Though we're still waiting on an official announcement, we know plans are in place for a fourth Spider-Man movie, with stars Tom Holland and Zendaya set to reprise their respective roles.
After appearing in the previous three movies and playing quite an integral role in No Way Home, one would assume Peter Parker's pal Ned Leeds will also factor into the story, but actor Jacob Batalon says he's still waiting on the call.
"I mean, I would hope so," The Tarot star told The Direct when asked if he's set to return for the untitled No Way Home follow-up. "I think just with anyone who's worked for Marvel knows that you kind of just like wait for a call. Maybe it does [happen], maybe it doesn't. But it's something that you definitely can't hope and wait for. You just like, you will wake up one day to a call at like 4:30 in the morning for no reason. You know, so maybe."
Batalon was then asked if he's spoken to Holland about how the story could continue, and his response may indicate that he's attempting not to give too much away. "I mean, again, there's some things that could possibly happen, but I'm honestly not sure. I feel like we talk about all kinds of things, but I mean, maybe."
There had been some speculation that Ned could eventually become the Hobgoblin as his comic book counterpart does, which reignited when a piece of concept art that did the rounds online last year. However, artist Phil Saunders explained that this was simply going to be a nod to the character's villainous turn in a 2023 interview.
“This was an early idea proposed where Ned gets a shot at riding the Goblin Glider during the final battle, a nice bit of fan service given Ned’s ultimate turn in the comic book universe. As serendipity would have it, Queens’ own Mets wear orange and blue, the colours of Hobgoblin, so I have Ned wearing the hoodie as another little nod. But just to show you how far we take research and character-building in Vis Dev, Ned’s wearing the number 50, [a] homage to Benny Agbayani, the Hawaiian-Filipino Mets left-fielder who would undoubtedly be one of Ned’s heroes, given their shared heritage.”
The next Spider-Man movie could obviously work without Ned, but it would be a shame if he didn't get to return after Doctor Strange's spell made him forget Peter/Spider-Man ever existed at the end of No Way Home.