WARNING: This article includes MAJOR spoilers from Spider-Man: Brand New Day.The Marvel Cinematic Universe has officially brought one of the major Stranger Things stars into the iconic superhero franchise.
Phase 6 is only a few projects away from finishing The Multiverse Saga, as the Avengers are getting ready to take on Robert Downey Jr. as Doctor Doom. However, while Marvel Studios is concluding one era, they are beginning another one.
Spider-Man: Brand New Day has begun its U.S. theater showings as of Thursday, July 30, as well as in various countries worldwide, especially in Europe. Now that the Phase 6 installment has started its theatrical run, it has officially been revealed that Sadie Sink is indeed playing Marvel’s Jean Grey.
Sink first joined the Spider-Man: Brand New Day cast back in March 2025, with her role being kept under wraps throughout the year, including during and after principal photography. The film was directed by Destin Daniel Cretton, as it marked a reunion between the actress and the filmmaker after working together on The Glass Castle, which was released in 2017.
For the longest time, she had to deny in multiple interviews who she was playing, despite the Jean rumblings being online since 2025. This became similar to when Andrew Garfield had to keep denying that he wasn’t in Spider-Man: No Way Home.
The film establishes Jean as the mysterious hooded figure who is able to use telepathy to jump from one person to another. While initially coming off as the villain, it’s revealed that the reason she is going after the Department of Damage Control is to find her sister, Sara Grey.
With mutants making their way into the MCU timeline, it is part of the massive X-Men plans that Marvel Studios is working on. Having Jean be introduced as a teenager also goes back to Kevin Feige’s previous comments about how they will approach the reimagining of the iconic team.
Rather than doing a reboot of the MCU, Avengers: Secret Wars will lead to a reset for the franchise. In July 2025, the Marvel Studios president established that they will explore them as younger, stating that, “Reboot is a scary word. Reboot can mean a lot of things to a lot of people. Reset, singular timeline — we’re thinking along those lines. X-Men is where that will happen next. They have been a place to tell stories about young people who feel different and who feel Other and who feel like they don’t belong. That’s the universal story of mutants, and that is where we’re going.”
In ScreenRant’s Spider-Man: Brand New Day review, Graeme Guttman praised Jean’s introduction, sharing how “Sadie Sink’s mystery character makes her presence known very early on, even if we don’t physically see her until roughly an hour into the movie. But her mind-invading powers allow us another window into the fractured psyche of Peter Parker, this time at a pivotal moment for him.”
The ending leaves the door open for Jean to go in many directions. There have been reports that Sink will be appearing in Avengers: Secret Wars, but Marvel Studios has yet to confirm or deny her appearance in the 2027 film. Production is set to start this summer on the big team-up film, which may be when it is revealed whether or not the famous X-Men member has any involvement.
Spider-Man: Brand New Day is now playing in theaters.
- Release Date
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July 31, 2026
- Runtime
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145 Minutes
- Producers
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Amy Pascal, Kevin Feige, Rachel O’Connor, Avi Arad