Tom Holland Regrets Not Calling Andrew Garfield to ‘Make Amends’
Christian Zilko
“Spider-Man: No Way Home,” is already the sixth highest grossing movie of all time, but no actor can take all the credit. The onscreen union of Tom Holland, Andrew Garfield, and Tobey Maguire — the three actors to play the webslinger in live action movies — is one of the most beloved parts of the movie, leading it to become a cultural phenomenon across multiple generations.
Holland has expressed plenty of gratitude towards his fellow Spider-Man actors for blazing a trail for him and appearing in the latest film. But while the stars seem to be on great terms now, Holland was previously worried about tensions between him and Garfield. In a new interview with The Hollywood Reporter, the actor says he wishes he had reached out to Garfield after he was cast as Spider-Man and tried to imagine how he would have felt if the roles were reversed.
“Something I can look back on now with a little bit of clarity and regret is that I never called [Garfield] when I took over as Spider-Man,” Holland said. “Had someone said to me after my second movie that I was done and this other kid was taking over, I would’ve been heartbroken. So looking back, I wish I had the chance to make amends with him, but this film was our opportunity. It was not only an opportunity for him to make peace with the character and the studio, but it was also an opportunity for me and him to have this moment where we realize we could share this thing. The look on his face when he saves Zendaya is totally genuine, and I’m really proud of him.”
Success heals all wounds and it appears that the three actors are over any lingering resentment regarding the re-casting of the role. Tom Holland said their first scene on set together was a very emotional affair. “I said to [Maguire and Garfield], ‘Thank you, thank you, thank you for doing this,” he said. “Thank you for being here. Thank you for elevating Spider-Man in the ways that you have. Thank you for being so gracious and allowing me to share this with you. Thank you for taking a leap of faith and coming back.’ Tobey hadn’t acted in nearly 10 years, so we all embraced each other, and we were all crying because it meant so much to us.”
And while Holland’s casting may have prevented Andrew Garfield from starring in “The Amazing Spider-Man 3,” Garfield’s entry into the Marvel Cinematic Universe may revive that possibility. One fan who would love to see it? Tom Holland. “I would love to see ‘The Amazing Spider-Man 3,'” Holland recently said. “I think what was so wonderful was how Andrew was able to kind of make amends with the character and the studio, you know, to kind of win the general public back.”
