Tom Holland has been seen as Spider-Man of the MCU in several movies. However, initially, his role was supposed to be much smaller – until Robert Downey Jr. stepped in and advocated for Holland.
Tom Holland made his first appearance as Spider-Man in Captain America: Civil War. Since then, he has appeared in the Avengers movies, as well as three solo films. Aside from that, the actor has starred in other major films like Uncharted and Venom. There was also a sci-fi film that turned out to be a flop.
Although Holland had already been seen on screen before Civil War, the Marvel film certainly ensured that his career took off. Initially, Spider-Man was supposed to play a much smaller role in the film. It was only Robert Downey Jr. who advocated for Tom Holland.
There almost wasn’t an important scene
What happened to Holland? As usual, the actor had to audition before he got the coveted role as Spider-Man. His later film girlfriend (and real-life partner), Zendaya, also had to go through this process.
During the casting, Tom Holland performed a scene that took up eight pages of the script. This convinced the filmmakers, and he got the job. When it came time to shoot the scene on set, however, Holland found out that his scene had become significantly shorter. From eight pages it had turned into two.
In the Rich Roll Podcast, Holland explained that it wasn’t just him who noticed this. Even Robert Downey Jr., who was seen as Iron Man, apparently furrowed his brows. He knew the full scene and said:
Where have all the boy’s lines gone? Let’s shoot the whole thing from the audition. You can still cut it down, but you’ll want it.
Robert Downey Jr. via Rich Roll Podcast
Since Downey Jr. holds some power in the Marvel cosmos and likely has some persuasion, he was able to sway the directors. The scene was implemented as originally intended and was used in the final cut. So Robert Downey Jr. was indeed right.
Why was the scene important? It was the first appearance of Peter Parker and laid the foundation for the further development of this character in the MCU.
In the shortened version, it would not have become clear who this character is in Tom Holland’s version. Whether the audience would have been able to establish a connection to Spider-Man is questionable. Likewise, whether a bland character could have led to further solo films.
Fans quickly embraced Tom Holland as the new Spider-Man. The actor himself is very thankful to his friend Robert Downey Jr. today. It is worth noting that he similarly owes his career to the MCU, as his career today looks like this: Iron Man saved Robert Downey Jr.’s career – But actually, someone else was supposed to get the role
