‘Spider-Man: No Way Home’ Concept Artist Explains Scrapped Ned Leeds Hobgoblin Plans

Will the Hobgoblin take flight?

Hobgoblin Spider-Man 3 Jacob Batalon Spider-Man: No Way Home Ned Leeds

Could Jacob Batalon’s Ned Leeds have become the MCU’s Hobgoblin in Spider-Man: No Way Home? A concept artist for the film breaks down the scrapped idea in a new art book.

A newly-surfaced piece of concept art shows Jacob Batalon as Ned Leeds, flying around on the Green Goblin’s glider and wearing an orange hoodie during the climax of Spider-Man: No Way Home. While seemingly innocuous, Marvel Comics fans immediately noticed the parallels to the Hobgoblin, the supervillain persona of Ned Leeds, leading many to speculate Batalon would make a heel turn in the MCU’s future. However, a recent art book for the film dashes these hopes, revealing the concept art was little more than a visual gag:

“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.” Artist Phil Saunders explains

“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.”

While certainly a disappointment, there’s certainly still hope for Hobgoblin fans. Jacob Batalon has expressed interest in taking on a more villainous role if he ever returns to the MCU. The ending of Spider-Man: No Way Home also sets up a whole new world for Ned Leeds, as fans don’t know what kind of person he would be without Peter Parker in his life. Though with Vincent D’Onofrio’s Kingpin likely being the antagonist of Spider-Man 4, it may take some time to see.

What’s next for Spider-Man?

What does the future hold for Tom Holland’s Peter Parker? The success of Spider-Man: No Way Home has opened up a world of possibilities for the fan-favorite Marvel character. The movie ends with Peter erasing himself from the memories of his loved ones in order to protect them from his enemies. This sets up an interesting dynamic for future Spider-Man movies, as Peter will have to navigate a world in which he is not known as Spider-Man.

Rumor has it that Tom Holland has signed on for multiple Marvel Cinematic Universe appearances after Spider-Man: No Way Home. The future of the Spider-Man series is currently unclear, but it is likely that Marvel will continue to explore the multiverse concept that was introduced in No Way Home.

Spider-Man: No Way Home is now available to own on 4K Ultra HD Blu-ray, Blu-ray, DVD, and Digital HD. Stay tuned for the latest news regarding Spider-Man’s Marvel Cinematic Universe future and make sure to subscribe to our YouTube channel for more content!

Anthony Singletary

Anthony Singletary

Anthony has always had a love for stories. An aspiring screenwriter and video editor, he takes pride in connecting fans with the latest heroic news!