Tom Holland reveals his James Bond pitch was set to hide the fact from audiences that it was a 007 movie until the end of the film. The 25-year-old English actor has enjoyed international stardom over the past six years since swinging into the Marvel Cinematic Universe as the new Peter Parker/Spider-Man in Captain America: Civil War. Holland would carry the role on into three solo films, including the recently released box office record setter Spider-Man: No Way Home, and in both Avengers: Infinity War and Endgame.
The James Bond movie franchise has enjoyed over 60 years of success on the big screen having begun with the Sean Connery-starring Dr. No in 1962 based on Ian Fleming's novel of the same name. Connery was subsequently replaced by George Lazenby for On Her Majesty's Secret Service, Roger Moore for seven films, Timothy Dalton for two films, Pierce Brosnan for four films and most recently seeing Daniel Craig carrying the role through five films, ending with No Time to Die. With the Bond role once again vacant following the Golden Globe nominee's departure, many actors are throwing their hats into the ring to pick up the 007 moniker.
In his recent appearance on Late Night with Seth Meyers, Tom Holland opened up about his failed James Bond movie pitch. The current Spider-Man star revealed that his idea was to hide that it was a 007 movie from the audience until the end of the film, which he admits "doesn't make any sense" when factoring in the marketing for the project. See what Holland shared below:
"It didn’t work out quite as planned. Essentially, I’m such a big fan of James Bond. I’ve loved Daniel Craig’s movies. And I just thought: If they were to move on it would be really exciting to see how James Bond becomes James Bond. So, I pitched this idea for a movie, which is kind of a stupid idea. Essentially you wouldn’t tell the audience that it was a James Bond movie until the end, but from a marketing point of view, that’s a nightmare. Like that just doesn’t make any sense."
Holland's James Bond pitch would have been a divisive one if Sony and MGM had elected to move forward with the concept of keeping its franchise ties a secret from its marketing. Given the large box office haul Craig's Bond films brought in over the years, including an impressive $774 million gross for No Time to Die in the midst of the pandemic, it would prove pretty hard for the studios behind the franchise to want to take a risk on keeping its 007 connections under wraps from the marketing itself. While the bait-and-switch set up for Holland's James Bond pitch may not connect, many audiences have responded positively to the concept of exploring a young James Bond after the successful run of Craig's prequel-esque films.
Sony may not have moved forward with the young star as Ian Fleming's iconic spy, but Holland's James Bond pitch would still prove effective for him as he and the studio would use his idea for the long-gestating Uncharted movie adaptation. Though it debuted to mixed-to-negative reviews earlier this month, Uncharted has already become a box office success, having grossed over $145.9 million at the box office and labeled by Sony as their next successful franchise. Audiences can get a double dose of Holland on the big screen with both Spider-Man: No Way Home and Uncharted in theaters now.
Source: Late Night with Seth Meyers