New casting in Spider-Man 3 has revealed that Marvel plans to expand Jacob Batalon’s Ned role. And it will happen in the future.
According to Comicbook, Sony Pictures is currently looking for a Filipino actress for Spider-Man 3. And she must be within the age range of 50-80 years old. Going by this news, it’s not hard to guess who she might be connected to. Yes, it’s Peter Parker’s friend Ned of course!
The new casting will add a supporting character to the film. And she’s supposed to play Ned Leeds’ relative.
Spider-Man 3 cast and movie details
Interestingly, the actor playing Ned, Jacob Batalon, himself is half-Filipino. Thus, the studio is giving due respect to his actual heritage. And so, the supporting character is going to be Filipino as well, after the new reveal.
Ned has been the best friend of Peter Parker, aka Tom Holland, in the MCU/Sony franchise in 2017. Homecoming and Far From Home saw their amazing bond with each other. It will be great now to witness Ned’s family connection in a deeper manner in Spider-Man 3.
But there’s another catch to this entire connection. In the comics, Ned Leeds is none other than the villain of Peter. He’s called the Hobgoblin (not the original Goblin, though). Last year, actor Jacob himself told in an interview regarding his role and expansion in the future installments. He expressed his inner thoughts.
“That just further validates my theory of Ned becoming Hobgoblin, but hey… But it’d be so great [if] they’re not going to want me to die,” he said.
“[I hope] they’re going to want me to stay on and be part of the Sinister Six. That’s just my theory.”
Speaking of the third part of the series, it’s one of the most-awaited films in the next MCU phases. And it’s also because Far From Home, in 2019, teased so much towards its end that everyone became totally hyped.
More Marvel content coming in the future
Currently, the release slate seems all but empty since there’s a lot of content coming in next year. 2021 will not only witness content from Marvel Studios but also from Sony! Both the studios will present their superhero installments.
However, all of them are expected to stay connected within the MCU events. Yes, major rumors and early leaks have almost confirmed it. Examples include Jared Leto’s Morbius and Venom 2, under Sony, linked to the main MCU storyline. How it will be done is still unimaginable, but that’s going to happen. Spider-Man 3, along with the rest of the releases, will surely entertain the superhero genre’s die-hard fanatics.
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