Why Brand New Day Cut the Creepiest Version of Spider-Man in Marvel History - EXCLUSIVE
In Spider-Man: Brand New Day, Peter Parker is going through something of a second puberty.
The arachnid DNA is increasing, which is causing all kinds of problems for him, along with pretty gross side effects like organic webs, more violence and ferocity, and being suspended in a cocoon in the middle of New York in his sleep.
With Peter getting further in touch with his spider side, many were concerned that we might be seeing the emergence of ‘Man-Spider.’ In Marvel lore, this is the final stage of Peter's genetic mutation, wherein he grows four extra arms and becomes a freaky hybrid creature which, among other things, shoots acid from its mouth. Yummy.
While Man-Spider is arguably an arachnophobic’s nightmare, this is nothing compared to ‘Spiders-Man.’ As revealed by the movie's writers in an exclusive chat with JustWatch, some comparable elements of this iteration of Spidey almost appeared in Spider-Man: Brand New Day. Here is what that could have looked like.
Who Is ‘Spiders-Man’?: Marvel’s Grossest Spider-Man, Explained
In the comic books, Spiders-Man is a version of Spider-Man who inhabits Earth-11580. In this universe, Peter Parker, along with Gwen Stacy, is invited to tour Horizon Labs with Max Modell.
One experiment Parker and Stacy view is a huge colony of spiders that Modell is exposing to large amounts of radiation. In what is classic ‘Parker Luck,’ Peter falls into the colony. In turn, the spiders seem to eat him up — but then something weird happens.
The spiders become a kind of hive mind underpinned by Peter’s consciousness. In technical terms, the spiders operate as a ‘living hive.’ The swarm (mostly) move as one, and decides to don the Spider-Man costume and fight crime as ‘Spiders-Man.’ It’s interesting, but weird. Mostly weird.
Spider-Man Was Almost ‘Stalked By the Spiders of New York' in Brand New Day
In an interview with JustWatch, Brand New Day writer Chris McKenna explained how, in part, some comparable elements of ‘Spiders-Man’ almost made it into the movie. Specifically, he noted how, at one point in the script, Peter was essentially followed by all of the spiders in New York.
“It was there [in the script] for a while,” McKenna explained. “It was leaning into the horror element. He was actually giving off a spider pheromone, and wherever he went, they were flocking to him. There was a hospital scene with kids where they dropped out of nowhere, and the kids started screaming!”
Presumably, in following Peter, these spider swarms may well have been under some degree of control by the superhero. This raises the question of whether the hive would have had the ability to create a living spider suit for him — presumably without the body-devouring part. It’s entirely possible, but it seems like that level of body horror is where the MCU drew the line.
As entertaining (and slightly traumatic) as that concept sounds, McKenna added that flirting with ideas like that was just part of the writing process. “There were so many fun ideas on the table that we tried a bunch, and some of them made it into the script for a while, and then we'd pare them back and find the right balance.”
“But you have to take those big swings, you know; we have to be. As the writers, you have to push things to a place and find out where that line is,” he concluded. “Otherwise, you're not going to find the line.”
