A number of Marvel Comics villains are under suspicion when it comes to who might be the main antagonist of Peter Parker’s next MCU outing in Spider-Man: Brand New Day. Numerous characters from both within and outside his rogues’ gallery have been named as possible candidates, including Tombstone (who is confirmed to appear), Mephisto, Kingpin, Jackal, the Sinister Six, and Mr. Negative.
Given what’s known about Spider-Man: Brand New Day, figure associated with organized crime – like Tombstone, The Big Man, Crime-Master, or Mr. Negative would make sense for such a role. But even though details are still sparse, at least one of these characters feels less likely to be the villain, and it’s all on account of an unrelated Spider-Man project, Spider-Noir.
Spider-Noir Looks Set To Introduce The First Live-Action Mr. Negative
Mr. Negative and his goons confronting Spider-Man.
At the 0:26 mark in the black and white version of the trailer for Prime Video’s Spider-Noir TV series, a luminescent figure wearing a suit can be seen walking down an alleyway, seemingly following another character. The trailer doesn’t provide a closer look, but one doesn’t appear to be needed, as the only Marvel character who matches this description is Mr. Negative.
Having been introduced in 2007, Martin Li a.k.a. Mr. Negative is a much more recent character compared to most famous Spider-Man villains, but the character has developed a certain degree of popularity nonetheless, thanks in large part to appearances in other media, such as the 2018 PlayStation 4 game, Marvel’s Spider-Man.
A powerful crime boss in Marvel Comics, Martin Li possesses both the light and dark abilities of the superhero duo known as Cloak and Dagger. His actions reflect that, as Mr. Negative’s “light” side often performs good deeds to balance out the more malicious acts performed by his evil half, who can channel his dark energy for a variety of effects in combat.
Mr. Negative Appearing In Spider-Noir Makes A Spider-Man: Brand New Day Role Extremely Unlikely
As an important figure in the Marvel Universe’s criminal underworld and a character with strong ties to Silvermane, another confirmed Spider-Noir villain, Mr. Negative actually fits perfectly into the world the show is building. So in that sense, his involvement wouldn’t be all that surprising, but it does conflate with pestering theories about his supposed MCU debut.
Mr. Negative is heavily speculated to be the main villain of Spider-Man: Brand New Day, especially since he plays a key role in the film’s comic namesake, not to mention the fact that it too is expected to deal with street-level threats and gangsters.
And admittedly, the idea of Mr. Negative menacing Peter Parker in Spider-Man: Brand New Day wouldn’t seem far-fetched on its own, but it’s hard to imagine – if not impossible – that separate 2026 Spider-Man projects would introduce their own versions of Mr. Negative, or that Spider-Noir would get ahead of the MCU and use their take on the character first.
Release Date
July 31, 2026
Director
Destin Daniel Cretton
Producers
Amy Pascal, Kevin Feige, Rachel O’Connor, Avi Arad, Louis D’Esposito