Marvel is taking extra care to ensure the success of Spider-Man: Brand New Day (2026).While we may not have a trailer (yet), hype is officially building for the fourth installment of Tom Holland’s Spider-Man series. The franchise’s last outing, Spider-Man: No Way Home (2021), set a high standard, impressing audiences and critics alike and taking in over $1.9 billion at the box office.Credit: Sony Pictures/Marvel StudiosWhen we last saw Peter Parker, he was retreating into a solitary life after Doctor Strange’s (Benedict Cumberbatch) spell erased him from everyone’s memory, including MJ (Zendaya, Holland’s real-life partner) and Ned (Jacob Batalon). Choosing anonymity over comfort, Peter embraced a stripped-back existence, sewing his own suit and continuing as Spider-Man alone, with his former relationships – and the Avengers – effectively wiped from his world.This time around, it seems like we can expect a more grounded affair from our friendly neighborhood Spider-Man. It seems like we won’t be getting any cameos from Tobey Maguire or Andrew Garfield (although theories suggest that we may have more luck with either Avengers: Doomsday or Avengers: Secret Wars), but we will see Peter joined by Mark Ruffalo as Bruce Banner/the Hulk and Jon Bernthal as Frank Castle/Punisher.Stranger Things star Sadie Sink is also set to play a key role, although Marvel has yet to confirm her character.Credit: NetflixPlot details for Spider-Man: Brand New Day are still scarce, but one new detail has emerged, hinting at Marvel’s push to secure a Chinese theatrical release.Marvel Adjusts ‘Spider-Man’ For China ReleaseIn Spider-Man: No Way Home, audiences discovered that the Statue of Liberty – arguably one of New York’s most iconic landmarks – had been reworked with Captain America’s shield in order to honor the Avengers.The Statue of Liberty serves as the setting for the film’s climax, in which the three Peter Parkers face off against Max Dillon/Electro (Jamie Foxx), Norman Osborn/Green Goblin (Willem Defoe), Dr. Curt Connors/Lizard (Rhys Ifans), and Flint Marko/Sandman (Thomas Haden Church). Several key moments see the character swinging off various parts of the icon.That’s what made it so difficult when China requested the removal of the Statue of Liberty.Credit: Sony Pictures/Marvel StudiosAccording to Puck News’ “What I’m Hearing” newsletter, Chinese authorities pushed for substantial changes before Spider-Man: No Way Home could be approved for release in the country.The report claims the primary issue centered on the Statue of Liberty’s role in the film’s climax. Regulators initially asked Sony to remove the landmark entirely, a request the studio rejected outright. After that refusal, Chinese officials reportedly proposed a series of smaller edits. These changes largely focused on trimming or altering shots of the Statue of Liberty that were viewed as overly patriotic.Although Sony briefly considered making those adjustments, the newsletter states the studio ultimately chose not to proceed. As a result, Spider-Man: No Way Home never received a theatrical release in China.Credit: Sony Pictures/Marvel StudiosThe decision came with financial consequences. Even as its influence has declined, the Chinese box office still accounts for a sizable share of international grosses for major studio releases.Of course, Spider-Man: No Way Home still took home a hefty sum at the box office. This time around, however, Marvel seems keen to ensure that it also rakes in profits from China, too, as it has decided not to feature the Statue of Liberty in Brand New Day.Tom Rothman, CEO of Sony Film, revealed during an episode of The Town with Matt Belloni that the landmark will not appear in the film – although he stressed that this is a “total coincidence.”Rothman also shared new information about the decision not to cut the Statue of Liberty from No Way Home.“I really didn’t look forward to sitting in there in front of Congress telling them why I cut the Statue of Liberty out at the request of the Chinese Communist Party,” he said.What Do We Actually Know About ‘Spider-Man: Brand New Day’?While it may sound like a minor detail, the absence of the Statue of Liberty is one of the first clear and confirmed details we’ve had about the plot of Spider-Man: Brand New Day.The Statue of Liberty’s renovation as an Avengers monument was a pretty big deal in No Way Home, so for it to make zero appearances in a project set in New York City is surprising.For now, what we do know is that it is set four years after No Way Home and that it will see Peter Parker accidentally uncovering a larger mystery while investigating a series of seemingly minor crimes. Along the way, he will have to grapple with the ghosts of his past.Having largely dealt with major disaster-level threats in the past (don’t forget, he’s been to space), Spider-Man is said to be primarily tackling street-level crime when we see him again.Credit: Sony Pictures/Marvel StudiosA recent report from insider Daniel Richtman suggests that Ahsoka actor Eman Esfandi has been cast in Spider-Man: Brand New Day as a new boyfriend for Zendaya’s MJ. Fans weren’t so happy to learn that his character will apparently be Paul Rabin, widely considered to be one of the most unlikable characters in The Amazing Spider-Man.In Marvel Comics, Paul is depicted as a student with a background in advanced scientific research — a detail that would neatly align with the MCU, given that MJ and Ned were set to attend MIT at the end of Spider-Man: No Way Home.Some fans have noted that Esfandi bears a resemblance to the comic version of Paul, particularly due to his facial hair. However, insider reports suggest he won’t have a beard in the film, fueling speculation that he may be playing an entirely different character.Are you excited for Spider-Man: Brand New Day?The post Marvel Backtracks ‘Spider-Man: Brand New Day’ Over China Release Issues appeared first on Inside the Magic.