Tom Holland has said that collaborating with Christopher Nolan on The Odyssey was the “job of a lifetime,” but he has now revealed that he had to have a “very uncomfortable” conversation about his Spider-Man commitments to realize his career nirvana.
In an interview with GQ magazine, the British actor said that he needed to persuade Sony Pictures to allow him to shoot The Odyssey due to a clash with Spider-Man: Brand New Day‘s filming dates. Holland took the conversation all the way to the top: Tom Rothman.
“I said to Chris, like, ‘Look, I want to do this movie, but if I’m going to do it, I’m going to have to call Sony and have a very uncomfortable conversation,’” Holland explained. He added that Sony agreed to push Spider-Man to grant Holland his wish, but also because they trusted in Nolan to honor his word on The Odyssey‘s production schedule.
“I think one of the reasons why Sony were happy to move is because Chris has that reputation of ‘This movie isn’t going to go five months over, and we aren’t actually going to lose Tom for two years,’ ” Holland said. “Any other director, it might have been a slightly different conversation.”
The decision has appeared to work out for all parties, with Nolan wrapping on schedule. Holland had a two-week break between the two pictures, and the two movies are now set to be released within two weeks of each other (The Odyssey will debut on July 17, while Spider-Man: Brand New Day has a July 31 date).
“It feels like the beginning of the next chapter of my life,” Holland said. “I really feel like a young man now. I have so much amazing stuff happening in my personal life to take me through to the rest of my life, and I feel like I have a new perspective on where I want to exist in Hollywood.”
Reflecting on The Odyssey in a previous GQ interview, Holland said: “It was amazing. The job of a lifetime, without a doubt. The best experience I’ve had on the film set. Incredible.”
