Spider-Man 4 Almost Included a Ben Reilly Scarlet Spider Storyline in MCU Movie, Here’s How

Spider-Man: Brand New Day almost took a different route with Peter Parker, according to co-writer Chris McKenna. He revealed that they considered a Ben Reilly storyline and explained how the scene would have played out.

Speaking on the Bulwark Podcast, McKenna revealed that one early idea had Peter posing as a character named Ben Reilly, complete with a British accent. “We went down some different roads,” the writer said. “At one point, we had him putting on a British accent. So it would have been Tom’s British accent, but Tom from Queens pretending he’s British.”

McKenna explained the scene where Tom Holland‘s Peter runs into Zendaya‘s MJ, who has no memory of him after the events of No Way Home. In the original movie, Peter introduces himself as “Maynard.” But in the writer’s unused pitch, he would have gone by Reilly instead.

“So he meets MJ a few years later,” McKenna said. “He’s Spider-Man, and he’s talking to her, but basically he has to fall in with her to get in on this mystery. But in that version, he’s not Spider-Man. He’s pretending to be someone else. Ben Reilly. But he’s Ben Reilly, a British person.”

Who is Ben Reilly in Marvel Comics?

Ben Reilly is a genetic clone of Peter Parker in the comics, who was grown in a lab by the villainous Jackal. Initially created to torment the real Spider-Man, he eventually breaks free from his creator. He later grows his own identity as Scarlet Spider and also picks up the webslinger mantle for a period.

Reilly also fought enemies alongside Peter and eventually died at the hands of Norman Osborn’s Green Goblin to save the real Spider-Man. In later issues, he underwent multiple deaths and resurrections.

The character also made his live-action debut in 2026’s Spider-Noir series, where Nicolas Cage plays the character. However, it remains separate from the MCU.

Spider-Man: Brand New Day is playing in theaters.

Originally reported on SuperHeroHype.

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