From alien invasions to superhero showdowns, the Statue of Liberty has long been Hollywood’s favorite visual shorthand for America. Filmmakers love planting Lady Liberty in the background, whether she is being dramatically destroyed, heroically saved, or simply standing tall as a symbol of freedom, and Jon Watts was no different when it came to Spider-Man: No Way Home. 

 But while moviegoers worldwide generally cheer at the sight of the famous monument, it turns out not everyone is quite as enthusiastic about Liberty, especially in China. And to adhere, Destin Daniel Cretton, helmer of the upcoming Spider-Man: Brand New Day, has taken the measures.

As the superhero reloads another swing across the big screen, the MCU has cropped this symbol of freedom out of the big picture, for the time being. 

Sony bigwig and CEO Tom Rothman spilled some of the behind-the-scenes while talking on The Town with Matthew Belloni podcast. He circled back to how Spider-Man: No Way Home came so close to that magical $2 billion haul but fell short, and tied it to why the Statue of Liberty has become a hot-button issue for the web-slinger franchise. 

Despite Spider-Man: No Way Home raking in $1.92 billion worldwide, becoming Sony's top earner during the pandemic, China's movie market, the second-biggest in the world, stood out as the missing piece. Rothman laid it out that the snag boiled down to a direct demand to do away with the Statue of Liberty. Fast forward to 2026, and post a playful guess that the upcoming Spider-Man flick would skip Lady Liberty entirely, Spider-Man: Brand New Day will have a literal monumental shift.

"Coincidentally, that is true." Rothman declared on the podcast. In light of what kept No Way Home out of China, it does not seem like a random choice at all.  

Stories from around the movie's launch echoed that, with regulators pushing Sony to cut or downplay the monument big time. The problem? The whole climax revolved around a partly rebuilt Lady Liberty, so chopping it out would mean serious story surgery. Instead, Sony and Marvel held firm and passed on the market altogether.

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Well, talking of Spider-Man: Brand New Day the director has also dropped some hints about when one can expect a tease.

The hype for that first trailer is through the roof, to the point that director Destin Daniel Cretton got grilled on why the movie passed on the Super Bowl spot in a chat with Big Gold Belt Media. Cretton made apparent his understanding of why fans are itching for a peek, but he kept it simple: the initial look at Spider-Man: Brand New Day is headed the audience's way soon.

“Of course it’s gonna come. It’s coming,” the filmmaker said. Since Spider-Man: Brand New Day passed on Super Bowl airtime, Disney is probably holding the trailer for one of their major drops later this year.

With The Mandalorian and Grogu hitting screens toward the end of May, roughly two months before Spider-Man: Brand New Day lands, odds are high that is where the trailer attaches. National Superhero Day falls on April 28 as well, creating another opening for Marvel to drop some quick footage for Spider-Man: Brand New Day; however, all in good time. 

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What do you think of Spider-Man: Brand New Day swinging back into theaters without Lady Liberty? Let us know your thoughts in the comments.