Actor Tom Holland Reveals What ‘Spider-Man’ Films Stole From Him

Tom Holland has revealed what Disney’s Marvel films stole from him as an actor.

Credit: Marvel Studios

Related: Tom Holland and Timothee Chalamet in the Running for the Same Coveted Role

Alternative Realities 

The best actors in Hollywood have a wide range and variety of talents. Many can not only act so well that viewers completely believe in the character they embody, but many can also sing, and some have rare abilities and talents.

But though many great actors make it look effortless and easy–as though it just happens without their hard work, quite the opposite is true, at least for the most part. Not only do actors and actresses have to “become” another person, but they have to look, act, and sound like another person. One report explains:

Changing your speaking patterns is not the hard part. The hard part is adapting the accent and vocabulary specific to the character’s native or residential area to ensure they appear as believable and whole as possible. Accents, jargon, and other complicated aspects of “speaking like a character” take quite a lot of effort to pull off.

But is it possible to become so lost in your alternative realities as an actor [that you] forget what you used to speak like originally?

Credit: Disney, Canva

Related: Previous Performance Proves That Tom Holland Is No Stranger to Reversing Gender Norms

Actor Tom Holland says it’s very possible. He knows because, he says, it has happened to him.

Tom Holland’s Career in Hollywood

Tom Holland began acting in the theater in 2008, playing a supporting role in Billy Elliot the Musical. After just months in that role, Holland earned the title role in the musical–a role he embraced until 2010.

His film debut was in The Impossible (2012) alongside actress Naomi Watts and actor Ewan McGregor. He later appeared in In the Heart of the Sea (2015) alongside Thor actor Chris Hemsworth.

Holland joined the Marvel Cinematic Universe in 2016 when he began playing Peter Parker and Spider-Man in Captain America: Civil War. Holland played that role in seven of the franchise’s films, including the stand-alone films Spider-Man: Homecoming (2017), Far From Home (2019), and No Way Home (2021).

Credit: Marvel (Michelle Jones (“MJ”) played by Zendaya and Spider-Man played by Tom Holland)

And though his standing role in Marvel’s Spider-Man films launched the young actor into super-stardom, it also eventually took something from him.

‘Spider-Man’ Stole From Tom Holland

During an episode of The Graham Norton Show, the Spider-Man actor said he lost his native English accent.

“I can’t act in an English accent anymore,” Holland said. “I did a commercial the other day as Tom Holland, and I was like, ‘Hey guys, how you doin’?’ And they’re like, ‘You’re from Kingston, by the way.'”

It seems that after years of playing Peter Parker–and Spider-Man–Holland has lost much of his English accent.

Well, maybe he hasn’t exactly “lost” it, but Holland admits that when he’s supposed to just “be himself” on camera, he subconsciously begins speaking with an American accent, not for a specific role.

Credit: Marvel Studios

Related: Tom Holland’s ‘Spider-Man’ Officially Replaced? Here’s What We Know

It gives a whole new meaning to “losing yourself” in an acting role, don’t you think?