Spider-Man: Brand New Day confirmed that Spider-Man fights a familiar version of Hulk (and no, not the Savage Hulk at first). Brand New Day will do a deep dive into Peter Parker's physical transformation as he struggles with accelerating mutations, prompting him to seek help from Bruce Banner (who wears a Hulk inhibitor device to stay in human form). However, the second trailer and the movie's wave of promotional materials confirmed that an unexpected clash between Spider-Man and Savage Hulk will happen in the upcoming MCU installment, leading to further destruction in New York.
A brand-new Spider-Man: Brand New Day promo confirmed that Spider-Man will fight two distinct versions of the Hulk, starting with the articulate and controlled Smart Hulk, the Banner-brained version introduced in Avengers: Endgame, and Savage Hulk.
In the 30-second promo, Spider-Man showcased his agility with a flip maneuver to evade Smart Hulk, taking down the Green Goliath, who is seemingly being mind-controlled by Brand New Day's main villain (who may or may not be Sadie Sink's Jean Grey).
Smart Hulk, who can be seen wearing his familiar blue sweater, is enraged in the official promo. The escalation could be triggered by a powerful psychic influence from Sink's mystery MCU character, prompting the transformation and leading to a possible deadly confrontation.
It's clear that this moment happens right before the most talked-about shot in the second trailer, where Spider-Man is seen coming face-to-face with the returning Savage Hulk. This promo essentially confirmed that Bruce will transform into Smart Hulk before being pushed to the limit by the psychic trigger, leading to full Savage Hulk chaos.
It's also worth noting that official Spider-Man: Brand New Day merchandise has already confirmed that Smart Hulk will appear in the film.
For example, Hot Toys' collectible bag clip blind box merchandise for Brand New Day specifically depicts Smart Hulk in his signature casual blue sweater, the exact same look featured in the trailer.
This merch strategy cleverly foreshadowed the two-phase fight between Spider-Man and the Green Goliath, letting fans know they'd get both versions of Hulk in one movie rather than the Savage Hulk alone.
Watch the official promo for Spider-Man: Brand New Day below:
Spider-Man: Brand New Day arrives in theaters on July 31.
Why Smart Hulk's Return Is Important In Spider-Man: Brand New Day
Spider-Man: Brand New Day's confirmation that Smart Hulk will be prominently featured in the movie strongly suggests that the Savage Hulk rampage won't be permanent.
By showing Banner in his controlled, articulate Smart Hulk form before the psychic trigger forces the transformation, Brand New Day indicates that the merged Banner-and-Hulk personality remains the baseline, meaning Banner can revert to that usual form once the psychic trigger dies down and regain control.
This revelation gives the Savage Hulk's chaos real weight without making it feel like a permanent regression, and it gives Bruce a last-ditch option to revert to his angrier Hulk if the situation requires it, while still maintaining the choice to become Smart Hulk.
Smart Hulk's return also conveys that the loss of identity and power can be scary, but control can be reclaimed. This is a lesson that Peter needs to learn in Brand New Day as he struggles with the duality of his responsibility as the web-slinging hero.
