Tom Holland Officially Confirms the Batman Movie That Inspired Spider-Man: Brand New Day

Tom Holland has finally identified one of the strangest inspirations behind Spider-Man: Brand New Day, and it did not come from another Marvel movie. Holland says a scene from The LEGO Batman Movie helped shape the lonely Peter Parker audiences eventually saw in his fourth solo Spider-Man outing. During an interview with Acción Cine (via DC Cinematic), Holland recalled loving the 2017 animated movie’s gag in which Gotham assumes Batman spends his nights partying and dating supermodels, while Bruce Wayne is actually sitting alone at home. Holland was so taken by the contrast that he sent the sequence to director Destin Daniel Cretton and suggested:

That does not mean The LEGO Batman Movie supplied Brand New Day’s entire blueprint. The inspiration was more precise: a celebrated superhero persona concealing somebody painfully isolated underneath. Sony’s official synopsis confirms that Peter is now fighting crime full-time while everyone has forgotten him and his former friends continue their lives without him.

Turns out a plastic Batman had something useful to teach a flesh-and-blood Spider-Man.

The LEGO Batman Movie Gave Peter a Clever Blueprint

Courtesy of Warner Bros. Picture

The Batman connection becomes more intriguing because The LEGO Batman Movie was not the first Caped Crusader comparison attached to Holland’s new Peter. Months before release, FandomWire covered insider Alex Perez’s claim that Peter had essentially “buried Peter Parker” by obsessing over being Spider-Man. Perez compared that behavior with Robert Pattinson’s Bruce Wayne in The Batman, who retreats into his vigilante identity rather than confront the man beneath the cowl.

Holland’s new comments give that earlier comparison a firmer creative cousin. The Pattinson connection came from insider reporting, whereas Holland personally sent Cretton the LEGO Batman sequence and suggested they do something similar. Cretton has independently confirmed that loneliness was fundamental to Peter’s characterization. He told Rolling Stone that Peter believes “it’s his duty to be alone and to work,” having lost the personal relationships that previously anchored him.

Holland also had considerably more creative input this time. Speaking to Rotten Tomatoes, he explained that he joined the process before a script existed and brought years of fan feedback into conversations about what Peter’s next chapter should become. There is a delicious coincidence hiding in the credits, too. The LEGO Batman Movie and Brand New Day share writers Chris McKenna and Erik Sommers, although Justin Kuritzkes later joined Brand New Day for rewrites and appears in some current Sony credits.

Spider-Man: Brand New Day’s Gamble Paid Off Handsomely

Tom Holland in a still from Spider-Man: Brand New Day | Credits: Marvel Studios/Sony Pictures Releasing

Whatever audiences make of the Batman DNA, Spider-Man: Brand New Day has become a commercial colossus. Sony reported that the film opened with $360 million domestically and $932 million globally, with its $360 million domestic launch setting a new opening-weekend record. Sony’s corporate report credited Cretton, Holland, Kevin Feige, Amy Pascal, and the wider creative team for the record-breaking launch.

Its run subsequently became even more extraordinary. Brand New Day recently overtook Star Wars: The Force Awakens to become the highest-grossing movie ever at the unadjusted North American box office, according to Variety. Success has already strengthened Cretton’s relationship with Sony. The filmmaker has signed a three-year overall producing deal through Hisako Films, although the agreement does not obligate him to direct exclusively for the studio.

There may even be another theatrical victory lap coming. Deadline reports that Sony is developing a Brand New Day rerelease containing additional footage, following the success of Avengers: Endgame Encore. Critical enthusiasm has been more complicated. FandomWire’s Brand New Day review gave the movie 5/10, criticizing its CGI and familiar emotional beats while praising Holland’s more mature Peter Parker and his chemistry with Jon Bernthal.

Did The LEGO Batman Movie influence improve Holland’s Peter, and did you spot the parallel before he revealed it? Tell us in the comments and follow FandomWire for more coverage, news, Marvel updates, reviews, and the stories behind the MCU.