Spider-Man: Homecoming and Better Call Saul star teases his villain’s return for Brand New Day with just one simple word: "Sting"

As filming kicks off for Spider-Man: Brand New Day, Michael Mando has confirmed his return as ruthless gangster Mac Gargan, aka The Scorpion.

The actor shared a selfie to his personal Instagram account with the infamous scorpion tattoo on his neck, followed by one word: "Sting." You might recall that Spider-Man: Homecoming ended with The Scorpion getting knocked off the Staten Island Ferry and getting apprehended by the FBI. He and Adrian Toomes, aka Vulture (Michael Keaton), end up in the same prison together, with Scorpion telling Vulture that he plans to get out of prison and get his revenge on Spider-Man once and for all. You can view the photo below.

A leaked photo from the set of Brand New Day shows a construction area with a completion date of "December 2027". If Spider-Man: Homecoming took place in 2016, that marks some 10 years in prison for Scorpion, and it's likely he may have been released if not for good behavior or by way of finding a legal loophole.

It would also be pretty cool if Mando's Scorpion ends up taking a page out of Spider-Man: Into the Spider-Verse and leans more into Scorpion becoming a cybernetically-enhanced, scaly suit-wearing weirdo... which some fans think Mando is teasing via his Instagram story.

The story posts in question include the classic, all-green Scorpion action figure, as comic book artwork, where Scorpion is standing behind Venom. This looks to be artwork from the 2005 comic Marvel Knights: Spider-Man #10, where Mac Gargan becomes the third host of the Venom symbiote. A fan theory about Gargan becoming Venom in the MCU actually popped up right after No Way Home, thanks to that Eddie Brock post-credits scene, though it seems more likely that we'll see a fully-realized Scorpion first (especially given the fact that Tom Hardy previously said that he doesn't see Eddie appearing in Spider-Man 4).

Spider-Man: Brand New Day hits cinemas on July 31, 2026 as part of Marvel Phase 6. For more, you'll need our guides on upcoming Marvel movies. Then, dive into everything that has happened in the MCU so far with our essential breakdowns of both the Marvel timeline and how to watch the Marvel movies in order.