Ned and Betty will become a couple in Jon Watts’ upcoming Spider-Man: Far From Home, getting together on a flight to Europe. The upcoming sequel is slated to premiere this summer, and anticipation couldn’t be any higher. The next installment in the MCU follows the massive success of Avengers: Endgame, and will see Tom Holland reprise the role of Peter Parker, along with the return of other beloved characters.

Far From Home follows the success of Jon Watts’ 2017  film Spider-Man: Homecoming, which also starred Michael Keaton, Robert Downey, Jr., Marisa Tomei and more. Producer Eric Carroll isn’t worried about the film following the success of Endgame, however, and from the information available, it isn’t hard to see why. The next Spider-Man film is set after the events of Endgame, which saw the revival of everyone who was decimated in Thanos’ Snap at the end of Avengers: Infinity War. Ned Leeds (Jacob Batalon), Peter’s best friend, and Betty Brant (Angourie Rice) were both part of that group, making it possible for the pair to appear in the next Spider-Man installment. Batalon’s performance in Homecoming was very well-received, and producers took note.

The choice to bring the pair together, and in such a unique way, is a huge driving factor for the plot of Far From Home. Carroll cited Ned’s popularity in Homecoming among fans as the motivator for the character’s new storyline. Last summer, Screen Rant visited the set of Far From Home, and was able to ask Carroll some questions about the upcoming film. Regarding Batalon’s portrayal of Ned, Carroll said: “He was obviously a big hit in the first movie, everyone adored this character, so we wanted to keep that going. We thought he was a big part of the magic, and getting these two guys back together is something we’re super excited to do.”

Carroll cites Batalon’s on-screen chemistry with Holland as one of the reasons the first movie did so well, so it seems natural that they would make him a larger part of the next film. Ned will be a big motivator for Peter in the movie as well. Carroll elaborated: “We don’t want to just offer more of the same, so, the position we put them in is that Ned, at the beginning of the movie is, like, really trying to get Peter excited about going to Europe. ‘We’re the American bastards in Europe!’”

It sounds like Ned will be getting a lot of screentime in Far From Home. On Ned getting a girlfriend, namely Betty, Carroll had this to say: “Ned, by the time they’ve landed in Venice, has a serious girlfriend […] We think that’s a really fun way to mix up this dynamic, too, because now you’ve got a kid who’s dating a girl for the first time, which is a really exciting thing when you’re a sixteen-year old boy, but his best friend is also a superhero. Which is really exciting when you’re a sixteen year-old boy. And he keeps getting compliments, of course, so he can’t deny one of the other too much, or that relationship is going to suffer. So, we’re going to put poor Ned right in the middle of all that.”

Ned getting more screen-time means that Betty will receive the same treatment in Far From Home, alongside her new beau. Marvel fans will know that Ned and Betty get married in the comics. So it sounds like the team behind the upcoming movie are heading in an authentic direction, despite the fact that the pair are teenagers and won’t likely be getting hitched onscreen anytime soon. Spiderman: Far From Home is coming to theaters soon, and as more details come out nearing the premiere, the more anticipation develops. The film includes an impressive cast of recurring actors in the MCU, and from what’s known already, Spider-Man, comic fans and MCU fans alike should all have a lot to get excited about.

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