For the first time, Peter Parker shares the screen with heroes from Marvel Cinematic Universe in Spiderman Homecoming . There’s excitement around its release on July 7 in India. For one, the film stays true to the comic. Apart from Peter Parker, there were other heroes, such as Tony Stark, Captain America, and the Avengers. Also, Tom Holland perfectly fits the role of the 15-year-old web-slinger. It’s hoped he gets as overwhelming a response as Toby Maguire. Then there’s Jon Watts, the director, who was selected for his unconventional filming style — something to definitely watch out for.
Following the epic battle in Captain America: Civil War, Peter Parker is all set to prove himself as an Avenger in Spiderman Homecoming.
He finds a splendid mentor in Tony Stark (Robert Downey Jr). There is a lot to watch out for. The friendship between Ned Leeds (Jacob Batalan) who made his first appearance in the comic book, TheAmazing Spiderman# 18 in the 1960s, and Peter Parker's love life.
In a promotion of the film in Singapore, Tom, who debuted as Spiderman in Marvel’s Captain America: Civil War , and is quickly making a name for himself in Hollywood, exuded confidence as he posed for photographs, interacted with the media, and posed with young fans dressed in Spiderman suits.
After six weeks of anticipation, 22-year-old Tom was told: “We’ve got news,” he pauses, adding: “It’s great news, we need you to audition...again.”
And when did he finally find out he was selected? “They just put it on Instagram. I was in my bed with my dog just relaxing. And I was going through Instagram and I saw, “Tom Holland is the next Spiderman!” Kevin rang me and said ‘I have great news, you’re the next Spiderman!’ I said, I know, I saw it on Instagram.”
It was a challenge, he says, to make his portrayal of Spiderman different from the previous two. “ Andrew (Garfield) was cool and a little bit of a loner whereas Toby was geeky and dorky. My version finds its basic middle between those two. All I hope is that fans can watch it and appreciate it.”
In Homecoming , Spiderman is a lot younger, like the original character. “We’ve tried to bring him back to high school and ground him in that reality. And show people what would happen if a 15-year-old got superpowers. The idea behind the film is watching a kid have fun and enjoy being Spiderman, and if you gave a 15-year-old or even a 20-year-old superpowers they would have the time of their lives and enjoy it. It’s very important for us that people see a happy, fun version.”
The most exciting part of the film was when Tom got to New York to film in Spiderman’s hometown. “But it took unrelenting amount of hard work for him. I’ve never been a lead in a movie before.
And this was a job where I didn’t have any breaks. When I had a day off, I was training. I did fight choreo the next week. It was a really really tough movie for me but I loved every minute of it, and I would do it time and time again, which I would have to for Spiderman 2 , 3 and Avengers .”
Bringing alive both Peter Parker and Spiderman was one of the challenges Tom faced: “I really tried to retain the physicality in which I could carry the character of Peter Parker in the Spiderman suit. The character of Peter Parker can be seen through Spiderman’s eyes.”
Starring alongside Robert Downey Jr. and Michael Keaton (the winged villain Vulture) was a dream come true for Tom.
“It was wonderful that at such a tender age, I am working with these giants. Robert is into work 10 minutes early everyday, he greets every crew member. It showed me it doesn’t matter how famous you are or how much money you make, you treat everyone the same.”
Tom has been a fan of Spiderman since forever and has read every comic, which helped him to research the character, but he also did a lot of other things such as :“I went to the gym everyday (laughs) . I also went to a high school in New York under cover...just to see what high school was like.”
Tony Stark gives Peter a new suit and tech, but when asked about the suit, Tom reveals nothing, saying: “It’s very tight. Wearing the suit was a dream of mine! I’ve had Spiderman suits as a kid, but here I get to use the real one. And it’s pretty amazing. And the wonderful ladies who made that suit are incredible.”
The audience he says will love the film because since, “It is the most rounded version of a superhero movie without losing the superhero stakes. It’s something fans would be interested to see.”
