A new poster for Spider-Man: Brand New Day has prompted fan speculation that Peter Parker’s ex-girlfriend MJ is now dating another super-powered character: Boomerang.
The poster, which is available for sale via AllPosters, features official artwork of Boomerang — a villain from Spider-Man’s rogues gallery that we know will appear in the upcoming film. Marvel has not officially stated who is playing either character, and his role in the film has not been detailed.
The movie is already stuffed with other antagonists (Tombstone, Scorpion, The Hand, and potentially both The Hulk and whoever Sadie Sink is playing), so it makes sense that this smaller villain is not the film’s current marketing focus. Still, though, fans think there’s more going on than meets the eye.
We know for certain that MJ has moved on from Peter Parker (who she can no longer remember) and is now dating an unnamed character played by Eman Esfandi, best known as Jedi hero Ezra Bridger in Disney+ series Ahsoka. The film’s record-breaking first trailer showed Esfandi’s character getting close to Zendaya’s MJ at a party, much to the dismay of Tom Holland’s Peter.
Now, fans believe that Esfandi’s partially obscured face can be seen on this new Spider-Man poster — his nose, mouth and chin peeking out from beneath Boomerang’s big helmet. While not confirmed, many have suggested it’s a decent enough match.
“Makes a lot of sense that MJ’s new boyfriend is Tarantula or Boomerang instead of a genuinely nice guy,” wrote one fan, TheCommish-17, in a thread analysing the poster on reddit. “It’ll be easier for her to break up with him and get back together with Peter when they find out he’s a villain.”
“Also kinda works with MJ and Ned trying to track Spider-Man,” another fan, Nathsu29 added. “Either she could suspect Esfandi’s character is Spider-Man or she’s naturally drawn to people with those kind of secrets.”
Several fans have pointed to the 2018-2021 Amazing Spider-Man comic book run where Peter Parker and Boomerang end up as roommates, with Parker keeping a close eye on the latter’s activities. The character would also be a literal rebound from Peter, making for a fitting name.
“Boomerang has a funny relationship with Peter for little while in the comics, with the two of them being roommates and not knowing each other’s secret identity,” wrote Pupulauls9000. “I’d say he’s Boomerang, the comedic rivalry fits how he is in the comics,” added TheCommish-17.
While fans expect MJ and Peter to eventually reunite, it makes sense for their characters to spend time apart in order to not immediately reverse the emotional ending to their relationship in Spider-Man: No Way Home. Exactly how it all plays out — and how Boomerang gets involved — remains to be seen, however.
Spider-Man: Brand New Day arrives in theaters on July 31, and last week Tom Holland suggested he wanted to eventually hand off the series to a new web slinger — potentially Miles Morales.
Image credit: Marvel/Sony/AllPosters
Tom Phillips is IGN’s News Editor. You can reach Tom at tom_phillips@ign.com or find him on Bluesky @tomphillipseg.bsky.social
