Tom Holland spent years convincing audiences that a Queens teenager could swing between skyscrapers. His next challenge may be even more physically demanding: reproducing the seemingly effortless footwork of Fred Astaire without hiding behind editing tricks or a dance double.
READ MORE: Tom Holland Confirms Fred Astaire Role In Upcoming Sony Biopic
During a very recent appearance on “Good Morning America” promoting “Spider-Man: Brand New Day,” Holland said the long-gestating Astaire biopic is planned as his next film. The actor has already begun rehearsing and intends to return to the dance studio once he completes his current promotional tours.
“We have Fred Astaire next, is what we’re planning on doing,” Holland said. “And as soon as I finish with these tours, I’m diving back into the dance studio.”
Holland said his initial rehearsals left him simultaneously energized and intimidated by the work ahead.
“I did my first few rehearsals recently, and it both filled me with excitement and absolute dread because I’ve got so much work to do to try and do Fred proud,” he explained.
Asked what doing Astaire “proud” would entail, Holland outlined an ambitious approach that would preserve the physical continuity of the legendary performer’s routines.
“I have a desire to use no doubles, to do all of the dancing, to shoot those dances in one shot—how he would have done it,” Holland said.
Holland is hardly beginning from scratch. Long before becoming Marvel’s Spider-Man, the actor trained in dance and played the title role in the West End production of “Billy Elliot the Musical.” Holland credited his mother with recognizing his natural sense of rhythm after watching him respond enthusiastically to a Janet Jackson song as a child. She subsequently enrolled him in a Saturday street-dance class, eventually leading to his “Billy Elliot” audition and an acting career.
First announced in 2021, Sony Pictures’ untitled Astaire film is set to be directed by Paul King, the filmmaker behind “Paddington,” “Paddington 2,” and “Wonka.” Lee Hall, who wrote the original “Billy Elliot” film and co-wrote its stage adaptation, penned the screenplay. Amy Pascal, Rachael O’Connor, Ben Holden, and Josh Hyams are producing.
The biopic is expected to concentrate on Astaire’s early career and his creative partnership with his older sister, Adele Astaire, with whom he performed extensively on Broadway and London stages before becoming a Hollywood star. No additional casting or release date has been announced, but the entire thing would be a nice gear-shift from Holland’s superhero duties and give him a chance to shine outside that realm.
