After years of being compared to one of Marvel’s greatest heroes and garnering the nickname “Korean Spider-Man,” NCT’s Mark was tapped to participate in the extensive marketing campaign for Sony Pictures and Marvel Studios’ upcoming film, Spider-Man: Brand New Day.

On March 17, Spider-Man actor Tom Holland announced that the studio would be partnering with Spidey fans across the globe to release short snippets of the first Brand New Day trailer ahead of its full release on March 18. While superhero-related trailers, especially from Marvel, have become worldwide events over the years, there’s never been a marketing campaign quite like this one. “Follow along as a brand new day starts across the world, and some of our greatest fans are going to help us release pieces of our new trailer,” Holland stated in an Instagram video.

The campaign would follow 23 fans and influencers from around the world, each posting their part of the trailer around 6 AM in their respective countries, and a short video of what Spider-Man means to them. As the campaign began in Peru, moving through the U.S., Mexico, Hawaii, and parts of Asia, K-pop fans were surprised and delighted to see NCT member Mark Lee included as the representative for South Korea.

For context, there is so much lore building up to this moment for both Mark and NCTzens (NCT’s fanbase). Not only has Mark been vocal about his love of the Spider-Man movies in general, but fans have drawn several similarities to the K-pop artist and the fictional webslinger as early as 2019, with many commenting on various interviews about Mark’s quick reflexes and innate “spider-sense.” And so, “Spider-Mark,” as he’s been affectionately called, was born. With the online hype spreading like wildfire, this led the 26-year-old to incorporate Spider-Mark references anywhere he could, including making it the central plot for his 2024 music video, “200.”

Fast forward to 2026, and it looks like all the inside jokes, references, and chatter have paid off, with Mark officially on Sony and Marvel’s radar for this trailer campaign. In the Instagram video shared by the NCT member himself, he said, “I’m so happy to help introduce the new Spider-Man trailer to you all. I’ve loved Spider-Man since I was young, and I’ve always felt he’s the kind of hero who inspires people to make a positive difference in the world.”

Looking back on past Marvel-related endeavors in Korea, partnering with popular idols and entertainers is technically nothing new, but it’s always exciting and a huge deal, nonetheless. Some of the most notable partnerships include Korean-American singer and former talk-show host Eric Nam interviewing the cast of Black Panther in 2018, THE BOYZ sharing their reactions to an early screening of Spider-Man: Across the Spider-Verse in 2023, and Stray Kids’ organic relationship with Ryan Reynolds, helping them land a spot on the Deadpool and Wolverine soundtrack in 2024.

It’s a beneficial partnership that goes both ways — movie studios earn more engagement and hopefully ticket sales through K-pop’s global influence, and the idols receive more exposure and build professional relationships with some of the world’s highest-grossing studios. Either way, it seems Mark’s Spider-Man dreams are coming true.