New Spider-Man: No Way Home Promo Sends Ned To The Raimi And Webb Universes
Ned Leeds (Jacob Batalon) is hands-down one of the best sidekicks in the MCU. He's enthusiastic, a great hype man for his best bro Peter (Tom Holland), and generally a super-helpful ally in times of superhero-adjacent stress. "Spider-Man: No Way Home" finally recognized his (and Batalon's) full potential by giving Ned portal-opening capabilities, leading fans to speculate about whether or not the character would headline his own series or movie soon.
Ned isn't taking center stage quite yet, but a new teaser for the "Spider-Man: No Way Home" home media release lets fans see the character dip into other Spider-Man worlds, specifically the films by Sam Raimi and Marc Webb. The clip –which seems to be a one-off teaser, as it doesn't correspond to any featurettes on the Blu-ray — is called "Ned's Bogus Adventure," stylized in the classic "Back to the Future" font.
Ned goes universe-hopping
The not-quite-sorcerer's-apprentice isn't exactly time traveling here so much as movie hopping. We see Ned appear in the audience of the underground wrestling match where Tobey Maguire's Peter Parker debuts his Spider-Man costume for the first time. He also pops up at a high school graduation, where Andrew Garfield's Peter is kissing Gwen Stacy (Emma Stone). Finally, Ned hops over to his own timeline, where he sees his own Peter at the homecoming dance.
Oddly, this isn't really a full featurette or an in-canon short like "Peter Parker Takes His Driving Test." It's largely footage from existing Spider-Man movies, much of which is arranged like a promo for the Holland franchise, along with a few seconds of new Ned material. Batalon is clearly green-screened into these pre-existing scenes, and there's an added layer of uncanny valley strangeness thanks to the inclusion of a repurposed Stan Lee cameo.
Hopefully, we'll get to see Ned's powers in full force in the Marvel Cinematic Universe sometime soon. The character doesn't seem to be hewing particularly closely to Marvel comics plots, which see him cloned at one point, and at another, brainwashed into becoming a villain called the Hobgoblin. This might be a good thing for fans of the character, though: It's very possible Ned's abilities, which resemble those of Doctor Strange, will be needed to help set the world straight after upcoming MCU plotlines seem poised to tear the universe asunder. If this clip shows anything, it's that the guy can casually use magic which has taken others years to master.
Batalon's time as Ned has been especially meaningful for viewers who have never seen a Filipino-American hero save the day before. The dynamic, funny, and supportive character deserves a prime spot in the MCU, and hopefully "Ned's Bogus Adventure" is just the tip of the iceberg.