Tom Holland is in a good mood these days. He has two big films out this summer, ‘The Odyssey’ and ‘Spider-Man: Brand New Day’. He’s proud of both. But he says that hasn’t always been true of his work.
Holland sat down for the July 22 episode of the Dish Podcast. Hosts Nick Grimshaw and Angela Hartnett asked him about the press tour grind. He talked about how different it feels when he actually likes a movie he’s promoting.
He said promoting films he’s proud of is easy. Reporters ask why people should see it, and he means every word when he says yes. That hasn’t always been the case.
Holland admitted there have been times he had to answer that same question about a film he didn’t respect. In his head, the honest answer was that people shouldn’t watch it, because the movie wasn’t good.
A career turnaround
Holland didn’t name specific titles. But he made clear this summer feels different. With two major releases getting real buzz, he called it a bit of a victory lap. He said he’s genuinely proud of both films this time around.
That shift matters for Holland’s career. He built his fame on the Spider-Man franchise as a teenager. Since then he’s taken on a range of projects, some acclaimed, some not. His comments suggest he’s aware of the gap between his best work and his weaker output, and isn’t afraid to say so.
Learning from Anne Hathaway
Holland also credited his “Odyssey” co-star Anne Hathaway with teaching him how to handle press better. He said he spent three days doing interviews alongside her. He called it a great learning experience and praised her professionalism.
Hathaway has decades more experience with the promotional circuit than Holland. Her presence on “The Odyssey” press tour appears to have rubbed off on him, at least by his own account.
Context: A big summer for Tom Holland
Holland’s comments come at a busy moment. “The Odyssey,” directed by Christopher Nolan, is one of the most anticipated releases of the year. It stars Holland alongside Hathaway and Matt Damon. The film has drawn massive public interest, so much so that a bootleg copy leaked on X in late July and racked up over two million views before it was taken down.
Ticket demand for “The Odyssey” has also created problems. Fans looking for seats, especially for IMAX screenings, have run into scalpers charging inflated prices. Some reported being scammed while trying to buy tickets online.
Meanwhile, “Spider-Man: Brand New Day” marks another chapter in Holland’s long run as Peter Parker. He’s played the character across multiple films since 2017. He has said in past interviews that he holds strong opinions about which Spider-Man movies work best, once naming “Into the Spider-Verse” as his favorite entry in the franchise, even though he wasn’t in it.