Ever imagined bumping into Spider-Man at Starbucks? Well, that’s kind of what happens when you can’t take off your suit for 11 hours straight, according to new kid on the Hollywood block, Tom Holland.Taking on the mantle for the superhero franchise after the likes of Tobey Maguire and Andrew Garfield, this 21-year-old is clearly as fun as he is focused. Surviving the suit with a sense of humour, he recalls over a telephone interview, patched through by the good folk at Sony PIX, “My friend and I were bored of being in the trailer on set, so we decided to head over to Starbucks. I tried to disguise myself with a hoodie — because that was the only piece of clothing I had (over the Spider-Man suit).” Oddly enough, he adds with a laugh, “One person commented on how cool my trousers were!”
Earlier spotted in Captain America: Civil War, Holland plays a 14-year-old Peter Parker in his coming out film Spider-Man: Homecoming which, if you have seen it, is a whole lot different from the movies in the franchise so far. For instance, it kicks off with a sizeable chunk of webcam footage from the point of view of an excitable teenager in touch with Tony Stark (Robert Downey Jr) of the Avengers, who stars in the film as well. “I can’t wait to work with all the Avengers in future films,” Holland shares. Interestingly enough, he reveals, “My favourite Avenger is Antman, he does a fantastic job bringing his character to life.” Even though there was no Mary Jane in the film — we had to ask Holland, Is there in an MJ in his life? “Um...” he hesitated for a minute, before we were unfortunately cut off by the moderator on the line.
After extensive touring for the film, while working on Chaos Walking directed by Doug Liman in Montreal, and setting up his first solo apartment as a grown-up at the same time, perhaps the ladies will have to wait. “When I’m off set, I like to play golf, walk my dog, see my friends, you know... have fun and do what 21-year-olds do,” he shares, quickly adding, “I’ve been working so much that I haven’t had a chance to do anything too crazy lately.”
Well, that’s if you don’t count his intense two years of training to play his favourite superhero. “I must have gone through at least 30 Spider-Man costumes as a kid,” he reveals with a laugh. Adding boxing to his repertoire of mad gymnastics and dance skills (he also played Billy Elliot on stage), Holland says, “Boxing is something I didn’t do before, that I’ve kept at since the movie and something I really enjoy.”
But contrary to a military-style boot camp that one might imagine, Holland recalls, “Training for Spider-Man was about being consistent — making sure I went to the gym every day and put the work in. Everyone thinks I did some special crazy workouts — but I did sit-ups and pull-ups, and that was it really.”
Off set, the actor also took time to suit up for young fans at children’s hospitals as far as Singapore and Los Angeles. “It’s important for me that I try to visit as many hospitals around the world, because when I was a kid, Spider-Man was such a huge part of my life. Unfortunately, these poor kids can’t get out and see the movie, so I wanted to bring the movie to them.” God knows the real world needs more superheroes.
Look out for the TV premiere of Spider-Man: Homecoming expected soon.
sonali@newindianexpress.com
@brightasunshine