Tom Holland Loves the Latest Draft of Spider-Man 4 but Explains the Struggle to Make It

Tom Holland wants to make Spider-Man 4 as much as fans want to see it. In a new interview, the actor spoke at length about the project, including the fact he read a draft three weeks ago and it “lit a fire in him.” He wants to make it as soon as possible, as do Marvel and Sony. But, the actor explained, because he’s no longer under contract and because of the complexities of the Marvel Cinematic Universe, it hasn’t quite come together yet.

Holland spoke for almost two hours on the Rich Roll Podcast about almost everything in his life: his family, his career, his sobriety, and more. It’s a fantastic interview that, of course, dives heavily into the MCU and Spider-Man as well. Near the end of the interview, Roll asks about some of the challenges Holland is currently facing and he says the biggest one is Spider-Man 4. You can watch this specific segment, which goes about six minutes, at 1:30:35 below, and we’ll pull some quotes after.

“I think the biggest thing that I’m challenged facing right now, which is without a shadow of a doubt the most first-world problem that anyone has ever experienced, is the power of choice and it comes down to Spider-Man,” Holland said. “When I signed my contract for [the first] Spider-Man, I signed a six-picture deal. I was 18 years old. I was more excited than I’d ever been about anything ever, and for the last 10 years I have been at the beck and call of Marvel and Sony and proudly so. It’s been the best experience of my life. I’m now at a juncture where I can say ‘No,’ and now that I’ve been afforded that power I am struggling to figure out what is the right thing to do. It’s meant I’ve had to put my foot down in certain instances, which I haven’t been allowed to do in the past, and I think the learning curve that I’m on right now is dealing with that new sense of power—making sure that I don’t abuse it, but [also] making sure that I do the best thing for me rather than for the studio. And really the best thing for the character. I don’t want to make another movie for the sake of making it.”

What has Holland put his foot down on, we wonder? He continued.

“[The studio wants me to make another Spider-Man] and I want to make another one. I want to make many more but I want to do it for the right reasons,” he said. “I am navigating and figuring out what having that kind of power means and that responsibility. And I’m figuring it out and I’m speaking to people and asking questions …  I’ve been speaking to [Robert] Downey a lot, especially about him making his return which is super exciting. That was a tough secret to sit on because I have a reputation for ruining things and I strategically have done no press.”

Of course Holland knew Downey was coming back as Doctor Doom, and of course he knew he might blow the secret.  He went on.

“I’m by no means complaining. It’s a wonderful place to be but it is something that keeps me up at night and I’m constantly thinking,” Holland said. “‘Is this the right thing to do? Am I gonna do justice to the character? Am I gonna do justice to the fans?’ I definitely don’t want to just make a movie for the sake of it because that’s not what Spider-Man represents… It’s going really well though.”

“I feel like I owe it to [the fans] to give and deliver the best version of what the next chapter for Spider-Man looks like,” he said. “And I think that’s really important and I think the creative integrity for something like that is really important. And the studio is on board and supportive and really collaborative, and I’ve been so blown away by how welcoming they’ve been into that creative room, but we’re working now with the pedal to the metal. We’re trying to get it going as soon as possible. Things are looking great but there’s still a lot of moving pieces that need to come together for us to hit the ground running.”

We love that he says the project is “pedal to the metal” and they want to get it done “as soon as possible.” However, that does make you wonder, why aren’t they? Holland answered.

“I’m not really sure about how much I can talk about in terms of ‘What are some of the challenges we face creatively and logistically?’” he said. “Obviously one of the things to bear in mind with Marvel is that your film is a small cog in a large machine and that machine has got to keep running and you need to make sure that you can fit into that timeline at the right time to benefit the bigger picture… That’s one of the challenges we’re facing, and the time in which we need to get that done is a tall order, but definitely achievable with the fantastic people we have working on it now.”

“But my biggest thing is the creative,” Holland continued. “We have a creative and a pitch and a draft which is excellent. It needs work but the writers are doing a great job and I read it three weeks ago and it really lit a fire in me. Zendaya and I sat down and read it together and we at times were like bouncing around the living room. Like this is a real movie worthy of the fans’ respect, but there [are] a few things we need to figure out before we can get that really going. But it’s exciting and I’m really, really excited about it.”

We’re excited too, Tom. We’re excited too.

But, to dissect those last thoughts a bit, Holland’s comments do seem to point to the long-running rumor of conflict over the scope of the film. His talking about fitting it into the MCU does, potentially, make it seem like that question of street-level story or multiverse mega movie is one that has been an issue. But apparently a choice has been made, and hopefully we’ll get concrete news soon.

And, again, we urge you to check out the Roll’s full interview with Holland. He talks about wanting to mentor a young Miles Morales actor, being in the room for giant MCU talks, and more. It’s fantastic.

Want more io9 news? Check out when to expect the latest Marvel, Star Wars, and Star Trek releases, what’s next for the DC Universe on film and TV, and everything you need to know about the future of Doctor Who.