Marvel Studios and Sony's Spider-Man: Brand New Day, the fourth solo outing for Tom Holland's friendly neighborhood hero, still looks to be nailing its cast ahead of a projected August start date. Holland will return to lead the film as Peter Parker, and Zendaya will appear as MJ in some capacity. But Brand New Day's confirmed call sheet looks sparse beyond the addition of two mystery characters played by Sadie Sink and Liza Colón-Zayas.
Nevertheless, Spider-Man: Brand New Day is rumored to be flipping through Peter Parker's villain Rolodex. Everyone from Mister Negative to Scorpion to Vincent D'Onofrio's Wilson Fisk has, at one point or another, been speculated to appear in the new Spider-Man movie. And that's on top of the film featuring the likes of the Punisher, played by Jon Bernthal.
At this point, it's difficult to make heads or tails of the characters who will show up in Spider-Man: Brand New Day, and a new report isn't making it any simpler. Alex Perez of The Cosmic Circus claimed that Silver Samurai, who is more of a Wolverine adversary, was spotted in concept art for Brand New Day. In Perez' words, "some new concept art now features a Samurai character:"
"I did find out some new information about the villains, and I hopefully this new lead is actually the one that points us in the right direction. But some new concept art now features a Samurai character. If it is who I think it is, it’s possible we may very well could be looking at Viper and Silver Samurai as the main antagonists for Spider-Man: Brand New Day, and it could tie into a storyline that involves a team-up featuring Spider-Man and Shang-Chi. So, we’ll see if that turns out. But that’s what some of my digging has uncovered."
It's important to note that Alex Perez's rumors have frequently left a lot to be desired. Many of the scoops that he has previously put forth have turned out to be inaccurate. Furthermore, while Perez alleges to have seen art for Brand New Day of a Samurai, this does not serve as a confirmation of Silver Samurai or Viper. The rest of his report also appears to delve into theorizing, especially in the case of Simu Liu's Shang-Chi supposedly being part of the film, though his name has not been previously mentioned for the movie. Any notion that he might have a role seems to stem from Brand New Day and Shang-Chi and the Legend of the Ten Rings sharing a director in Destin Daniel Cretton.
Silver Samurai would make for an unusual major antagonist in a Spider-Man movie. He's not traditionally a member of Pete's rogues gallery. Even more perplexing is the idea that Viper has a part as well. She's well above Parker's pay grade, typically going up against superteams like the Avengers and X-Men.
Whatever the case may be, Spider-Man: Brand New Day will web-swing into cinemas on July 31, 2026. And even though the film's subtitle ruffled some feathers, since it takes its name from the follow-up to a particularly controversial Spider-Man comic story, viewers have little reason to fret. In all likelihood, Marvel Studios is using Brand New Day much like it used Civil War for its Captain America threequel. Captain America: Civil War used broad strokes when it came to adapting its source material, the 2006 Civil War comic event.
Who Is Marvel's Silver Samurai?
There have been two characters in the history of Marvel Comics called Silver Samurai, and they have much in common. The two wear gleaming battle armor styled after the historical Japanese warrior class known as the Samurai. Additionally, the second Silver Samurai, Kenuichio Harada, is the illegitimate son of the first man to bear the mantle, Shingen Harada. Beyond that, both of them know Logan, otherwise known as Wolverine. In fact, the two of them have clashed their swords against Wolverine's adamantium claws in many battles over the years.
Early on, Silver Samurai actually served as a foe of Daredevil. The character was created by writer Steve Gerber (who also created Howard the Duck) and artist Bob Brown for Daredevil #111 in 1974. In more recent years, Silver Samurai has cropped up in X-Men: The Animated Series and Wolverine and the X-Men.
Haruhiko Yamanouchi and Ken Yamamura play the villain at different ages in 20th Century Fox and James Mangold's 2013 film The Wolverine, which starred fan-favorite Hugh Jackman. Interestingly, Viper, portrayed by Svetlana Khodchenkova, also had a part in The Wolverine.
It's unclear if Spider-Man: Brand New Day will contain a match-up between the Wall-Crawler and Silver Samurai. Given his much firmer connections to other Marvel heroes, it does feel unlikely. However, as is always the case with upcoming MCU projects, time will tell.
