‘Spider-Man: Brand New Day’ Just Earned The CinemaScore Grade That Puts It In Rare MCU Company

Peter Parker’s road back to theaters was never going to be a quiet one. After five years away from a solo outing, Tom Holland’s web-slinger returned this week with a marketing blitz, a new director, and a plot that picks up in the wreckage left by ‘Spider-Man: No Way Home.’

That kind of anticipation usually comes with pressure, and ‘Spider-Man: Brand New Day’ has spent its release week proving it can handle the weight. Between record-breaking preview numbers and a wave of critic reactions, Sony and Marvel Studios have had plenty to celebrate before the film even hit its first full weekend.

Now the audience verdict is in, and it’s a strong one. ‘Spider-Man: Brand New Day’ has earned an A grade from CinemaScore, the market research firm that polls moviegoers as they exit opening-night screenings. The grade makes it, according to reporting on the film’s reception, the 25th Marvel Cinematic Universe film and the sixth live-action Spider-Man movie to receive an A or better from opening-night audiences.

The A places ‘Brand New Day’ in strong company within its own franchise, even if it stops just short of the very top tier. Sam Raimi’s original ‘Spider-Man’ and ‘Spider-Man 2’ both received A-, while ‘Spider-Man 3’ settled for a B+. ‘The Amazing Spider-Man’ earned an A-, followed by a B+ for its sequel, while Holland’s own ‘Homecoming’ and ‘Far From Home’ both collected A grades before ‘No Way Home’ raised the bar with an A+.

That A+ remains the outlier. Only a handful of comic-book films have ever achieved that score, including ‘The Avengers,’ ‘Black Panther,’ ‘Spider-Man: Into the Spider-Verse,’ ‘Avengers: Endgame’ and ‘Spider-Man: No Way Home.’ So while ‘Brand New Day’ didn’t quite match its predecessor’s historic grade, landing an A still places it comfortably among the best-received entries in the entire Spider-Man library.

The CinemaScore is just one piece of a broader reception that has been overwhelmingly positive. The film has also earned a 90% Certified Fresh score with critics and a 98% score from verified Rotten Tomatoes audiences, tying the MCU’s audience record. Per Forbes reporting cited by outlets covering the release, the film has an 8.2 rating on IMDb, reportedly the best of the Holland era, edging out even ‘No Way Home’s 8.1.

Box office numbers are backing up that enthusiasm. Thursday preview receipts alone reportedly reached $75 million, comfortably ahead of the $50 million ‘No Way Home’ generated in its own previews and enough to eclipse the previous previews record held by ‘Avengers: Endgame,’ which had stood since 2019.

The story picks up four years after Doctor Strange’s memory spell wiped the world’s knowledge of Peter Parker’s double life. Directed by Destin Daniel Cretton, the film finds Peter now living as a solitary full-time hero while MJ (Zendaya) and Ned (Jacob Batalon) no longer remember who he is.

The cast expansion has also generated buzz of its own. The film reunites Holland and Zendaya alongside Batalon and Jon Favreau, while welcoming newcomers including Sadie Sink, Jon Bernthal, Mark Ruffalo, Liza Colón-Zayas, Tramell Tillman, Marvin Jones III and Melanie Scrofano.

Industry watchers are already framing the numbers in historic terms. Some trackers now see the opening weekend landing well north of $250 million domestically, with global estimates pushing toward the $800 million range by Sunday, all without the film holding a single domestic IMAX screen due to Christopher Nolan’s ‘The Odyssey.’

For a franchise that has repeatedly reset box office expectations, an A CinemaScore paired with record preview numbers suggests ‘Brand New Day’ isn’t just meeting the moment, it’s building the kind of word-of-mouth that tends to fuel a long theatrical run. Whether it can climb higher than an A in the cultural conversation is beside the point when the numbers themselves are already making history.

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