“I’ve never seen anything like it”: Former Sony Producer Who Was Fired for Racism Considers Tom Holland Better Than Tobey Maguire and Andrew Garfield

Tom Holland’s multilayered life as a Hollywood star and a supremely famous celebrity among the current generation of fans and audiences has made him the epicenter of constant media scrutiny, public adoration, and a coveted actor for directors on the go. The Spider-Man actor has only barely turned 27 but it feels as though he has lived too many lifetimes already.

The journey he began in the global eye as a teenage Marvel superhero counts as only one of those lifetimes. Holland would go on to have many more since, after having already lived quite a few prior to onboarding the MCU vehicle.

Tom Holland Keeps Impressing Hollywood Filmmakers

For a 27-year-old, success is a relative term. And that is available in abundance to Tom Holland. Coming off of the success of The Crowded Room, an Apple TV+ crime drama at the center of which lies Holland’s psychologically troubled character, the actor regales in the horrors of bad reviews and the joys of finding a few good ones. As recounted by The Hollywood Reporter, his optimism miraculously served as a catalyst to manifesting a positive response to the series, making it a sleeper hit (almost).

Also read: “I wasn’t the cool kid”: Tom Holland Went Through a Rough Patch Growing Up As He Was Bullied Before He Became Spider-Man in MCU

But what truly shapes up to be the miracle here is Tom Holland’s ability to push himself to extraordinary lengths despite his own challenging sobriety, the looming anxiety and panic about his every move and word being recorded, analyzed, and calculated by the global media, and his own mental health struggles for which he took a precautionary step away from social media. In spite of it all, he gives a nuanced performance as Danny Sullivan through and through in a project that has passed many hands, including Leonardo DiCaprio and James Cameron before ultimately landing on his lap.

And the sole factor that remained constant throughout his career has been his ability to draw an “I’ve never seen anything like it” – both as a teenager when he started in the big leagues, as well as now, at 27, after having been through a whirlwind roller-coaster saga of fame and celebrity.

Former Marvel Exec Says Tom Holland is the Best Spider-Man

When former Marvel producer Amy Pascal claimed, “I’ve never seen anything like it,” her astonishment was at the fact of finding a Peter Parker who was so right for the role, so adaptable, and accurate – be it because of his age, his understanding of teenage angst mixed with a sense of responsibility at a young age, or his inimitable gymnastic abilities. Tom Holland famously won the role of the first web-slinger in the Marvel Cinematic Universe over 7,500 candidates and made his debut appearance in the suit in Captain America: Civil War in 2016.

At the time, witnessing the then-19-year-old in action during filming, Pascal claimed:

I’ve never seen anything like it. He inhabited Peter Parker in a way that was completely unique. He was emotional. He was funny. He had a pathos to him that is hidden behind his smile. But you can feel it. He’s hiding it from you in a way that’s beautiful.

7 years later, despite the weathered look Holland has already begun to harbor, the statement holds true as stated by the Academy Award-winning veteran director Akiva Goldsman after directing him in The Crowded Room:

He has a superpower, which I think may come from his early experiences as a dancer. Tom will take one look at the set with the scene in his hand and he will know where the blocking is going to end up. I’ve just never seen anything like it.

Also read: “It’s looking pretty good”: Tom Holland Satisfied With Spider-Man 4 Script after Claiming He’ll Only Return if the Story Tops No Way Home

This superpower, whatever it is, has allowed Tom Holland to wade through the cesspool of Hollywood fame that so easily corrupts and consumes. And it is this sensibility that has allowed him to mold into the role of a superhero who inherently knew that great power came with great responsibility without having it to be told to him over a cruel tragedy.

But on a more superficial note, perhaps Pascal (who was later fired by Marvel Studios for her racist remarks about the former POTUS, Barack Obama) claimed Holland was better than Tobey Maguire and Andrew Garfield simply because of his age and the natural athleticism he brought to the role – thus making it seem more realistic than two 30-year-olds trying to pass off as high school teenagers.

Holland’s Spider-Man trilogy is available on Disney+ and The Crowded Room is currently streaming on Apple TV+.

Source: The Hollywood Reporter