When Sadie Sink was revealed to be part of the cast of “Spider-Man: Brand New Day,” her role in the Marvel Cinematic Universe was kept tightly under wraps.
As a result, the rumor mill went into overdrive as fans fired off their various theories about which Marvel superhero the “Stranger Things” alum would be playing — or even if she’d be playing a superhero at all.
All is Revealed
Now that “Spider-Man: Brand New Day” has finally arrived, the identity of her character has been revealed — and it’s more than a little intriguing.
Spoiler Alert: That said, anyone who would prefer to remain in the dark until actually seeing the film and learning the surprise firsthand is advised to stop reading any further, because spoilers will be spilled.
The Big Reveal…
One of the most prevalent fan theories postulated that Sink would be playing Jean Grey, the red-haired telekinetic mutant of the X-Men. The character had previously been played by Famke Janssen in the original trio of “X-Men” movies, and then by “Game of Thrones” alum Sophie Turner in “X-Men: Apocalypse” and “X-Men: Phoenix.”
That theory turned out to be right on the money, with Sink indeed revealed to be Jean Grey.
As Variety reports, Sink’s character appears with her face hidden until halfway throughout the film.
Per Variety, Spidey (Tom Holland) is “investigating a new villain on the loose in New York City who has the power to possess bystanders’ bodies (as long as they’re less than 33 feet away). She uses her abilities to ‘jump’ between between people’s minds and attempt to break into the headquarters for the Department of Damage Control.”
That villain is Jean Grey, who wants to infilitrate the organization — “which is responsible for cleaning up the messes after superhero battles” — to retrieve something inside a locked vault that she requires.
And Here Comes Hulk
The trailer for “Spider-Man: Brand New Day” featured a brief glimpse of Spider-Man battling Hulk.
In the film, however, the Unjolly Green Giant is under the control of Jean Grey, which leads Spidey to enlist the assistance of Punisher (Jon Bernthal), which ultimately leads to Jean Grey’s capture.
From there, the film serves up a big ol’ twist that’s best appreciated by watching the film on the big screen.
We Haven’t Seen the Last of Jean Grey
The movie ends with Sink’s character making a getaway, setting up what appears to be a whole other iteration of “The X-Men.”
Meanwhile, the OG X-men from the original movies will be seen in the upcoming “Avengers: Doomsday,” set to arrive in December.
Reprising their roles will be James Marsden as Cyclops; Kelsey Grammer as Beast; Rebecca Romijn as Mystique; Allan Cumming as Nightcrawler; Channing Tatum as Gambit; Ian McKellen as Magneto; and Patrick Stewart as Professor X.
Tough Secret to Keep
While Marvel has yet to confirm that a new “X-Men” reboot is in the works, the big reveal about Sink as Jean Grey would certainly hint that it’s coming.
Meanwhile, “Spider-Man: Brand New Day” director Destin Daniel Cretton admitted that keeping info about Sink’s character from leaking out ahead of the film’s release was no mean feat.
“Keeping what Sadie’s doing under wraps, you’ll honestly understand when you see the movie,” the director told The Hollywood Reporter. “The movie is a better movie if you don’t know certain things. I wish people didn’t know anything when they go in to watch this movie, but we’re not doing it for any other reason but to protect the experience of the fans. And whoever goes on opening weekend, you are going to have a much cooler experience if you go in not knowing certain things.”
