Thomas Stanley Holland (born 1 June 1996)[1] is an English actor. A graduate of the BRIT School in London, he began his acting career on stage in the title role of Billy Elliot the Musical in the West End from 2008 to 2010. He gained further recognition for his starring role in the disaster film The Impossible (2012), receiving the London Film Critics Circle Award for Young British Performer of the Year.

Holland rose to stardom for playing Spider-Man in the Marvel Cinematic Universe superhero films Captain America: Civil War (2016), Spider-Man: Homecoming (2017), Avengers: Infinity War (2018), Avengers: Endgame (2019), Spider-Man: Far From Home (2019) and Spider-Man: No Way Home (2021). In 2017, twenty-year-old Holland became the second-youngest BAFTA Rising Star Award recipient.

Early life and education

Thomas Stanley Holland[2] was born on 1 June 1996 in Kingston upon Thames, London,[3][4] to Nicola Elizabeth (née Frost), a photographer, and Dominic Holland, a comedian and author.[5][6] His paternal grandparents were born on the Isle of Man and Tipperary, Ireland, respectively.[7][8] He has three younger brothers: twins Harry and Sam (b. 14 February 1999)[9] and Patrick "Paddy" (b. 6 December 2004).[5][10]

Holland was educated at Donhead, a Roman Catholic preparatory school in Wimbledon in South West London,[11] followed by Wimbledon College, a voluntary aided Jesuit Roman Catholic comprehensive school (also in Wimbledon), up until December 2012. Holland has said he was bullied in school for being a dancer.[12] After Wimbledon College he attended The BRIT School for Performing Arts and Technology in Croydon.[6] Holland first learned gymnastics during his time performing in Billy Elliot the Musical.[13] In his late teens, during a lull in his career, Holland briefly attended carpentry school in Cardiff, Wales.[14]

Acting Career

2006–2014: Billy Elliot the Musical and film breakthrough

Holland began dancing at a hip hop class at Nifty Feet Dance School in Wimbledon. His potential was spotted by choreographer Lynne Page (who was an associate to Peter Darling, choreographer of Billy Elliot and Billy Elliot the Musical) when he performed with his dance school as part of the 2006 Richmond Dance Festival.[15]

After eight auditions and two subsequent years of training,[16] on 28 June 2008, Holland made his West End debut in Billy Elliot the Musical as Michael, Billy's best friend.[17] He gave his first performance in the title role on 8 September 2008, receiving positive notices.[10][18]

2015–present: worldwide recognition as Spider-Man

In 2015, Holland appeared in four episodes of BBC Two's historical miniseries Wolf Hall, as Gregory Cromwell, son of the protagonist Thomas Cromwell played by Mark Rylance.[28] He also co-starred as Thomas Nickerson in the film In the Heart of the Sea (2015), directed by Ron Howard.[29]

On 23 June 2015, it was announced that Holland was cast as a teenage Peter Parker / Spider-Man,[30] and his "life was flipped upside down", as he later tweeted,[31] as part of a six-picture deal with Marvel Studios.[32] As part of the Marvel Cinematic Universe (MCU), he first appeared as Spider-Man in Captain America: Civil War (2016).[33] The film was a massive critical and commercial success, grossing over $1.1 billion worldwide, making it the highest-grossing film of 2016,[34] with Holland receiving critical praise.[35][36]

In 2016, he played Bradley Baker in the film Edge of Winter, where he co-starred with Joel Kinnaman and Percy Hynes White. In 2017, Holland co-starred alongside Charlie Hunnam in the drama film The Lost City of Z, directed by James Gray, and released in April, to positive critical reception.[37] Holland also performed as the on-set stand-in for the character of The Monster as he would reunite with director J.A Bayona in the film A Monster Calls (2016). Actor Liam Neeson provided the voice for the character, whilst Holland was credited with a special thanks.[38]

In 2017, he co-starred alongside Richard Armitage and Jon Bernthal in the film Pilgrimage. The film premiered on 23 April 2017 at the Tribeca Film Festival, in its "Viewpoint" sections. Also that year, Holland played Samuel Insull alongside Avengers co-star Benedict Cumberbatch in Alfonso Gomez-Rejon's The Current War, which premiered at the Toronto International Film Festival.[39] Early reviews of The Current War was met with a mixed response; however, Holland's performance in the film was praised by critics. In May 2017, Holland appeared with Zendaya on Paramount Network's Lip Sync Battle. On the show, he performed a dance number to Rihanna's "Umbrella".[40]

In July 2017, Spider-Man: Homecoming was released, in which Holland reprised his role from Captain America: Civil War. Homecoming received positive reviews and Holland considerable praise, with his performance being called "a star performance given by a born actor."[41] The film went on the gross over $800 million worldwide. This performance earned Holland a Guinness Book of World Records title as the youngest actor to play a title role in the MCU.[42]