This article contains spoilers for Spider-man: Brand New Day

Spider-Man’s origin story in the comics is rooted in the death of his Uncle Ben. He is a hero driven by grief – on a mission, to begin with, to avenge his uncle’s death.

In the latest iteration of Spider-Man, however, his grief is different. In the cinematic Marvel Universe, Spider-Man’s loss comes later in his hero’s journey – in the second film, ⁠Spider-Man: No Way Home (2021). And instead of Uncle Ben, this Peter Parker loses his Aunt May.

Two Spider-Man films later, Peter Parker is still grappling with his loss. In Spider-Man: Brand New Day, this continuation of grief is depicted through scenes in which Peter Parker imagines speaking to his late aunt.

As an expert in grief and bereavement research, I was pleasantly surprised to see such a mainstream action film contain such a poignant message – and important lessons about living with loss and grief.

In Peter’s story, we see that loss is something that’s never really “gotten over”. Rather, we grow around the grief we experience. We also see that it can be healthy and productive to maintain a connection........

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