Tom Holland Recalls Being Told He'd Get Spider-Man Role Because He Wasn't 'Good-Looking'

Tom Holland is opening up about the extensive audition process that led him to be cast as Spider-Man/Peter Parker in the Marvel Cinematic Universe.

During a recent appearance on "The Graham Norton Show," Holland, 25, recalled that the audition process for "Spider-Man" took seven months and involved "eight or nine different auditions" and multiple trips to Atlanta, Georgia, for screen tests.

Before bagging the part of the Marvel hero, the actor said he was chauffeured to his final audition by a driver who was "a little bit too honest."

"He's chatting to me, chatting to me, chatting to me, and I'm a polite person, but I also want to be like, 'Mate, please shut up. I'm trying to learn my lines,'" Holland shared.

According to the English actor, the driver looked at him in the mirror at one point and told him, "You know what, kid? I think you're gonna get it."

Holland said that he was excited to hear the comment — until the driver explained why he believes the actor would get the part. "He goes, 'You know what, I think you’re gonna get it because the kid that I just drove there, he is so good looking,'" said Holland, joking, "Exactly the confidence boost I need."

After getting the role, Holland ran into the driver a few months later when he returned to Atlanta to shoot his first Spider-Man movie.

"And he goes, 'I told you!'" Holland said. "I was like, 'What did you tell me? That I was gonna get the part or that I was ugly?'"

Watch the full clip from "The Graham Norton Show" below.

Holland beat thousands of other young actors for the role of Spider-Man in 2015.

Asa Butterfield, Charlie Rowe, Charlie Plummer, Judah Lewis and Matthew Lintz were also considered for the part, according to The Hollywood Reporter. Timothée Chalamet previously told the same outlet that he also auditioned for the role but "left sweating in a total panic" after reading twice for the part.

Since landing the role, Holland has played Spider-Man in two standalone films, "Spider-Man: Homecoming" and "Spider-Man: Far From Home," as well as "Avengers: Infinity War" and "Avengers: Endgame."

He will reprise the character in "Spider-Man: No Way Home" and in three more undisclosed projects for Marvel/Sony.

Holland had quickly shot into stardom after making his Marvel debut as Peter Parker, but with popularity comes responsibility. In his interview with GQ for its 2021 Men of the Year Issue in November, the actor shared that his girlfriend, Zendaya, taught him that fame is work too.

He recalled once telling fans to "get lost" for stalking him and later apologizing to them when he realized his mistake.

"I have to remind myself that being Spider-Man is more of a responsibility than just having a job," Holland explained. "There are kids out there who are bullied at school, who don’t fit in, and Spider-Man is their f--king go-to guy, you know? And at the moment I’m that guy."

"Spider-Man: No Way Home" will be released on Dec. 17.