Sony Pictures and Marvel Studios have announced that Tom Holland (The Impossible, In the Heart of the Sea) has been cast as Peter Parker/Spider-Man in their next Spider-Man film. It was also announced that Jon Watts has been hired to direct the film.
Tom Rothman, Sony Pictures Motion Pictures Group Chairman, had this to say about the two new hires:
“It’s a big day here at Sony. Kevin (Feige), Amy (Pascal) and their teams have done an incredible job.The Marvel process is very thorough, and that’s why their results are so outstanding. I’m confident Spider-Man will be no exception. I’ve worked with a number of up-and-coming directors who have gone on to be superstars and believe that Jon is just such an outstanding talent. For Spidey himself, we saw many terrific young actors, but Tom’s screen tests were special. All in all, we are off to a roaring start.”
Marvel Studios’ Kevin Feige had this to say about director Jon Watts:
“As with James Gunn, Joss Whedon, and the Russo brothers, we love finding new and exciting voices to bring these characters to life. We spent a lot of time with Jon and find his take and work inspiring.”
With Sony’s Amy Pascal adding:
“Sony, Marvel, Kevin and I all knew that for Peter Parker, we had to find a vibrant, talented young actor capable of embodying one of the most well-known characters in the world. With Tom, we’ve found the perfect actor to bring Spider-Man’s story into the Marvel Cinematic Universe.”
Sony Pictures will finance and distribute the next installment of the series, while the film will be co-produced by Kevin Feige and Amy Pascal. The fact that they have cast an actor that actually looks like a teenager, and that can grow into the role, is a step in the right direction.
The still untitled film is set to hit theaters on July 28. 2017