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The man is a firecracker and a half…

Tom Holland is a proper mainstay in the Marvel cinematic universe, the Spider-Man actor appearing in three Marvel movies and two solo films (with another on the way). It’s safe to say he’s easily the most popular Spider-Man to hit the big screen, and that the character means more to him than most.

But, there was a time when old mate Tom wasn’t the king of webs, a time where he was put through the absolute wringer before he could don the iconic suit. Now, he’s taken a trip down memory lane to retrace those days, reflecting on the audition process for the role and his ridiculous reaction when he found out he bagged it.

Speaking to Get Out star Daniel Kaaluya for Variety’s Actors on Actors series, Holland opened up on the gruelling audition process Marvel put him through (seven months!) as well as his first screen test with Robert Downey Jr. Specifically, things started going well for the Infinity War star when Downey Jr., started improvising on the spot, which led to Tom riffing with him in turn.

“We started riffing with each other, and I mean, to sound like a bit of a dick, I rang my mum afterward and was like, ‘I think I’ve got it.'” Holland said over Zoom. Yet, it still took Marvel two months to confirm Holland had gotten the role, and when Holland found out, it was through the fucking press.

“I got my computer, and my dog was sitting next to me,” he said. “I type in ‘Marvel.’ I’ve still got the article saved on my computer. It said, ‘We would like to introduce our new Spider-Man, Tom Holland.’ I broke my computer, because I flipped it up in the air. It fell off my bed; my dog went nuts. I ran downstairs. I was telling my family, ‘I got the part! I got the part!’”

Pretty goddamn wholesome. Fingers crossed he remains as Spider-Man for the foreseeable future. Watch him reminisce below:

Tom Holland found out he was cast as #SpiderMan through Instagram: “I broke my computer. I flipped it up in the air. It fell off my bed. My dog went nuts” | #ActorsOnActors presented by @AmazonStudios https://t.co/Ewr5P0KHLF pic.twitter.com/kts7XFHMdA

— Variety (@Variety) January 20, 2021