10 Comics 'Spider-Man 5' Needs To Take Inspiration From
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With the success of Spider-Man: Brand New Day—now sitting among the top 3 highest-grossing movies of all time—there's zero question that Marvel Studios and Sony Pictures Entertainment are going to be investing even more heavily in the Marvel Cinematic Universe Spider-Man moving forward. It's hard to deny that director Destin Daniel Cretton and actor Tom Holland put their all into making sure this fourth Spidey movie was going to be amazing, and with them moving forward onto the fifth as the creative minds once more, there are high hopes. This is especially true with how much respect they pay to the comics throughout the entire movie.
With this in mind, the fifth movie will most likely be taking more inspiration from the comics. Whether it be through the story or simply the introduction of a new character, there are a few comics that Spider-Man 5 really should take inspiration from. There are plenty of books that would serve as great foundations for the next hit superhero flick, but there are also some that most definitely stand out among the rest. With Tom Holland claiming he has started looking online for what fans want—starting with Spider-Man: Brand New Day—and said fans begging for characters like Mister Negative and Black Cat, there are some obvious choices to take notes from.
10 Marvel Knights Spider-Man #9–10 (2004)
If there's one thing that got people talking during the production of Spider-Man: Brand New Day, it's the fact that Michael Mando, the actor for Scorpion, was sharing Instagram stories of Scorpion as Venom. While this didn't end up being the case for anything truly related to the film, maybe there's a chance that, in the future, audiences could see a Scorpion Venom. This concept was first introduced in Marvel Knights Spider-Man #9–10 (2004).
With everyone already asking for a Symbiote in the MCU, this could be Marvel Studios' way of differentiating their universe's Spider-Man from the others out there—something they've done with every movie thus far, consistently subverting expectations. Michael Mando's Scorpion was a fan favorite in Spider-Man: Brand New Day, so they'd be fools not to bring him back in a bigger role in the future.
9 Amazing Spider-Man #657–658 (2011)
Spider-Man knows a lot of people in the Marvel Comics universe, but he's easily the closest to The Fantastic Four—often considered part of the family. With the MCU's soft reboot on its way post-Avengers: Secret Wars, many believe that the MCU's Fantastic Four will be joining the main timeline. Because of this, there's a perfect chance to give more people for Spidey to connect with now that he's not facing life alone anymore—thanks to the end of his character arc in Spider-Man: Brand New Day.
One of the most impactful times for the Wall-Crawler and his found family is, without question, the days following Johnny Storm's death. Peter was closest to Johnny, so he spent a good bit of time with the family, mourning right alongside them. However, they also asked him an important question: Will he join the Future Foundation (their name at the time)? Always wanting to be part of this iconic team—established literally in his first solo issue, Amazing Spider-Man #1 (1962)—he obviously said yes. The soft reboot of the MCU is the perfect chance to get Peter connected with this team and give him a family now that he no longer has Aunt May (Marisa Tomei) by his side, and he's yet to fully reconnect with Michelle Jones-Watson (Zendaya).
8 Amazing Spider-Man Annual #1 (1964)
The first annual issue of the Amazing Spider-Man (1963) series introduced one of the most popular villain groups in comics history: The Sinister Six. Six of Spider-Man's villains came together to jump the poor web-slinging wonder and absolutely beat him down. With there being a whopping four years spanning across the montage at the beginning of Spider-Man: Brand New Day, he's clearly taken down many villains since the end of Spider-Man: No Way Home.
Now, what if Spidey's villains came together in Spider-Man 5 to get some good ol' fashioned revenge? He's got Scorpion, Vulture (Michael Keaton), Shocker (Bokeem Woodbine), Tombstone (Marvin Jones III), Boomerang (Aidan Kennedy), Tarantula (uncredited), Ramrod (Billy Clements), and even potentially Mysterio (Jake Gyllenhaal)—if the rumors of his demise are greatly exaggerated—already existing in-universe and available to come together to team up against him. This could even be a great opportunity to introduce a Master Planner—typically Doctor Octopus in the comics, but could be any grand planner like Mister Negative.
7 Peter Parker, The Spectacular Spider-Man #107–110 (1985)
One of the most important story arcs for Spider-Man comics is none other than "The Death of Jean DeWolff" saga. This death truly tested Spider-Man's ethics, with her death at the hands of the Sin Eater pushing him to almost kill the villain. Jean DeWolff's (Liza Colón-Zayas) inclusion in Spider-Man: Brand New Day opens the door for a heartbreaking plotline in Spider-Man 5.
Especially if Spider-Man gets the Symbiote in Spider-Man 5—potentially in Avengers: Secret Wars—the writers are going to want to push Peter to his limits, and this is the perfect chance to do so. Regardless, ripping another figure like this from Spider-Man's life would be heart-wrenching and something that would redefine him moving forward.
6 The Hobgoblin Saga: Amazing Spider-Man #238–251 (1983–1984) & Peter Parker, The Spectacular Spider-Man #43–48 (1980)
With Tom's Spider-Man already having faced a Green Goblin (Willem Dafoe) in Spider-Man: No Way Home, it doesn't make a ton of sense for him to get his own universe's Green Goblin. However, there are still goblins in Marvel Comics that director Destin Daniel Cretton could choose from if he wanted one. There's actually a plethora of potential in the likes of Ned Leeds (Jacob Batalon).
Ever since Ned was brought into the fold in Spider-Man: Homecoming, fans have said that the MCU could easily adapt his comic book lore and make him this universe's Hobgoblin. Spidey is no stranger to his friends becoming enemies—Harry Osborn being the most popular—so seeing Ned turn against his friend would be heartbreaking, especially given how long audiences have watched their friendship grow and flourish. They're one of the strongest duos in the MCU, for sure.
Collider Exclusive · 8 Questions · 2 Minutes What MCU Superpower Would You Have? Strength · Spider-Sense · Invisibility · Chaos Magic
Eight honest questions about how you actually are: your first instinct when things go wrong, what your friends rely on you for, how you handle stress, what your real flaw is. Answer them and we will tell you which power you would wake up with. The best ones in the MCU are never random, because they always say something about the person who got them.
💪Super Strength(Hulk)
🕸️Spider-Sense(Spider-Man)
🫧Invisibility(Fantastic Four)
🔮Chaos Magic(Scarlet Witch)
01
What is your first instinct when something goes wrong? Go with the honest answer rather than the heroic one.
02
How do you handle being the centre of attention? Every hero on this list answers this differently.
03
What do your friends rely on you for? They would all name the same thing about you.
04
How do you deal with stress? Nobody picks the healthy one, and that is fine.
05
What is your actual flaw? The useful thing here is picking the true one.
06
What kind of help do you actually give people? Everybody has one default, whatever the situation is.
07
How do you want strangers to see you? Answer for the first ten minutes, not the first year.
08
What would you want a superpower for? Eight questions in, this is the one that picks your power.
The Gift Is Given Your Power Is…
Four powers, and four completely different kinds of person behind them. Here is what you would wake up with, what it would cost you, and why the MCU keeps handing it to somebody exactly like you.
Super Strength
You get the power that is really about taking the hit so that nobody else has to. Strength in the MCU always lands on people who were already carrying too much, which is exactly why it suits you.
- Your instinct is to put yourself between the problem and the people, and you do it before anybody has thought to ask.
- Bruce Banner is the most interesting version of this because his story was never about lifting things, it was about control.
- The catch with strength is that people stop checking whether you are alright, since you have made a habit of looking like you always are.
- You would be the one everybody calls at two in the morning, and you would answer every single time.
Spider-Sense
You get the power that never switches off. Spider-sense is a gift and a nervous system on permanent alert, and the people who get it in these films are always the ones who were already worrying about everybody.
- You read a situation faster than you can explain it, and you are usually right in a way you cannot show your working for.
- Peter Parker is the template because he takes on more than he can hold and then apologises for not holding it well enough.
- Spider-Man: Brand New Day arrived in July 2026 and put him back to being local, broke and permanently on call.
- The cost here is real, since a power that warns you about everything also means you are never quite off duty.
Invisibility
You get the quietest power in the building, and quietly the most useful. Invisibility comes with force fields for a reason, because the people who prefer not to be seen are usually the ones holding a shield around everybody else.
- You notice everything, largely because you spend more time observing a room than performing in it.
- Sue Storm is the strongest member of her team and the least interested in anybody saying so, which is very much your energy.
- The Fantastic Four: First Steps finally gave the family a proper MCU home in 2025 and made her the centre of it.
- Your risk is that being unseen becomes a habit rather than a choice, and the people who love you would like a look in.
Chaos Magic
You get the biggest and least comfortable power on the list, the one that runs directly on feeling. Chaos magic is not really a superpower in the MCU so much as an emotional state with consequences attached.
- You feel things at a volume other people do not, and you have spent years managing that rather than being managed by it.
- Wanda is the best written character Marvel has, precisely because her power and her grief turned out to be the same thing.
- WandaVision remains the high point of Marvel television, and it works because the spectacle is only ever a symptom.
- The warning attached to this one is simple. A power that answers to how you feel is only ever as steady as you are.
5 Kraven's Last Hunt: Web of Spider-Man #31–32 (1987), Amazing Spider-Man #293–294 (1987), and Peter Parker, The Spectacular Spider-Man #131–132 (1987)
Honestly, it's a long shot, but who cares that audiences just had to suffer through Kraven the Hunter? With how much of a failure the film was, there's really no stopping Marvel Studios and Sony Pictures Entertainment from bringing a version of the character into the MCU—heck, maybe even keep Aaron Taylor-Johnson. The story arc known as "Kraven's Last Hunt" is one of the most famous Spider-Man comic arcs of all time.
This comic arc is a very thought-provoking one, diving into human psychology quite a bit. With the two companies spearheading the franchise, most definitely keeping the grounded, thoughtful direction of Spider-Man: Brand New Day moving forward, "Kraven's Last Hunt" may be a perfect story to use to test the willpower of Tom Holland's Spider-Man. Kraven is an incredible villain and should not end his cinematic career with Kraven the Hunter. He deserves better than that!
4 Amazing Spider-Man #194 (1979)
Sony Pictures Entertainment has been trying to include Black Cat in every live-action Spider-Man franchise since the days of the Sam Raimi series. They've even attempted to launch Black Cat films in the past. It's clear that they want to bring her into the fold, and with Peter's conflict of balancing his reborn personal life and the Spider-Man life he's currently struggling with, introducing a love interest or good friend exclusively on the Spider-Man side of his life is a great opportunity for parallels and contrast.
Amazing Spider-Man #194 (1979) acts as the first introduction of Black Cat in the comics, and if they ever decide to bring her into the MCU—which Sony Pictures Entertainment is probably pushing for already—this is a great book to take notes from. The storytelling possibilities for Black Cat in cinema are greater now than they ever have been. Spider-Man's current place in his character arc allows for phenomenal story potential.
3 Amazing Spider-Man #252 (1984)
If one is paying attention to the release dates of future Marvel movies, they'll see that Spider-Man 5 doesn't come out until after Avengers: Secret Wars. The Marvel Super Heroes Secret Wars (1984) miniseries was a huge one for Spider-Man, as well. This is where he first acquired the legendary Symbiote suit, which could very well happen to Holland's variant in Avengers: Secret Wars.
If this does happen, it only makes sense that when he returns to cinema for the first time since the event film, the team takes inspiration from the first Spidey comic that came out after Marvel Super Heroes Secret Wars (1984): Amazing Spider-Man #252 (1984). This book re-establishes what Peter's life is going to look like now that his status quo has had such a major change. With whatever gigantic thing happens in Avengers: Secret Wars—the young hero getting the Symbiote or not—he's going to need to adjust to the change and/or emotions that will follow such a large fight.
2 Amazing Spider-Man #284–288 (1986–1987)
The montage in Spider-Man: Brand New Day quickly establishes that Peter has pretty much taken down every single major crime boss in New York City. It's a quick mention at the top of the film, but this information genuinely does not bode well for the Wall-Crawler. Whenever something like this happens, a power vacuum opens up, often bringing forth even worse people than those who came before. This is exactly what happens in the "Gang War" story, taking place across Amazing Spider-Man #284–288 (1986–1987).
In "Gang War," when Kingpin leaves the city, all the major baddies come out to play and try to take control of the city for themselves. Foes like Hammerhead, Hobgoblin, Silvermane, and more all entered the war ready to take names. Spidey and the other street-level heroes are involved—including Punisher, who was a fan favorite in Spider-Man: Brand New Day (played by Jon Bernthal)—and that made this a wonderful crossover event for the street-level Marvel universe. With Spidey staying street-level at the moment, and people begging for Charlie Cox's Daredevil to enter Spider-Man 5, "Gang War" seems like a pretty great place to go next for the Spider-Man mythos.
1 Amazing Spider-Man #546–548 (2008)
While Spider-Man: Brand New Day may take the name of the "Brand New Day" story arc from the comics, it only takes the basic concept that Peter Parker is starting over after getting his secret identity back. However, the actual plot isn't used much at all in the 2026 film. This means that there's still plenty of content for Spider-Man 5 to take from. Why the "Brand New Day" arc, you may ask? Well, it's the official introduction of a new favorite Spider-Man villain from the last 15+ years, Mister Negative.
Ever since he exploded in popularity, even more thanks to 2018's Marvel's Spider-Man video game, fans have been practically begging for the one and only Martin Li to make an appearance in film. His powers are visually electrifying; they cause immense conflict for anyone who comes across him, and his two personas are perfect—Martin Li running a charity organization in his free time. A pretty good cover for a guy trying to take over the criminal underworld of New York City. Lock in, Destin Daniel Cretton and Tom Holland! The people want Mister Negative.
Spider-Man: Brand New Day
8 10
- Release Date
- July 29, 2026
- Runtime
- 145 minutes
- Director
- Destin Daniel Cretton
- Writers
- Chris McKenna, Erik Sommers
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