When Spidey swings onto the 2026 movie calendar in the upcoming Spider-Man: Brand New Day, fans are expecting a bit of a reset. After the emotional gut-punch ending of No Way Home, Peter Parker is essentially starting from scratch, with no one remembering who he is. That detail means we’ll be missing out on one of the key connections between Peter Parker and the rest of the MCU, at least in this next outing, if not forever.
During a recent appearance on Jimmy Kimmel Live!, Marvel director and occasional co-star Jon Favreau casually droped a pretty big update while promoting his upcoming feature The Mandalorian and Grogu. When asked about the next Spider-Man film, he didn't dance around his absence, saying:
I could give you a big spoiler… I’m not in it. Because he lost his memory, I’m not part of… he doesn’t remember me anymore.
I’ll forgive the Iron Man helmer for getting the details slightly off there. It’s not Peter who loses his memory, but rather everyone else forgets that he exists. Regardless of who's brains have been affected, it all amounts to his MCU character Happy Hogan officially sitting this next adventure out. (Kimmel playfully suggests he's skewing the truth, but Favreau commits to playing it honest.)
Article continues belowThe Swingers vet goes on to elaborate, and if you’ve seen Spider-Man: No Way Home, it lines up with how that film ends:
He might meet me again someday. That’s how the last one ended, with him forgetting everything… so it's all about his new [direction]. I don’t know anything about it, other than… if I’m in it, they better hurry up, 'cause they’re running out of time.
Jon Favreau
For those who might not remember (or haven’t seen it somehow), No Way Home ends with Peter making the ultimate sacrifice, choosing to have the entire world forget who he is to save it. That includes the people closest to him, like MJ, Ned, and yes, Happy Hogan. So even though Happy still exists in the MCU, the guiding-light relationship that grounded Peter in those earlier films is essentially gone.
From a story standpoint, it makes sense. Still, it’s a bit of a bummer. Happy Hogan has been part of the MCU since the very beginning, dating all the way back to Iron Man. Over time, he evolves from Tony Stark’s right-hand man into one of Peter Parker’s most consistent support systems.
Based on what’s been teased so far, including that first Brand New Day trailer, the movie looks like it’s really leaning into Peter being on his own. No safety net, no built-in support system, just him figuring things out at street level, which, honestly, is where the character tends to thrive in a lot of other versions. It’s a noticeably different tone from what we’ve gotten in the MCU up to this point.
That said, Favreau doesn’t completely close the door on returning. He leaves things open-ended enough to suggest their paths could cross again down the line, which is definitely something for fans to hold onto. But for now, it looks like Spider-Man: Brand New Day is moving forward without one of its most familiar faces.
Favreau’s latest Star Wars directorial project, The Mandalorian and Grogu, hits theaters May 22, while the next chapter in Tom Holland's Spider-Man franchise swings into theaters July 31.
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