Tom Holland confirmed that he appealed to Disney CEO Bob Iger and Sony film chair Tom Rothman to put a Spider-Man deal back on for the fans. Image: Kevin Winter/Getty Images/AFP
Tom Holland may just be a hero in real life as well, as he revealed that he was the one who “saved Spider-Man” this time — and he did so through a drunk phone call with Disney’s CEO.
The 23-year-old told the story of how he helped smooth things over between Disney and Sony regarding the webslinger’s role in the Marvel Cinematic Universe (MCU).
During his visit to “Jimmy Kimmel Live!” yesterday, Dec. 4, the host asked Holland if he really did help get “Spider-Man” movies back on track, to which Holland replied: “Sort of. I wouldn’t say it was entirely my doing.”
Kimmel then asked what his role was, prompting Holland to jokingly reply: “I saved Spider-Man,” earning the audience’s cheers.
The 23-year-old actor recalled how “devastated” he was from the intended split-up of the two mass media giants from their collaboration on “Spider-Man” movies. He said he emailed Disney CEO Bob Iger to thank him for giving him the opportunity to play the webslinger and “for changing my life in the best way.”
Holland said Iger responded “very quickly”, and asked him when he was free for a phone call. “You don’t give Bob Iger like a schedule, you’re like, ‘whenever Bob,'” Holland said.
Holland said that when Iger’s call finally came, he was already “three pints in” at a local pub with his family.
“I’m like three pints in, right, I haven’t eaten much, and I get a phone call from an unknown number,” he recalled. “I had the feeling like ‘I think this is Bob Iger… but I’m drunk.”
Iger said Holland cried on the phone, according to Kimmel, to which the 23-year-old replied: “I weeped (sic). No, I didn’t weep — yeah I did yeah.”
“I was really emotional because I felt like it was all coming to an end,” Holland said.
Iger told Holland that “there is a world in where we can make this work,” the actor said. Holland claimed the deal was sealed through “a bunch of phone calls” between them and Sony film chair Tom Rothman, who Holland said “was very instrumental in the process.”
“We had a really good plan of what we were gonna do with Sony. The future of Spider-Man was still very bright, but it would’ve been a shame to take him out the MCU. That’s where he belongs. We’ve built such a strong character in that world and it would’ve been a shame to lose that.”
Holland first donned the friendly neighborhood hero’s suit in “Captain America: Civil War” back in 2016. He has since then appeared in four other MCU films: “Avengers: Infinity War”, “Avengers: Endgame”, and his solo movies “Spider-Man: Homecoming” and “Spider-Man: Far From Home”.
The deal to keep Holland’s Spider-Man in Disney’s massive movie franchise was sealed last September. The third installation of the Spider-Man solo films within the MCU is slated for release on July 2021. Ian Biong/NVG
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