Stream of the Week
Stream of the Week: ‘Brand New Day’ swings onto Apple TV
The $2.5-billion Spider-Man blockbuster finds Peter Parker at his most isolated and emotionally exposed, writes JASON BANNIER.
The highest-grossing movie of 2026 so far is now available to watch on Apple TV. Spider-Man: Brand New Day centres on Peter Parker, the web-slinging superhero, as he faces a world that no longer remembers him.
The movie became available on the platform earlier this week (6 October 2026) as a digital purchase and is not part of an Apple TV+ subscription. Rental access begins on 17 November.
Brand New Day has earned about $2.5-billion worldwide since opening in cinemas in July. The blockbuster is the biggest Spider-Man film yet and the third-highest-grossing movie of all time, without adjusting for inflation. In South Africa, the movie has earned more than R100-million after setting a national opening-weekend record.
The story follows Peter four years after the events of Spider-Man: No Way Home. He lives alone after Doctor Strange’s spell caused everyone, including those closest to him, to forget that Peter exists. With no personal relationships left to balance against his responsibilities, he devotes himself to fighting crime full-time in New York.
Isolation shapes both the action and emotional stakes. Spider-Man begins experiencing unpredictable changes to his arachnid abilities while investigating attacks connected to the Department of Damage Control and a powerful threat that nobody can see.
Homemade equipment and close-range action keep the spectacle tied to Peter’s personal struggle. The grounded focus gives actor Tom Holland’s fourth solo Spider-Man movie a distinct identity while retaining the humour and superhero set pieces associated with the series.
Zendaya stars as MJ alongside Jacob Batalon as Ned, Jon Bernthal as Frank Castle, and Mark Ruffalo as Bruce Banner. The cast includes Sadie Sink (Max in Stranger Things 5), Tramell Tillman, Michael Mando and Liza Colón-Zayas.
Destin Daniel Cretton directs from a screenplay by Chris McKenna and Erik Sommers. Cretton previously introduced another major MCU hero in Shang-Chi and the Legend of the Ten Rings.
* Read a review of ‘Spider-Man: Brand New Day’ here.
* Jason Bannier is a data analyst at World Wide Worx and deputy editor of Gadget.co.za. Follow him on Bluesky at @jas2bann.
