Tom Holland revealed that one person still remembered Spider-Man was Peter Parker in Spider-Man: Brand New Day, even though the previous instalment ended with the world forgetting him.
At the end of Spider-Man: No Way Home, released in 2021, Peter Parker asks Doctor Strange to cast a final spell to stop the multiverse from collapsing, forcing the world to forget Parker exists. The spell wipes Parker from the memories of everyone who knows him, including MJ, Ned, and the Avengers.
In a new interview, Holland teased that this might not be completely true. “I don’t think anyone remembers that I’m Spider-Man anymore, except for one person,” he told IGN Benelux. “Nobody remembers that I’m Peter Parker.”
Co-star Zendaya clarified that everyone in the film’s universe remembered the superhero Spider-Man, but not Parker.
“They know Spider-Man. They know who Spider-Man is. They just don’t know that one specific person anymore.”
Holland then repeated: “Except for one person.”
In the trailer for Brand New Day, Parker appears to be living with the consequences of the spell. He is shown following MJ and Ned Leeds from a distance, carrying a letter meant to explain who he is, while a voiceover says: “Hi, my name is Peter Parker. You don’t remember me, but we used to know each other.”
On rebuilding their dynamic, Holland said the premise opened up new storytelling possibilities. “They remember Spider-Man. They remember their interactions with him,” he noted, “they just do not know who he is anymore.”
Theories are now emerging about who the mysterious “one person” is and how they remain outside the orbit of Doctor Strange’s spell.
Several fans are pointing to the Hulk, particularly due to the 2021 Marvel comic Immortal Hulk: Great Power #1. In that storyline, the Hulk remembers Spider-Man’s identity even after an event takes place that results in the world forgetting that Parker is Spider-Man. While the Hulk’s human counterpart Bruce Banner no longer remembers Parker’s identity, Hulk still does, leading many fans to speculate that the MCU may use a similar loophole.
The theory is gaining ground because Mark Ruffalo is confirmed to return in Brand New Day.
Another popular theory focuses on Jean Grey, the telepathic X-Men character widely rumoured to be played by Sadie Sink. Although Marvel has not confirmed Sink’s role, fans have suggested she could either resist magical memory manipulation altogether or simply read Parker’s mind and uncover the truth.
Others have pointed to Wong, arguing that the Sorcerer Supreme’s deep understanding of magic may have allowed him to detect and perhaps circumvent a loophole in Doctor Strange’s spell.
Fans have also proposed Spider-Man allies like Matt Murdock or even The Punisher. Murdock, who already knew Parker’s identity in No Way Home, possesses heightened senses that some fans think could allow him to recognise Parker even without his memories.
The Punisher, meanwhile, became the subject of a more prominent theory after Holland singled out Spider-Man’s relationship with the vigilante as one of the most significant dynamics in the new film, saying audiences had only seen “the tip of the iceberg” in the trailers.
Spider-Man: Brand New Day is scheduled for release in cinemas on 31 July 2026.
