Tag: zendaya

Spider-Man: Brand New Day (2026)

  • Director: Destin Daniel Cretton
  • Screenplay: Chris McKenna, Erik Sommers
  • Producer: Kevin Feige, Amy Pascal, Avi Arad, Rachel O’Connor
  • Cast: Tom Holland, Zendaya, Sadie Sink, Jacob Batalon, Jon Bernthal, Tramell Tillman, Mark Ruffalo, Michael Mando, Florence Pugh
  • Cinematography: Brett Pawlak
  • Editing: Nat Sanders, Gina Sansom, Harry Yoon
  • Score: Michael Giacchino
  • Genre: Superhero
  • Runtime: 145 minutes

It’s a brand new day in the neighbourhood.

The fictional universe might’ve forgotten Peter Parker (Tom Holland) is Spider-Man but we haven’t.

After a five year absence, he comes swinging back onto screens with an added sense of maturity. We’ve watched Holland grow up in front of our eyes over the last decade, and his performance in this and a recent role in ‘The Odyssey‘ show he can really hold his own. Peter Parker no longer requires a mentor figure; no Tony Stark or Nick Fury showing him the ropes.

Parker is a changed man and not entirely for the better. He’s altered by solitude, living in a world without Aunt May and where the love of his life, MJ (Zendaya), and his best friend Ned (Jacob Batalon) know of his heroic exploits as Spider-Man but not the identity of the young man underneath the mask.

‘Spider-Man: Brand New Day’ is a crowd-pleaser. It’s got tons of heart and awesome action sequences. Fan favourites appear in supporting roles along the way: the Punisher (forging a brotherly relationship with Parker), the Hulk and the New Avengers’ Yelena Belova.

As for the big bad, well, I won’t impart anything crucial here. The actor has been bound by an NDA for many months though if you really want an explicit answer, an interview at the premiere with musician Steve Lacy and his loose lips revealed all. He won’t be invited to any Marvel red carpets ever again. Even the notorious plot spoiler Tom Holland kept his trap shut on this occasion.

The mystery foe’s inclusion heralds the introduction of a roster of characters which could be of great significance for the next saga of the MCU. Guessed who they are yet?

My rating: 8 / 10

The Drama (2026)

  • Director: Kristoffer Borgli
  • Screenplay: Kristoffer Borgli
  • Cast: Zendaya, Robert Pattinson, Alana Haim, Mamoudou Athie
  • Cinematography: Arseni Khachaturan
  • Editing: Joshua Raymond Lee, Kristoffer Borgli
  • Score: Daniel Pemberton
  • Genre: Romantic black comedy
  • Runtime: 105 minutes

What’s the worst thing you’ve ever done?

For me, it would be neglecting this blog for a hot minute. I was catching some z’s. I digress.

A chance sighting of their wedding DJ smoking heroin on the street results in soon-to-be-wed couple Emma and Charlie (Zendaya and Robert Pattinson, respectively) discussing where to draw the line when it comes to a person’s most shameful wrongdoing. At what point does the unacceptable become the unforgivable?

This conversation isn’t in the privacy of their bedroom either. With their friends across the table goading them and with alcohol rendering them vulnerable, the couple divulge their deepest and darkest deed. Whereas Charlie cyberbullied a classmate when he was younger (quickly dismissed as teenage tomfoolery), Emma’s confession leaves the group reeling. She quite literally spills her guts, her long-buried secret uncomfortably dredged up for an airing.

I won’t reveal what she says. I (somehow) managed to go in blind, avoiding the slightest whisper of a spoiler on X. It sure is dark though. Bear in mind it’s a comedy, one so jet-black, and the humour is intentional.

This truth bomb obliterates any idea of blissful matrimony the pair had prior. Emma pushes it further down; she’s evolved as a person and doesn’t need pseudo-therapy from her partner. Is Charlie’s love for Emma so strong it can surmount this revelation? He spirals downwards. It’s not even his burden to share but the fallout from it causes him to question everything he thought he knew about his potential bride.

Both giving excellent performance, the duo uplift this risky hot-button issue dramedy into something more thought-provoking. With my lips sealed as per the subject matter, I will say this: ‘The Drama‘ is artfully shot.

My rating: 8 / 10