MCU fans played a part in helping Marvel Studios create the ending for Spider-Man: Brand New Day when they showed up to set during the early days of the film's production. Brand New Day is still sitting on the box office throne in the world of entertainment. The MCU's most recent theatrical entry has already crossed $1.5 billion worldwide and is expected to surpass $2 billion in the coming weeks. For the first time in quite a while, it seems as though Brand New Day has united the MCU fanbase, with many praising its story and character work. What fans likely had no idea of, though, is that they influenced Marvel's decision to end Brand New Day the way that it did.
Marvel Studios President Kevin Feige recently appeared at the University of Southern California (USC), where he spoke about the making of Spider-Man: Brand New Day. Feige (who graduated from USC School of Cinematic Arts in 1995) revealed that the MCU fanbase influenced one of the movie's final scenes after they made their voices heard at the start of production. Feige recalled how, during "the very first week of production" in Glasgow, Scotland, "there were hundreds of people on the street" who filmed the entire process. This led to the making of the tank scene in Brand New Day (one of the movie's most notable action sequences that takes place near the beginning of the film):
"The very first week of production, and there were hundreds of people on the street and they were all filming. So, it got a lot of press, but it happened to also look awesome, because there was a giant rig above this tank driving and an actual stuntman swinging back and forth through it and landing on the side of it."
While MCU fans getting to see that scene filmed in person was definitely exciting, it also directly influenced Feige, Marvel Studios, and Brand New Day director Destin Daniel Cretton to end the film with everyone cheering for Spider-Man after he recovered in the hospital.
Feige revealed in the interview shared on Instagram that, during the on-location shooting in Glasgow, fans were "literally coming out and saying, 'We love you, Spider-Man,'" which is what occurred at the end of the film. That response from people who got to see "a guy in a suit swinging through the streets" made Feige and the rest of the team see just how much people adore Spider-Man, which translated to that scene at the end of Brand New Day where Spider-Man was receiving support from New Yorkers:
"And that really invigorated all of us and Destin [Daniel Cretton] to, A. people literally coming out and saying, 'We love you, Spider-Man,' like at the end of the movie, happened on the first day of production on this movie. And that sense of how thrilling it is for people to know that on some level, there was a guy in a suit swinging, swinging through the streets."
Most likely, Feige, Cretton, and the rest of Marvel Studios already had a similar scene in mind for the end of the movie, though there were other ideas as well. However, after Marvel Studios saw the real-life reaction to people seeing Spider-Man, it likely made it much easier for Marvel to say, "This is how we need to end Brand New Day."
Spider-Man: Brand New Day's Ending Sets up a Tragic Exit for Tom Holland's Peter Parker
Spider-Man: Brand New Day finally brought Tom Holland's Peter Parker's character arc full circle regarding how the hero is viewed by the public. After the events of Spider-Man: Far From Home, the entire world was against Spidey and Peter for what happened to Jake Gyllenhaal's Mysterio, leading to the web-slinger being hated by the masses.
However, Spider-Man proved he was a hero of the people, and Doctor Strange's spell in Spider-Man: No Way Home helped the world return to supporting his actions. Therefore, when the events of Brand New Day rolled around, New York and its residents were back to supporting Spider-Man.
While this was a feel-good moment for Peter, especially at the end of the film when he saw everyone publicly cheering for him, it also set the character up for a tragic exit when Holland inevitably leaves the suit and web-shooters behind in his career.
No one knows what Marvel's plans for Spider-Man are, but the leading theory is that, at some point, Peter will meet the MCU's version of Miles Morales and pass the Spider-Man mantle to him. It is possible that Marvel Studios could simply have Peter retire, but it isn't in Peter's nature to do something like that, especially when the world could always use another hero.
Therefore, it seems most likely that, at some point, Peter will be killed in the MCU. To the fans, Peter's death would absolutely be heartbreaking. However, now that New Yorkers and the rest of the world love Spider-Man in-universe, it would make Peter's death even more tragic, as the response to his death would likely be showcased on-screen.
Seeing Peter's friends mourn his loss would be sad enough, but considering Spider-Man is such a beloved figure, the public would likely be devastated by his death as well, making it an even harder (but more effective) watch.
