Jake Gyllenhaal set to swing into Spider-Man as villain Mysterio

Actor's first Instagram post shares his confusion over his role in Spider-Man: Far From Home.

Gael Fashingbauer Cooper

CNET freelancer Gael Fashingbauer Cooper, a journalist and pop-culture junkie, is co-author of "Whatever Happened to Pudding Pops? The Lost Toys, Tastes and Trends of the '70s and '80s," as well as "The Totally Sweet '90s." If Marathon candy bars ever come back, she'll be first in line.

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Gael Fashingbauer Cooper

Dec. 5, 2018 4:54 p.m. PT

In a much-liked Instagram video shared Wednesday, actor Jake Gyllenhaal appears to have confirmed he's playing villain Mysterio in the upcoming movie Spider-Man: Far From Home.

In his first-ever Instagram post, the actor shared a video of himself reading a 1989 Amazing Spider-Man comic featuring Mysterio, and captioned it, "I just realized I'm not playing Spider-Man."

View this post on Instagram

I just realized I’m not playing Spider-Man.

A post shared by Jake Gyllenhaal (@jakegyllenhaal) on Dec 5, 2018 at 12:03pm PST

Sony declined comment, but the movie's official Twitter account did tweet the video, giving the casting idea even more credibility.

In the comic, Mysterio tries to convince Spidey he caused a man's death, The Hollywood Reporter reports, noting that it's unclear if this plot will carry over into the film.

In the comics, Mysterio is the alternate name of Quentin Beck, a movie stuntman and special-effects wizard who uses his skills in creating illusions to commit crimes.