Tom Holland explains why he didn't get a part in Star Wars

Tom Holland in The Devil All the Time — (Image credit: Netflix)

Before he was swinging through the streets of New York City as Spider-Man, Tom Holland auditioned for Star Wars.

"I remember my audition for Star Wars, I was like four or five auditions in, and I think I was auditioning for John Boyega’s role," Holland said in a recent interview with Backstage. In the franchise, Boyega plays Finn, a reformed stormtrooper who escapes the First Order to join the Resistance.

"I remember doing this scene with this lady, bless her, and she was just a drone. So I was doing all of this, like, 'We gotta get back to the ship!' And she was going, 'Bleep, bloop bloop, bleep bloop.' I just couldn’t stop laughing. I found it so funny. And I felt really bad, because she was trying really hard to be a convincing android or drone or whatever they’re called. Yeah, I obviously didn't get the part. That wasn’t my best moment."

At least it makes a good anecdote. Plus, things worked out for the best, anyway – if Holland had been cast in Star Wars, we wouldn't have him as Spidey.

We can next see Holland in Cherry, a crime drama directed by the Russo brothers, which we can assume had an audition process that didn't involve any laughing – he plays an Army veteran who resorts to robbing banks to support his opioid addiction. It's set to release in theaters on February 26 and on Apple TV Plus on March 12. Then, of course, there's the highly anticipated Spider-Man 3.

While we wait for Cherry to the big (and small) screen, make sure you've caught up on all the best movies of 2020.

I’m an Entertainment Writer here at GamesRadar+, covering everything film and TV-related across the Total Film and SFX sections. I help bring you all the latest news and also the occasional feature too. I’ve previously written for publications like HuffPost and i-D after getting my NCTJ Diploma in Multimedia Journalism.