When we catch up with Peter Parker (Tom Holland) at the beginning of Spider-Man: Brand New Day, he’s already spent years on his own, entirely focused on being Spider-Man. After the events of No Way Home, Peter's best friend Ned (Jacob Batalon) and the love of his life MJ (Zendaya) have no memory of him, and the woman who raised him, Aunt May (Marisa Tomei), is dead. That’s why it's striking when, a few scenes into the film, we see Peter chatting on the phone with someone he’s obviously comfortable with. The movie gives a moment of “Wait, who is he talking to?” before revealing a character new to the Marvel Cinematic Universe, NYPD Detective Jean DeWolff, played by Emmy-winning The Bear actor Liza Colón-Zayas.

Their initial conversation makes it clear their relationship isn’t terribly close. DeWolff doesn’t know Spider-Man’s identity, and he doesn’t know the name of her kids. Nonetheless, there is a warmth and familiarity to their interactions, which we see a few times over the course of the film. Peter has shared with her that he’s been getting headaches lately, and when he loses control of his powers midway through the film, DeWolff is the one who gets through to Spider-Man and calms him down.

DeWolff only has a few scenes in Brand New Day and most of them are over the phone, but they are powerful ones because, for much of the film, DeWolff is the closest thing Spider-Man has to a friend. It also helps that Colón-Zayas brings a realness to the scenes, the same kind of realness that she brings to Tina Marrero on The Bear. Unlike the superheroes Spider-Man interacts with, DeWolff is a regular New Yorker, just like The Bronx-born Colón-Zayas is.

Here, Colón-Zayas talks about what drew her to the Marvel Cinematic Universe. She also talks about whether or not her version of DeWolff may follow any of the same paths as the comic book character she’s based on.

Polygon: Being that you’re a native New Yorker, did you have any special affection for Spider-Man prior to this film?

Liza Colón-Zayas: I have a special affection, not so much that I connected with New York City — although I'm a hardcore New Yorker and love my city — but I had a special affection because my son is such a hardcore fan.

Was there anything else about the project that stood out to you?

What stood out to me? You know, I didn't know much about Marvel, honestly. What stood out to me was my first conversation with [director Destin Daniel Cretton], and him seeing a way in which I can fit into this world.

I never thought of that. I never thought that somebody who looked like me, sounded like me, a Bronx chick, could see that. But that's the beauty of Marvel. And, especially now, hopefully, we'll continue to reflect the city that we live in.

How did he describe the character to you?

He didn't get mad specific. He just wanted to chat with me over Zoom and it was fun, we giggled some. Then I said, "Look, to be honest, I don't know a whole lot about this world." And he was like, "I want you to just be you. I want you to be who you are, be yourself, who you are on this call, who you are on The Bear. Just be you." That was my introduction.

After I became official, then my son went and got a whole bunch of comic books with my character in it, so he helped me catch up.

What did you learn from the comic book prep?

Well, DeWolff was drawn, at least physically, so different from me. In the first iteration, I think in late '70s, she was blonde and angular, very kind of film noir-looking, then that evolved. So I wasn't sure, but what I did relate to was how tough and no-nonsense she was, how she had to fight to get to where she was. That appealed to me so much — a woman, an authority figure, at that time. So that was super cool.

I think she develops feelings for Spider-Man in the comics, if I’m not mistaken.

With the Marvel movies, they don't always stick to that. You know, I think it would be a little weird.

When the movie begins, you’re kind of Spider-Man’s only friend. What was it like finding that dynamic with Tom Holland?

Tom makes it so easy. I don't have to act that part. He is such an incredible actor and so smart. He's just a really warm, welcoming, decent human being. He's like that with everyone, so it was not hard to find that dynamic.

There’s that scene with the two of you, where he’s losing control and you calm him down. Do you have any memories from that scene you’d like to share?

Yeah, this is one that he actually shared first and it made me laugh. After he nearly hurts the police officer and rips off Scorpion's tail, he's having a meltdown. I grab his wrists and I'm telling him "You gotta get a grip because I can't protect you after this." And Destin was like, "Tom, just make sure you bring your hands down lower." Then Tom goes, "It's really hard because Liza is so strong!”

I didn't realize I was holding his hands as intensely as I was! So that was cool to hear.

Were there any scenes that you were in that were cut from the final film?

Just one. There's the moment when they're putting Dr. Banner in the ambulance, and it's raining and Tramell [Tillman] comes out, and, right before Tramell approaches Spider-Man, [we talk]. It was a real brief moment. I can't even remember exactly what the lines were. It was just a real brief check-in. We were under this rain machine, and it was already raining some on that day. And honey, I was soaking wet. My eyelashes were sticking together because the water was just pouring down. We were both soaking wet and I guess they couldn't use it because it looked like I was under a waterfall. I was actually a little relieved that didn't make it in there.

I'm curious if you have any aspirations or hopes for what we'll see with this character in the future. I really hope we get more of her.

I hope so too. I've read the comics. So, even though maybe we don't stick to it so perfectly, any number of things can happen. If we continue, great. I love working with these actors. I love the crew. I would be happy to, but I don't know. I don't know anything because it's all kept very, very secret.

Spider-Man: Brand New Day is in theaters now.