more likely that they will clash with one another on opposing sides of a gang war in the upcoming film.
Jon Bernthal's Frank Castle/Punisher is also confirmed to appear in Spider-Man: Brand New Day, continuing his crusade to kill the criminals of New York City. A clash between multiple criminal organizations on the streets of the city would be enough to warrant Castle's attention, and could even be a focal point of the upcoming Punisher Special Presentation. With each new detail to emerge from the set of Brand New Day, a gang war seems more and more likely. However, the seeds of that gang war may come directly from the second season of Daredevil: Born Again.
Born Again serves as a loose adaptation of the 'Devil's Reign' storyline from Marvel Comics, which sees Wilson Fisk elected mayor of New York City. In the comics and the series, Fisk's actions as mayor severely shake up the criminal underworld, creating a power vacuum that invites other gangsters to take the Kingpin's place. In the comics, this eventually leads to the 'Gang War' event, where criminals like Tombstone, Madame Masque, and Hammerhead all battle for control of New York's underworld. These stories could serve as inspiration for both Born Again Season 2 and Spider-Man: Brand New Day.
The end of 'Devil's Reign' leads directly to 'Gang War' in the Marvel Universe, and Born Again Season 2 could mark that transition for the MCU. The second season of Daredevil: Born Again may end with the Kingpin's final defeat and departure from New York City, mirroring the end of 'Devil's Reign' in the comics. However, as 'Gang War' shows, this would leave the rest of the criminals in the city to fight over who gets to take Fisk's place as the Kingpin of Crime. While Daredevil may succeed in defeating his archenemy, he would only be creating more problems for Spider-Man, who is left to clean up the mess left in Fisk's wake.
Kingpin Doesn't Need to Appear in Brand New Day
Image via Marvel Studios/Everett Collection
One major roadblock standing in the way of Daredevil: Born Again and Spider-Man: Brand New Day's potential connected story is Wilson Fisk himself. Vincent D'Onofrio, who plays the criminal mastermind in the MCU, recently opened up about the legal issues that would prevent his character from appearing in a movie. According to the actor, Marvel's licensing deal with Sony prevents the studio from using Kingpin in a film without express permission. D'Onofrio claims that this is the reason he will not appear in Brand New Day, despite many fan theories placing him as the main villain.
Although Marvel and Sony have worked together before to bring licensed characters into the MCU, Brand New Day doesn't need Kingpin to adapt a 'Gang War' storyline that connects directly to the events of Daredevil. In fact, Kingpin's absence is a major plot point of the original 'Gang War' crossover. While he does make an appearance toward the end of the storyline, Fisk's departure from New York is what creates the power vacuum that leads the other gang bosses to go to war with one another.
If the MCU's Wilson Fisk were to leave New York for good, it would leave room for other criminal masterminds to come out of the woodwork to claim his place as the Kingpin of Crime. Audiences have already seen elements of this in the first season of Born Again. Brand New Day can continue this storyline by featuring more iconic gang bosses from the comics, including Tombstone and Mister Negative, as they vie for Fisk's vacated seat of power.
While it would be terrific to see Vincent D'Onofrio's Wilson Fisk share the screen with Spider-Man, he doesn't need to appear in Brand New Day. Marvel can still adapt the 'Gang War' storyline without the Kingpin, especially if Daredevil: Born Again does the work to set up the conflict in its upcoming second season. And, while Kingpin himself may not star in the upcoming Spider-Man sequel, other Daredevil characters could.
Will Daredevil Show Up in Spider-Man: Brand New Day?
Image via Marvel Studios
Although Kingpin may be barred from appearing in Spider-Man: Brand New Day, the upcoming superhero film could still feature an epic crossover with Daredevil: Born Again. For years, fans have been begging Marvel for a proper team-up between Spider-Man and Daredevil. The two street-level vigilantes make for a dynamic duo in the pages of the comic books, teaming up often for some really fun stories. While Matt Murdock and Peter Parker briefly share the screen in Spider-Man: No Way Home, their superhero alter-egos have yet to cross paths.
Charlie Cox claims not to be part of Spider-Man: Brand New Day, but he did say the same thing about No Way Home before its release. It would be a grave mistake for Marvel to include Punisher in the film yet leave Daredevil out. As fun as a Spider-Man/Punisher team-up would be, most fans would trade it instantly for a crossover between Spider-Man and Daredevil. It seems much more likely that all three vigilantes will play a role in the upcoming superhero film, especially if it centers around a gang war breaking out on the streets of New York City.
As the sworn defender of Hell's Kitchen, it wouldn't make sense for Daredevil to sit out of the events of a gang war. Marvel fans have already had to suspend their disbelief enough to accept that Spider-Man wouldn't get involved in the events of Born Again. For Daredevil to also sit idly by while a gang war raged on the streets of his city would be a bridge too far for viewers to cross. Brand New Day needs to include Daredevil in its story, even if it is just to show that he is taking an active part in quelling the ongoing gang war.
If the ending of Daredevil: Born Again Season 2 runs directly into the events of Spider-Man: Brand New Day, fans are closer than ever to finally getting that Spider-Man/Daredevil team-up they've wanted for years. Together, these two vigilantes may be the only ones capable of saving New York from a clash of criminals unlike anything the city has ever seen before.
Daredevil: Born Again Season 2 premieres on March 4, 2026, exclusively on Disney+.
Spider-Man: Brand New Day opens in theaters on July 31, 2026.
