The Dancing Spider-Man: What You Didn’t Know About Tom Holland

Spider-Man: No Way Home star Tom Holland will be soon trading his superhero suit for tap shoes as he takes on the role of Fred Astaire in the upcoming Sony biopic. Thankfully, the 25-year-old Marvel star is no stranger to busting a move onstage.

His Start

Holland began dancing hip hop around age 9 at Nifty Feet Dance Studio in London. When he was cast in Billy Elliot on the West End, he trained extensively in ballet and tap for two years before making his debut, at age 12, first as Billy’s best friend, Michael, and then as Billy himself. He also took acro lessons, which helped him develop skills that he would later use as Spider-Man. 

Holland obviously has talent. Watch here as he shows off his natural turning abilities with pirouettes and à la seconde turns:

Holland Is a Proud Dancer

A story familiar to many male dancers, Holland was bullied for taking dance class when he was young. “But you couldn’t hit me hard enough to stop me from doing it,” Holland told People magazine in 2017.

Holland has not shied away from sharing his dancing ability since he found fame as Spider-Man. He even posts about his ballet background on Instagram for his 60 million followers.

He’s Versatile

Holland exhibited his wide range of dance abilities when he performed on the reality competition show “Lip Sync Battle” in 2017. Channeling everyone from Gene Kelly to Rihanna, he pulled off a performance that only could have been done by someone with a serious dance background. 

What’s Next?

It seems as though Holland feels ready to take on the persona of Fred Astaire. “I’m going to dust off the old tap shoes and go back to Pineapple Dance Studios [in London] and start taking tap lessons,” he told Variety at the end of last year.

Holland was able to successfully embody a Marvel superhero, but will he be able to realistically become one of the most famous dancers of all time? We’ll have to wait and see…