Tom Holland got over his ‘Spider-Man’ "doubts" following a frank chat with Robert Downey Jr.
The 21-year-old actor admitted he had moments of anxiety as to whether he was cut out for the iconic role, but his ‘Avengers: Infinity War’ co-star helped ease his fears when he admitted to questioning himself in a similar way when he was first cast as Iron Man in the Marvel Universe.
Tom said: "Robert Downey Jr. has been really great, he’s been there during a lot of this.
"There have been moments, particularly during ‘Spider-Man: Homecoming’ where I’ve doubted my capabilities. We all have doubts.
"And he pulled me aside one day and said, ‘You know, you got this, this was meant to be. I had the same feelings doing ‘Iron Man’, the same anxieties, but know that they picked you for a reason – because it feels right, it works. It’s not about how good you can do the web-slinging or the stunts, it’s about the personality you bring to the character.’
"That eased by fears and wise words like that from Iron Man, you don’t forget. They are there stored in the vault for repeat use."
Tom chose not to speak to past Spider-Man actors Tobey Maguire and Andrew Garfield about their takes on the role because he worried they would only make him feel more nervous.
He told heat magazine: "I didn’t [get tips from them], because ours was a different take to theirs and it probably would have filled me with more anxiety than I was already experiencing, attempting to emulate what they did with ‘Spider-Man’.
"I needed to focus purely on what I could bring and not compare myself to them.
"But they have been very cool with what they said about me. I’ve met Andrew, who is a really kind, generous guy. We didn’t talk about ‘Spider-Man’ much – I mean, he obviously asked how it was going and said he was excited for me and understood what I was going through.
"To get his approval was hugely important because as my predecessor, I look up to him."
Tom Holland’s frank chat with Robert Downey Jr. sorted Spider-Man nerves
