Tom Holland Will Play Fred Astaire In An Upcoming Biopic

Tom Holland will be taking a break from web-slinging to do a little tap-dancing. The 25-year-old Marvel star will be playing Hollywood legend Fred Astaire in an upcoming biopic. Variety reports that Holland confirmed the role on Sunday, while in London promoting Spider-Man: No Way Home.

In a recent GQ profile of the actor, Spider-Man producer and former Sony chairperson Amy Pascal described the actor as “the hardest-working person that I know” and said that “there are very few actors working now who are versatile in the way that he is.” In addition to discussing his ongoing journey as Peter Parker/Spider-Man, Pascal mentioned to writer Oliver Franklin-Wallis that she was hoping to get Holland to play Astaire in an upcoming movie, but left it at that.

When an AP reporter mentioned the possibility of the part to the actor on Sunday, he confirmed that “I am playing Fred Astaire,” but didn’t have much more to say about the part, as the script just came in a week ago, so he has yet to read it. “They haven’t given it to me,” Holland said. “I know that Amy Pascal has the script. She FaceTimed me earlier; I was in the bath, and we had a lovely FaceTime. But I will be playing Fred Astaire.”

— AP Entertainment (@APEntertainment) December 5, 2021

Though it sounds like a movie could be made of Holland and Pascal’s bath-time FaceTime.

As Variety noted, Holland just might be the perfect actor to take on the imposing role of a noted song and dance man, as the current (and future) Spider-Man got his start on the stage as the lead in the West End version of Billy Elliott the Musical from 2008 to 2010.

Holland isn’t the only actor who’ll step into the role of Astaire for an upcoming project. Jamie Bell, who originated the role of Billy Elliot in Stephen Daldry’s 2000 film, will be playing Astaire to Margaret Qualley’s Ginger Rogers in yet another biopic that follows the pair’s acting—and dancing—partnership.