Spider-Man: Brand New Day is swinging into cinemas today, bringing Tom Holland back for his fourth solo outing as Peter Parker, but we’ve already got an idea of how good the film is with a newly revealed Rotten Tomatoes score.
The new film picks up after the life-changing ending of Spider-Man: No Way Home, with the world having forgotten Peter’s secret identity and the young hero now fighting crime full-time in New York. Zendaya and Jacob Batalon return as MJ and Ned, whilst Mark Ruffalo’s Hulk and Jon Bernthal’s Punisher are among the familiar MCU faces joining the story.
With the review embargo now lifted, critics have begun sharing their verdicts on director Destin Daniel Cretton’s first Spider-Man film after the filmmaker took over from Jon Watts, who helmed the past three movies.
So far, the initial response has broadly praised its more grounded approach, emotional focus and decision to move away from the multiverse-heavy scale of Holland’s previous adventure. Tom Holland’s performance (as usual), the film’s action and its street-level New York setting have also been repeatedly brought up as key highlights.
With that strong early reception, Spider-Man: Brand New Day has ended up with a Rotten Tomatoes score of 90 per cent, based on 143 critic reviews at the time of writing. The film has also received a “Certified Fresh” designation, although its audience Popcornmeter score has not yet been published — so we expect that to come in later today after the first public screenings finish up.
The result places Brand New Day slightly below Holland’s previous three solo Spider-Man films. Homecoming currently holds 92 per cent, Far From Home sits at 91 per cent and No Way Home remains the highest-rated of the four with 93 per cent.
However, those differences are incredibly narrow, and the score could continue to move as more reviews arrive — since there are plenty of outlets who’ve not had access to media screenings.
Some of those extra critics may even add to those who’ve been particularly positive about Holland’s more mature portrayal of Peter, whilst Bernthal’s uneasy partnership with Spider-Man has emerged as another standout feature. Sadie Sink’s closely guarded role has also received praise, although details surrounding her character remain under wraps for anyone who’s yet to see the movie.
Radio Times’ opinion is amongst the resounding praise with our Spider-Man: Brand New Day review calling the film “a refreshingly intimate web-slinging success”.
On the other hand, the reviews have not been entirely glowing, leading to that current 10 per cent gap to a full RT score of 100. Several critics have taken issue with the lengthy two-hour-and-25-minute runtime, an overstuffed final act and supporting characters who are not given enough room.
Even so, its early score suggests Brand New Day has continued Holland’s strong critical run as Marvel’s web-slinger, and don’t forget, that score could easily go up or down during release week.
Spider-Man: Brand New Day is out now in cinemas.
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