Spider-Man: Brand New Day toy leaks give fans hope for big Hulk change

Mark Ruffalo will return as Bruce Banner inSpider-Man: Brand New Day. That isn’t a spoiler – however, new toy leaks may indicate what will happen to the Hulk.

TheMCUhas been widely criticized for its portrayal of the Hulk. After initial praise in The Avengers and Age of Ultron, the franchise hasn’t shown him in full-on rage mode since 2017’s Thor: Ragnarok.

Tom Holland in Spider-Man: Brand New Day and the Hulk in The Avengers

He hasn’t been the same since Thanos’ beat-down in the opening scene of Avengers: Infinity War, even transforming into ‘Smart Hulk’ off-screen in Endgame.

The consensus among fans is clear: they want to see Hulk smash things again, and if things go to plan,Spider-Man: Brand New Day could give them what they want.

Hulk and Spider-Man

Spider-Man: Brand New Day may unleash Savage Hulk

According toDisplaying Model Behavior, a YouTuber who specializes in action figure reviews, Hasbro’s 2026 Marvel Legends lineup includes Spider-Man, a new Punisher figure, and the Hulk.

That’s to be expected, but he also noted that it’ll “apparently [be] a savage version of the Jade Giant.”

Luna Snow from Marvel Rivals in the game’s launch trailer

Ever since Ruffalo’s return was reported in early rumors, it’s been speculated thatsomethingwill cause Banner to lose his cool, leading to a fight with Spider-Man (and perhaps the Punisher too).

“Spider-Man, Punisher and Hulk will all fight one another before figuring out who the real bad guys are."(via: The Hollywood Reporter)pic.twitter.com/BpjotIY51X

Tom Holland in Spider-Man No Way Home and Spider-Man fighting the Inner Demons

“Please let this be true, we need the Savage Hulk back, no more of that Smart Hulk anymore,” one userwrote. “Look, I never hated Smart Hulk in the projects I watched that featured him, but YEAH BABY WE WANTED THIS,” anotherposted.

Marvel Rivals devs approved to make “original” heroes & fans are fuming

Zendaya in No Way Home and Tom Holland on the set of Spider-Man: Brand New Day

Spider-Man: Brand New Day set photos ‘confirm’ major villain and fans are hyped

Zendaya is barely in Spider-Man: Brand New Day and that’s a good thing

“I feel like my theory comes closer and closer to reality. Smart Hulk is gonna get impacted by something that causes months of anger,” a thirdtweeted.

That’s the question: if it does happen, what will spark his rage again? It had been theorized that Mr Negative would be responsible, but multiple insiders (includingThe Cosmic Circus’ Alex Perez) say he doesn’t appear in the film.

We still don’t know who the main villain is in Brand New Day, either. The Hollywood Reporter claimed that “Spider-Man, Punisher and Hulk will all fight one another before figuring out who the real bad guys are,” so hopefully we’ll find out more details in the coming months.

Also, there’s the small matter ofSadie Sink’s mysterious roleand how the movie will tee upAvengers: Doomsday.