Tom Holland Recreates Iconic Spider-Man Comic Pose in TIME

2 Minutes

There it is: Tom Holland frozen in a pose every Spider-Man fan recognizes, this time on the cover of TIME. The new image from Spider-Man: Brand New Day doesn’t feel like publicity—it feels like a love letter to the comics that made the web-slinger a cultural landmark.

As anticipation for the Sony Pictures–Marvel collaboration climbs, studios and pundits are already whispering about box-office records. Fans are whispering louder: will this be the most comic-accurate Spider-Man yet? Casting choices and a veil of secrecy around Sadie Sink’s character have only stoked that curiosity.

ComicBookMovie’s feature on the TIME issue pulls back the curtain a bit. Director Destin Daniel Cretton explains how he and Holland worked to painstakingly recreate some of the most famous comic covers. "We have several scenes—parts you glimpsed in the trailer—that are essentially slow-motion re-creations of beloved Spider-Man covers," Cretton says. "For some of those shots Tom had to, for example, do a full backflip, and all of that happens in about one and a half seconds." Short. Brutal. Precise.

The effort shows. Frames meant to evoke decades of comic-book history are stitched into the film as gestures more than gimmicks: silent homages that reward sharp eyes and long-time readers. Cinematic slow motion. Practical stunts. A reverence for the source material that many critics and fans have been calling for.

There’s a business side to the romance, too. With a global rollout and marketing built around nostalgia and spectacle, analysts expect Spider-Man: Brand New Day to be one of the summer’s biggest releases. Yet beyond projections and ticket forecasts, this image on TIME does something else—it reminds viewers why Spidey endures. He’s athletic and awkward. Noble and a little tragic. Familiar in a new frame.

Spider-Man: Brand New Day opens worldwide July 31, 2026.

So what will stick when the credits roll? The stunts. The cameos. The quiet moments that echo those iconic covers. Bring your fan theories—and your Spider-senses.