After 64 Years, Marvel Announces It's Removing the Hyphen from Spider-Man's Codename

Published Sep 28, 2026, 9:00 AM EDT

Robert Wood is a writer and editor based out of Cheshire, England. He is the author of 'The False Elephant: and 99 Other Unreasonably Short Stories' - 100 stories, each told in exactly 100 words.

Rob got into comics via Bendis' Ultimate Spider-Man and the UK anthology 'The Mighty World of Marvel,' which was running Frank Miller's Daredevil, Classic Hulk and Contest of Champions II.

Prior to journalism, he worked in copywriting and copyedited for Oxford University Press. He is on X as @PinchTwigs and Instagram as roobwoodjourno.

There are few things more annoying to a Spider-Man fan than when someone leaves the hyphen out of the Webhead's codename. Now, Marvel is avoiding that irritating error by taking it out of the equation.

When Spider-Man debuted in 1962, DC's Superman and Batman were already well-known, and co-creator Stan Lee wanted to distinguish his character. Lee initially tried out the two-word 'Spider Man' before settling on the hyphen, leading to a name that's misspelled so often, Marvel has a running joke that Spider-Man can sense when someone leaves out the hyphen.

Now, that special sense is going to be working overtime, as Marvel officially removes the hyphen from Spidey's codename.

Marvel's Midnight Canon Renames Peter Parker 'The Spiderman'

The move comes as Marvel launches its new 'Midnight' imprint. Launching October 7, Midnight: Spider-Man, Midnight: X-Men and Midnight: Fantastic Four will reimagine Marvel's biggest heroes with a horror slant.

While the X-Men will deal with a war against vampires and the FF will tangle with a Lovecraftian version of Galactus, Midnight: Spider-Man will see innocent people transformed into animal hybrids thanks to experiments by the Oscorp Corporation. Peter Parker is one of their first victims, with solicit info for issue #3 revealing he'll be known as "THE SPIDERMAN."

MIDNIGHT SPIDER-MAN #3
Release Date:	DECEMBER 16, 2026
Writer:	PHILLIP KENNEDY JOHNSON
Artists:	SCIETRONC
Cover Artist:	(Main) STEVE BEACH, (Variants) JUAN FERREYRA, PEACH MOMOKO, DAVID BALDEON, DERRICK CHEW
THE PARKER INCIDENT! As Peter Parker frantically searches for a way to reclaim his humanity, Oscorp hunts the emerging urban legend THE SPIDERMAN in their first breakthrough on the path to a post-mortality future. Meanwhile, in Oscorp’s deepest, most top-secret labs, Doctor Octavius has used the lessons of the “Parker Incident” to engineer the world’s second synthetic mutant…a living horror that will make even Spider-Man obsolete.

The renaming is a smart move by Marvel, further distinguishing between the regular canon version of Peter Parker and this new horror hero. While the comic's title will continue to use the hyphen, Peter will be given an official codename evocative of 'the Wolfman.' This isn't unprecedented - Peter's multiversal ally Gwen Stacy has appeared in multiple Spider-Gwen series, despite that not actually being her codename.

Spider-Man's Rogues' Gallery Are About To Get Freaky

So far, what fans have heard of the comic has all focused on Peter and Oscorp. However, with the theme of experiments transforming people into monstrous animal hybrids, it's obvious how the series will use several of Spider-Man lore's biggest villains.

Doctor Octopus, Scorpion, Vulture, Lizard, Rhino, Chameleon, Black Cat, Beetle, Kangaroo, the Jackal and White Rabbit are all primed for animal transformations, with others like Hammerhead, Kraven the Hunter and Swarm begging for similar mutations thanks to either their animal names or nature theming. Indeed, Kraven already got this treatment in multiple pieces of Spider-Man media, including the original Ultimate Universe, where after being humiliated by Peter Parker, he paid a fortune for werewolf-like powers (as shown in the image above.)

Being 'The Spiderman' Is Very Different To Being Spider-Man

Spider-Man comics have commented many times on how - despite his heroic, optimistic outlook - Peter named himself after an animal that inspires fear and disgust in many people. However, Peter's red and blue costume has always communicated he's a superhero through and through.

That's about to change in Midnight: Spider-Man, as Spider-Man's new design leans into horror, with a gigantic spider fused to his chest and a mask that looks more like bloody bandages and stolen goggles than a traditional helm. In that context, it's clear that as 'the Spiderman,' Peter's powers and identity will be far more bound up in biological horror.

This October, Marvel reinvents Spider-Man, dismissing Peter Parker's friendly neighborhood hero for the overt horror of THE SPIDERMAN!

Midnight: Spider-Man #3 is coming December 16 from Marvel Comics.