Jacob Batalon, who plays Spider-best Man's friend Ned Leeds in the MCU, regrets suggesting that his character will undergo a specific development.
Spider-Man: Homecoming is where Ned finds out the truth.
Jacob Batalon, who played Ned Leeds in the latest Spider-Man film, No Way Home, and hinted that his character could become the Hobgoblin in future MCU films, has since apologized.
Ned made his debut appearance as Peter Parker's (Tom Holland) best buddy in the 2017 film Spider-Man: Homecoming, when he learns Peter's secret identity as Spider-Man and eventually becomes Spider-"man Man's in the chair."
Marvel Comics' Ned Leeds is a real person who, after being brainwashed, becomes the villain Hobgoblin. However, the MCU's Ned Leeds is very different from the comic book version.
In the Marvel Cinematic Universe's Spider-Man films, Ned and Peter's friendship has been a driving force, although the two are rivals in the business and in love in the comics.
Audiences' attention was drawn to Spider-Man: No Way Home for several hints to Ned's potential future as an antagonist.
In one scene, Ned inquires of Tobey Maguire's Spider-Man whether he has a best friend, and Peter tells him all about Harry, who tries to kill him before ultimately passing away in Peter's arms.
Ned was visibly rattled up by the exchange, but he assured Peter (Holland) that he wouldn't turn traitor.
Fans of the character have wondered if Ned will eventually mature into his comics portrayal and become Hobgoblin after other hints were dropped about his hidden magical powers and his future in the MCU.
Batalon, apparently pleased by the Hobgoblin ideas, has fanned the conjecture with cryptic comments.
Ned turns into Venom, not Hobgoblin, according to this theory about Spider-Man 4.
Batalon, however, apologizes to Marvel Cinematic Universe viewers during an appearance on The Tonight Show Starring Jimmy Fallon for his role in fueling rumors concerning Ned's future.
The actor implies he has no idea what Ned's future in the MCU holds by referencing statements he made as far back as 2016 and seemed sincerely apologetic for his part in the Hobgoblin speculating.
Read on for Batalon's take on the matter:
I feel the need to apologize to everyone for anything I did.
I made an extremely dumb move in 2016 and I even admitted to it in an interview the same year.
Then, stupidly, I just kept ahead with the story as though I already knew the ending.
And it has become the topic of conversation throughout all demographics.
And I simply wanted to apologize for all the confusion...
Batalon admits in his apologies that he teased a Hobgoblin run during the promotion for Spider-Man: Homecoming, while being unaware of what was planned for his character.
Since the MCU is notoriously secretive about plot and character information, it's probable that most Spider-Man fans didn't take his statements literally, making his apology a hilarious throwback to the teases he has provided over the years.
The fate of Ned in the MCU is uncertain after the events of Spider-Man: No Way Home.
With him having no recollection of Peter or their exploits together, it seems unlikely that we will see him reprise his role as Hobgoblin in any future MCU or Spider-Man flicks.
It's possible that Ned's memory loss may be exploited to turn him into a comically realistic version of Leeds, in which he and Peter work for the same company and Ned is indoctrinated into thinking he's Peter.
The Marvel Cinematic Universe may possibly establish an alternate-universe version of Ned to track down Peter as the Hobgoblin.
The Hobgoblin identity has been assumed by a number of characters throughout the years, so it's possible that a new Marvel Cinematic Universe figure, like Roderick Kingsley or, moving away from the books, Harry Osborn, will don the mask in the next Spider-Man film.
Fans of the Marvel Cinematic Universe who hope to see Batalon in a future Spider-Man film should be encouraged by the actor's stated interest in returning to his role as Ned.
