Marvel Studios seems ready to bypass one of the most defining chapters of Peter Parker's life on the big screen. While Tobey Maguire quickly moved beyond high school during his Spider-Man run, Tom Holland was given an entire trilogy set during Peter's teenage years in the MCU. That extended focus on his formative era is why fans love this iteration so much. However, with Spider-Man: Brand New Day releasing July 31, it looks like Marvel may fast-forward past the next crucial stage of Peter's life entirely.
The first plot synopsis for Spider-Man: Brand New Day was revealed, highlighting a Spider-Man "at the top of his game" while confronting a new, dangerous mystery. It also unveiled something that fans may not be happy to hear: It's been four years since the events of Spider-Man: No Way Home. That's the biggest off-screen time jump audiences have experienced with Holland's Parker, not counting the Avengers: Endgame five-year flash-forward during The Blip.
Marvel Comics fans will notice that this means Brand New Day might skip Peter Parker's college era. If it's four years after the end of No Way Home, that means Peter is likely a college senior in New York City. This also means Ned (Jacob Batalon) and MJ (Zendaya) are most likely seniors at MIT.
No Way Home could have a bit of the same effect as The Amazing Spider-Man 2, where Peter was technically graduating high school, but the story was definitely of a new chapter. Similarly, in Brand New Day, it seems Peter's time in college is coming to a close, and fans have missed this crucial chapter of his life, having to rebuild it from the ground up after No Way Home.
Hopefully, Brand New Day leans into Peter's time in college, even if he's about to graduate. Seeing the MCU's take on Empire State University could be exciting for fans, especially with rumors that Mark Ruffalo's Bruce Banner is a professor.
The growing issue could be the absence of storylines that were most prevalent during Spider-Man's college era. Some of those storylines from Marvel Comics aren't possible in the MCU based on alternate adaptations that don't follow Peter's story, but others are fundamental for the late-teens, early-20s web-head.
Spider-Man 4 Is Skipping These College Storylines
Working at The Daily Bugle
Famously, Peter Parker works as a photographer for the Daily Bugle in Marvel Comics, a job that defined much of his high school and college life. Selling exclusive photos of Spider-Man to J. Jonah Jameson was more than ironic comedy; it was Peter's primary source of income for the struggling vigilante.
That dynamic was faithfully adapted in Sam Raimi's trilogy, where Peter's time at The Bugle highlighted his financial instability and public scrutiny.
In the MCU, however, Holland's Peter has shown little interest in photography, leaning instead into science, engineering, and LEGO building. The Daily Bugle itself has also been reimagined as a conspiracy-driven video platform run by J. K. Simmons' J. Jonah Jameson.
After the identity reset in No Way Home, Peter was left broke and alone, the perfect setup for a scrappy freelance photography era in early college. By jumping ahead to senior year in Brand New Day, the MCU may skip over that classic struggling college Peter phase entirely.
Spider-Man No More!
"Spider-Man No More!" from The Amazing Spider-Man #50 stands as one of the defining stories of Peter Parker's college era in Marvel Comics history. Overwhelmed by academic pressure, financial hardship, and constant public blame, Peter quits being Spider-Man and discards his suit in a trash can, one of the most iconic images in superhero comics.
It was famously adapted in Spider-Man 2, where Tobey Maguire portrayed a similar collapse under pressure, also during his college years. In fact, the film illustrates that he's struggling in school, then bounces back after giving up the Spider-Man mantle.
If Brand New Day begins with Peter already deep into senior year and handling things well, fans will miss out on him struggling to balance being both a brilliant student and a city-saving hero.
Gwen Stacy & College Romance
Gwen Stacy was fundamentally a college-era character in Marvel Comics continuity, introduced when Peter began classes at Empire State University.
Alongside her came Captain Stacy, whose mentorship and eventual death became pivotal to Peter's growth. Their relationship unfolded slowly across Peter's college years, an arc that was accelerated to high school in The Amazing Spider-Man films.
Most notably, Green Goblin killed Gwen in The Night Gwen Stacy Died, marking one of the darkest turning points in superhero comics. Though after The Amazing Spider-Man 2, it's unlikely the MCU will ever touch this storyline again.
With no Gwen currently in the MCU (one of many Sadie Sink rumors) and Brand New Day leaping forward, the entire slow-burn college romance that defined this era may simply never happen.
In fact, it seems that Peter has had no romantic interests this entire time in college and is still in love with MJ, who doesn't know he exists.
