After Daredevil: Born Again, the MCU might be one step closer to introducing the next Green Goblin-like Spider-Man villain, Hobgoblin. Aside from Vulture, Spider-Man: Homecoming introduced multiple characters who might eventually become full-fledged Spider-Man villains, including Shocker, Scorpion, Prowler, and the Tinkerer. Besides Mysterio, Spider-Man: Far From Home also adapted the villains Hydro-Man and Molten Man in the form of Mysterio’s Elementals. And finally, Spider-Man: No Way Home turned five of the previous two Spider-Men’s villains into official enemies of Tom Holland’s Spider-Man: Green Goblin, Doctor Octopus, Electro, Sandman, and the Lizard.
There are still many Spider-Man villains that Tom Holland’s Peter Parker hasn’t crossed paths with. Sony’s Spider-Man Universe characters such as Venom, Carnage, Morbius, Kraven the Hunter, Chameleon, and the Rhino are classic Spider-Man antagonists that exist somewhere out there in the multiverse, and Wilson Fisk a.k.a. Kingpin has been quarreling with Daredevil in the MCU for years, but he hasn’t confronted Spider-Man in person yet. Spider-Man: No Way Home suggested that Norman Osborn doesn’t exist in the MCU’s main timeline, which in turn suggests that Holland’s Spider-Man won’t face another variant of the Green Goblin. However, there might be an alternative that doesn’t involve Osborn.
The MCU Has Introduced Two Characters With A Connection To Hobgoblin
The MCU May Already Have Two Candidates For Hobgoblin
Spider-Man: Homecoming established Jacob Batalon’s Ned Leeds as Peter Parker’s best friend in the MCU, whereas Marvel Comics’ original Ned Leeds is a completely different character. In the comics, Ned Leeds is a Daily Bugle reporter who marries Betty Brant and gets brainwashed by the original Hobgoblin into adopting his supervillain identity. Spider-Man: No Way Home teased Ned Leeds’ potential Hobgoblin downfall, as Ned is surprised to hear that Tobey Maguire’s Peter Parker was betrayed and attacked by his best friend, and wearing Hobgoblin’s emblematic yellow-and-green color scheme, Ned promises to Holland’s Peter that he’ll never betray him or try to kill him.
After becoming the Hobgoblin, Phil Urich briefly works with Kingpin in the comics.
Some years later, Daredevil: Born Again introduces the journalist BB Urich, who’s revealed to be the late New York Bulletin journalist Ben Urich’s niece. In the comics, Ben Urich has two nephews and one unnamed niece. Like the MCU’s BB Urich, Ben’s nephew Phillip Urich follows in his footsteps as a journalist. Unfortunately, he accidentally gets exposed to the Green Goblin formula, and later on he adopts the mantle of the Hobgoblin, killing one of his predecessors and defying the original. In the MCU, BB Urich could be the one who takes up the Hobgoblin mantle.
The MCU Might Be Setting Up Hobgoblin’s Complex Secret Identity
Multiple MCU Characters Could Become Hobgoblin Simultaneously
Unlike many other Spider-Man villains, Hobgoblin is a title held by multiple characters. Roderick Kingsley created the Hobgoblin, manipulated Ned Leeds into succeeding him, and demanded a cut of Phil Urich’s income as the Hobgoblin. Ned Leeds had the most troubled relationship with Spider-Man, and Phil Urich may have had the biggest impact on Hobgoblin and other Goblins’ legacy, having become the Goblin King. Other characters who have donned the Hobgoblin mask include the mercenary Jason Macendale Jr., the brainwashed Arnold “Lefty” Donovan, Roderick Kingsley’s brother Daniel Kingsley, and Roderick’s butler Claude.
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With Ned Leeds and BB Urich already present, the MCU could introduce original variants of Daniel Kingsley, Lefty Donovan, and Roderick Kingsley himself. Once Roderick Kingsley debuts, he could create the Hobgoblin persona and start manipulating characters like Ned Leeds and BB Urich into adopting it. Given that the Hobgoblins have never appeared in live-action before, their introduction could provide Tom Holland’s Spider-Man with new Goblin enemies without having to introduce a new version of the Green Goblin.
The MCU May Need A Small Retcon For Hobgoblin’s Introduction To Work
The MCU’s Hobgoblins Would Still Need Green Goblin To Make Their Debut
Every Hobgoblin has a link to the original Green Goblin, as the Hobgoblin identity is inherently tied to Norman Osborn’s Green Goblin legacy, powers, and gear. While the MCU’s main timeline doesn’t need to introduce a new Norman Osborn, whoever creates the Hobgoblin persona in the MCu still needs to be inspired by Green Goblin first. Willem Dafoe’s first scene as Norman Osborn in Spider-Man: No Way Home showed the perfect way to achieve this, as Osborn breaks his Green Goblin mask and leaves it behind in an alley. In theory, the MCU’s Roderick Kingsley could find Osborn’s Green Goblin mask and use it as the foundation of the first Hobgoblin’s costume.
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Spider-Man: No Way Home makes it clear that every multiversal traveler takes all their clothes and gear with them when Doctor Strange sends them home, particularly with Doctor Octopus’ broken tentacle fading away with him. That means that Norman Osborn’s discarded mask was also sent to his universe in Spider-Man: No Way Home‘s ending. In order to take advantage of Norman Osborn’s theoretically perfect set-up for Hobgoblin, the MCU would need to retcon this detail and clarify that Green Goblin’s mask was left behind on Earth-616.