‘Spider-Man: No Way Home’ Star Tom Holland Admits “I Really Do Like Making Movies But I Do Not Like Hollywood”

Peter Parker (Tom Holland) tunes into his Spider-Sense in Spider-Man: No Way Home (2021), Marvel Entertainment
Peter Parker (Tom Holland) tunes into his Spider-Sense in Spider-Man: No Way Home (2021), Marvel Entertainment

Despite his once-rising star and leading role as one of the biggest superheroes of all-time, current Spider-Man actor Tom Holland has revealed that he not only dislikes the business side of Hollywood, but also actively tries to distance himself from the non-filmmaking aspects of the industry.

Peter Parker (Tom Holland) is taken aback by his lawyer's reflexes in Spider-Man: No Way Home (2021), Marvel Entertainment

The British-actor-turned-Peter-Parker shared his feelings on the current state of Hollywood during a guest appearance on the July 10th episode of British life coach Jay Shetty’s On Purpose podcast.

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Amidst a lengthy discussion regarding numerous topics related to the actor’s mental health, such as his ongoing battle with alcohol addiction and the reasons behind his recent acting break, Shetty eventually complimented Holland on the fact that he felt like an “authentic individual”.

From there, the host asked whether his guest felt “like you’ve had to hold on to [your authenticity] at times, with opportunities, challenges, the industry, or is that all stuff we make up in our heads and it’s actually just ‘be yourself and you’re fine’?”, to which the Uncharted star bluntly admitted, ”

In turn, the Uncharted star bluntly admitted, “I really don’t know the answer to that question.”

“I’ve definitely walked away from a lot and I think had I not walked away from certain situations – let’s just put it at that – I would be a very different person today,” explained Holland.

Peter Parker (Tom Holland) realizes how to fix the multiverse in Spider-Man: No Way Home (2021), Marvel Entertainment

“I’ve been really good at keeping in touch with my friends, keeping my family close, listening to the lessons about not getting caught up in the Hollywood hype,” he continued.  Like, I really am a massive fan of making movies, but I really do not like Hollywood. It is not for me. The business really scares me. I understand that I’m a part of that business, and I enjoy my interactions with it, but that said, I am always looking for ways to kind of remove myself from it, to kind of just live as normal of a life as possible.

Nathan Drake (Tom Holland) takes a minute to breathe after winning the day in Uncharted (2022), Sony Pictures

“Today, doing this, is a very rare thing for me to do,” the actor furhter opened up to Shetty. “Like, in London, to come in and speak to someone about my life, is something I would not typically do. But because I’m a fan of yours, I was keen to kind of hear what you had to say and chat to you today. I felt like this would be a safe space for me.”

“I definitely think it’s been an ongoing thought, which is ‘don’t lose yourself’,” the current cinematic web-slinger recalled. “I’ve seen so many people come before me and lose themselves, and I’ve had friends that I’ve grown up with that aren’t friends of mine anymore because they’ve lost themselves to this business and I just am really, really keen to focus on what makes me happy, which is my family, it’s my friends, it’s my carpentry, my golf, the charity my mom runs. Like that is the stuff that makes me really happy and that’s the stuff I should protect.”

Peter Parker (Tom Holland) asks Doctor Strange (Benedict Cumberbatch) to make everyone forget who he is in Spider-Man: No Way Home (2021), Marvel Entertainment

Briefly turning to his relationship with Spider-Man: No Way Home co-star Zendaya, Holland told Shetty, “My relationship is the thing that I keep most sacred. I don’t talk about it. I try my best to keep it as private as possible. We both feel very strongly that this is the healthiest way for us to move on as a couple.”

From there, the actor concluded, “So I do try to keep as removed from it as possible. Like you’ll never see me at an awards show I don’t have to be at. I’m never going to a red carpet event that I’m not in the film of. I don’t want the attention when I don’t need it [but] I love the spotlight, I love the pressure that comes with it.”

Nathan Drake (Tom Holland) thinks he's getting a sequel in Uncharted (2022), Sony Pictures

Holland’s latest project, The Crowded Room, a television bio-series based on the life of Danny Sullivan, the first person to be acquitted of a crime due to suffering from dissociative identity disorder, is now streaming on Apple Plus.

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