Spider-Man 3’s Jacob Batalon Reveals New Look For Ned Leeds
Jacob Batalon, who again plays Peter Parker's best friend Ned Leeds in Spider-Man: Homecoming 3, reveals his dramatic weight loss for the movie. Batalon has appeared in both of Tom Holland's solo webslinger movies, Spider-Man: Homecoming and the 2019 sequel Spider-Man: Far From Home, as well as featuring in a cameo in Avengers: Infinity War. He will return to play Ned in the as-yet-untitled third movie in the franchise, which is currently filming.
Holland and co-star Zendaya arrived in Atlanta for the shoot this week, after second unit crews had shot a number of establishing shots in Queens, New York the week before. Batalon's character filled the role of best friend to Peter in the first movie, and their relationship became more complex in the sequel, when Ned took a fancy to Angourie Rice's Betty Bryant, temporarily driving a wedge between the two. It's unclear what Ned's narrative arc will be in the third film, though in the past Batalon has said he wants Ned to become the MCU's Hobgoblin, like he was briefly in the comics. Now, a new Instagram post from Batalon confirms that Ned will indeed change in Spider-Man: Homecoming 3, even if just physically.
Batalon posted a shot of himself on his Instagram stories, revealing him wearing the wig he uses to play Ned (Batalon has a shaved head in real life), and showing his dramatic weight loss. Previously overweight, Batalon has slimmed down considerably, and has lost 102 pounds according to fan account theinternationalspiderman. That account posted a comparison between Batalon at the beginning of his weight loss journey, compared to now, and the difference is noticeable. You can see both posts below:
The assumption is that Batalon has lost the weight as a result of the demands of Ned's narrative arc in Spider-Man 3, though he might also have simply decided that he wanted to do so for his own health. Perhaps the choice was a little of both. Given Batalon's comments about wanting to play the Hobgoblin, speculation will be rife that he has slimmed down for that reason. It's unclear, though, given that the movie already has one confirmed villain, with the movie bringing back Jamie Foxx's Electro, who he played in The Amazing Spider-Man 2.
It's also unclear how the MCU version of Ned could become the Hobgoblin, though in the comics he's brainwashed into taking the blame of the crimes of the real Hobgoblin, Roderick Kingsley. That storyline might well be used in Spider-Man: Homecoming 3, though it would seem a little creatively similar to the fake Mysterio plot used in Spider-Man: Far From Home. However, regardless of the reason for his weight loss, Batalon looks happy and healthy, and that's always a good thing.
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Source: Jacob Batalon, theinternationalspiderman/Instagram