Spider-Man: No Way Home star Jacob Batalon apologized for spreading rumors about becoming the web-slinger's next villain in an upcoming film.
"You know, I'd just like to say, I'm really sorry, everyone," Batalon said during his recent appearance on The Tonight Show with Jimmy Fallon. "I did this really stupid thing back in 2016 and mentioned it in an interview. And then I stupidly just continued with the story as if like I knew what was going to happen. And now everyone is talking about it. I'm sorry for all the misinformation."
Batalon plays Ned Leeds in the Tom Holland-led Spider-Man movies. In the comic books, he eventually becomes supervillain Hobgoblin. There's a little bit of foreshadowing in No Way Home, with Ned promising Peter that he'll never become a villain and try to kill him – something that Tobey Maguire's Peter Parker says happened to him, referring to his former best friend Harry Osborne.
At the end of No Way: Home – spoiler alert – Ned and MJ are wiped clean of any and all memories of their friendship with Peter Parker. With Ned having no recollection of his former best friend, it's a near-perfect set-up for him to become Hobgoblin in the next Spidey flick.
Rumors continued to swirl earlier this year after Batalon shared a photo posing with a Hobgoblin action figure while giving a playful shrug. Though no new Spider-Man movies were announced as part of Marvel Phase 5 or 6, there's always a chance that we could be seeing Ned's villain arc in a later film. For more, check out our list of all the upcoming Marvel movies and shows you should know about.
