After a long search, it appears Marvel has finally locked in on their new Peter Parker.
Announced by both Marvel and Sony Pictures, Tom Holland (pictured below; Locke, The Impossible) has officially been cast as the new Peter Parker in Spider-Man, with Jon Watts (Clown, Cop Car) selected to direct the film.
Spider-Man will swing back into action on July 28th, 2017, although he’ll first appear in Captain America: Civil War, which will hit theaters May 6, 2016.
Holland beat out Asa Butterfield, Timothee Chalamet, Liam James (“Psych,” The Way, Way Back) and Nat Wolff for the role. Butterfield has allegedly been cast, but behind-the-scenes rumblings allege he sabotaged his chances by openly talking about the role before ever signing on.
With Holland, we get a younger, more down to Earth look. I’m not familiar with his work, but Marvel and Sony are boasting about his performances.
“It’s a big day here at Sony,” exclaimed Tom Rothman, Sony Pictures Motion Pictures Group Chairman. “Kevin, Amy and their teams have done an incredible job. The Marvel process is very thorough, and that’s why their results are so outstanding. I’m confident Spider-Man will be no exception. I’ve worked with a number of up-and-coming directors who have gone on to be superstars and believe that Jon is just such an outstanding talent. For Spidey himself, we saw many terrific young actors, but Tom’s screen tests were special. All in all, we are off to a roaring start.”
Marvel producer Kevin Feige commented, “As with James Gunn, Joss Whedon, and the Russo brothers, we love finding new and exciting voices to bring these characters to life. We spent a lot of time with Jon and find his take and work inspiring.”
Sony’s Amy Pascal added, “Sony, Marvel, Kevin and I all knew that for Peter Parker, we had to find a vibrant, talented young actor capable of embodying one of the most well-known characters in the world. With Tom, we’ve found the perfect actor to bring Spider-Man’s story into the Marvel Cinematic Universe.”
