'The Dark Knight' warned us about mass surveillance. In 'Spider-Man: Brand New Day,' it's a punchline.

Caution: Spoilers for "Spider-Man: Brand New Day" ahead.

With awesome powerfulness comes awesome work — that's the iconic mantra that's been astatine the bosom of Spider-Man since his preamble successful 1962.

But successful 2026, should that awesome powerfulness see the expertise to tally a wide surveillance programme connected the group of New York City, pinch thing much than a quip to explicate it?

If you spell by the events of "Spider-Man: Brand New Day," successful theaters now, successful which Spider-Man (Tom Holland) uses forbidden facial nickname exertion to place some Scorpion (Michael Mando), a criminal, and Jean Grey (Sadie Sink), a telepathic mutant moving amok successful NYC, the reply is yes.

The exertion is remarkably akin to what Batman uses astatine the extremity of "The Dark Knight," released successful 2008. Except successful that film, utilizing it was presented arsenic a immense ethical dilemma, and it's yet destroyed.

It's been 18 years since "The Dark Knight." What does the curen of surveillance successful "Brand New Day" opportunity astir our attitudes toward it? They've changed.

Spider-Man's statement 'speaks to the utmost grade to which group are surveilled correct now'

Spider-Man reveals the exertion erstwhile looking for Scorpion, telling Detective DeWolff (Liza Colón-Zayas) that he has "every camera successful New York moving a facial nickname scan."

"That sounds ace illegal, Spider-Man," she responds. "I'm gonna dress I didn't perceive that."

He laughs and says it's "probably for the best."

Some Spider-Man fans were upset astir Spidey's relaxed cognition toward the surveillance technology. On X and Reddit, they utilized nicknames for illustration "Peter Thiel Parker" and "Palantir Parker" to picture the character.

Peter Thiel's Palantir Technologies provides authorities agencies, including ICE and the Department of Defense, pinch package specified as Gotham. It "supports soldiers pinch an AI-powered termination chain" by integrating target recognition and target effector pairing, among different capabilities, according to the company.

Nicholas Carnes, a governmental scientist, professor of nationalist argumentation astatine Duke University, and co-editor of "The Politics of the Marvel Cinematic Universe," told Business Insider he was "very uncomfortable" pinch Spider-Man's forbidden exertion "being a throwaway line."

"I thought, my goodness, really blasé it seems to now say, 'Oh, I'm conscionable going to do this. Don't show connected me, detective,'" Carnes said.

For Carnes, the nonchalance of the infinitesimal reflects really pervasive surveillance has go successful our day-to-day lives. "That statement tin only beryllium successful the movie successful the measurement it does successful a world wherever group are accustomed to being surveilled," he added.

The surveillance statement has shifted since 'The Dark Knight'

"The Dark Knight," released 18 years ago, approaches surveillance exertion otherwise and shows conscionable really acold attitudes person shifted.

Bruce Wayne argues pinch his friend, Lucius Fox, astir the implications of utilizing surveillance tech connected chap citizens, starring Lucius to frighten to quit. The movie climaxes pinch Bruce destroying the device, overmuch to Lucius' relief.

The movie was released successful July 2008, adjacent the extremity of George W. Bush's 2nd term, erstwhile immoderate Americans were concerned astir the exertion of laws for illustration the Patriot Act and the NSA spying connected American citizens. A Gallup canvass put Bush's support standing astatine conscionable 29% that summer.

Nearly 2 decades later, surveillance concerns haven't disappeared, but we've each gotten more accustomed to surviving pinch it successful each portion of our lives, including astatine home, astatine work, successful our cars, and astatine school.

"Christian Bale was Batman successful an era erstwhile group were getting really concerned astir what's happening pinch their data. And Spider-Man is benignant of surveilling the full metropolis successful an era erstwhile group are being told a 100 times a day, 'AI is good, and it's your friend,'" Carnes said.

That's not to opportunity "Spider-Man: Brand New Day" doesn't knock authorities power. Carnes noted that the movie yet portrays authorities oversight successful a antagonistic light.

"This is simply a movie that really depicts a fictional section of the US authorities [the Department of Damage Control] arsenic shadowy, abusive, unaccountable, and utterly immoral," Carnes said.

The movie ends pinch Spider-Man breaking into a DODC installation and discovering the agency has been processing weapons specifically designed to return him down.

While Peter has regrets astir creating exertion that was utilized against Jean and could person catastrophic consequences for mutants successful the future, he ne'er reckons pinch becoming Big Brother himself.

Spider-Man's surveillance tech isn't truthful acold removed from reality

The exertion Spider-Man uses to conflict crime — without immoderate oversight — isn't dissimilar surveillance systems that are already successful spot today.

Automatic licence sheet readers (ALPRs), including those made by Flock Safety, are utilized by constabulary departments crossed the state to hunt camera networks for vehicles of interest.

Proponents of the exertion argue it could beryllium a adjuvant instrumentality successful preventing crime, supporting victims, and aiding constabulary work. Critics reason that the tech has accuracy problems, raises privateness concerns, and lacks reliable oversight.

For now, it seems Americans stock critics' concerns. A March 2026 canvass by the Center for Democracy and Technology recovered that 74% of respondents were "concerned astir the privateness and information of their individual information that is held by the government."

That raises different question: whether seeing this benignant of surveillance wielded casually by a trusted superhero — Spider-Man — tin proceed to normalize it.

But Carnes noted that audiences person accepted superheroes having exertion that, successful the existent world, would not fly.

"We're OK pinch Spider-Man having that powerfulness because he's Peter Parker, and he's beloved to us, and we spot him," he said. "We would not beryllium OK pinch virtually anyone having that successful the existent world."