10 Unscripted Tom Holland Moments That Were Left in the Movie
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VOICE OVER: Rebecca Brayton
WRITTEN BY: Lindsey Clouse
Tom Holland's spontaneity and incredible chemistry with co-stars have created some of the most memorable moments in cinema. Join us as we explore the unscripted magic that made it to the final cut, showcasing Holland's natural talent and improvisational skills across his most iconic roles. From heartbreaking scenes in "Avengers: Infinity War" to hilarious moments with Robert Downey Jr. and Jake Gyllenhaal, these improvised moments prove why Tom Holland is one of Hollywood's most charming and talented young actors!
Top 10 Unscripted Tom Holland Moments That Were Left In
Welcome to MsMojo, and today we’re counting down our picks for the best ad libbed lines and improvised scenes from actor Tom Holland. There will be a few spoilers ahead, but be honest – we know you’ve already seen all these movies.
This important scene has a cool story behind it. During the audition process for the MCU’s Spider-Man, Tom Holland went through a screen test with Robert Downey, Jr. Although Holland had been advised to learn his lines exactly, RDJ immediately started improvising, and Holland played along. Obviously, it worked, and he got the part. When it came time to actually film Peter’s first scene, the two discovered that Holland’s lines had been cut down considerably in the script. Downey insisted that the kid should get more lines, and suggested that the two improvise as they had in the audition. The result is this pitch-perfect introduction, which captures both actors’ charm and natural chemistry.
This film has a much darker tone than Holland’s MCU movies. It follows Cherry and Emily, two young people who are deeply in love, as Cherry struggles through PTSD after serving in Iraq. He turns to prescription pills and later illegal drugs to cope with his trauma, and Emily joins him in his downward spiral. This scene represents the moment just before everything goes bad. Reportedly, it was originally planned to be much shorter, but the two actors started improvising and the Russo brothers kept the cameras rolling. It turned into a sweet moment in which Cherry and Emily reminisce about the early days of their relationship. It makes the terrible things that follow that much more jarring by contrast.
The bromance between Holland and Jake Gyllenhaal on the set of this movie became legendary. In fact, the two got along so well that it bled into their on-screen relationship too. Director Jon Watts gave the pair some freedom to improvise while filming. This resulted in a much warmer dynamic between their characters than was originally planned. Peter looks up to Mysterio much like Holland looks up to Gyllenhaal. It makes it easy to understand why Peter eventually hands over Tony Stark’s glasses. It also makes the revelation that Mysterio is a villain that much more shocking.
One of the reasons the MCU has been so successful is that most of the movies have plenty of comedy to go along with the action. In this scene in Venice, Spider-Man attempts to prevent a bell tower from toppling while Mysterio fights the Water Elemental. The physical gag that sees Peter repeatedly smack his head into the giant bell wasn’t in the original script. Holland later revealed that he and his brother came up with the idea together. They showed it to Jon Watts, who loved it. It’s a delightful bit of humor amidst the excitement of the battle.
Holland bonded with the other two Spider-Men in this film much like he did with Jake Gyllenhaal in the previous one. The brotherly dynamic comes across so strongly on screen that it’s hard to believe it wasn’t planned. One of the most poignant scenes where it shows up is on the rooftop after Aunt May dies. It’s the first conversation Peter has with the alternate universe versions of himself. No one knows what he’s going through better than they do. Jon Watts allowed the actors to improvise most of the scene, and the two older Spideys naturally started sharing their own experiences and comforting the younger one. It’s a powerful testament to the talent of these three actors.
It seems like Tom Holland becomes best friends with everyone he works with. That was certainly the case with Mark Wahlberg on the set of “Uncharted.” The two had instant chemistry, and that translated into a lot of hilarious banter between their characters that wasn’t in the script. Director Ruben Fleischer was happy to let them do it, since it produced some of the funniest dialogue in the movie. The relationship between Nate and Sully is at the heart of both the video game and the film, and with two leading men like these in the roles, it was guaranteed box office gold.
When you’re playing opposite the king of improv, Robert Downey, Jr., all you can do is try to keep up. During this scene, Tony, Strange, and Peter are trapped aboard Ebony Maw’s spaceship, and Tony is none too pleased that Peter is there. As he and Strange argue, Peter pipes up, trying to be helpful. Holland ad libbed the perfectly timed “backup” line, and without missing a beat, RDJ improvised an impeccable response. Scenes like this prove that when you have a cast of brilliantly talented actors, sometimes the best thing you can do is toss the script out the window.
This entire film was basically fan service for long-time Spidey lovers, and the cast and crew knew they had to fit the famous Spider-Man pointing at Spider-Man meme in somewhere. However, it took them a while to figure out the right place for it. Andrew Garfield takes credit for coming up with the idea to put it into this scene in the chemistry lab, and it couldn’t have turned out better. It feels natural enough that it doesn’t take you out of the moment. Instead, it’s a nice Easter egg for attentive viewers.
It’s no surprise that Holland’s best unscripted moments happen alongside Robert Downey, Jr. After all, in order for an ad lib to make it into the final cut, the co-stars have to react appropriately, and no one does it better than RDJ. The scene in which Peter spontaneously hugs Tony in the back of the car is one of the funniest moments in “Homecoming.” Once again, Holland came up with the idea, and Downey improv-ed the perfect response. Believe it or not, this isn’t the only improvised hug in a Spider-Man movie. The three-way hug at the end of “No Way Home” was also unscripted. It was based on a real-life moment the actors shared that the director decided to add to the film.
It’s pretty widely agreed that this is the most incredible unscripted moment in the MCU. According to co-director Joe Russo, he simply told Holland to act like he didn’t want to go. Holland took the direction literally, and it turned into this absolutely gut-wrenching scene. Amazingly, the parallel scene of Tony’s death in “Avengers: Endgame” was also improvised. The cast was given no script at all, and was simply encouraged to do whatever felt right. That’s putting a lot of faith in your actors. The fact that it turned out so perfect is proof that this group are among the best of the best.
Which unscripted moment is your favorite? Let us know in the comments.
Welcome to MsMojo, and today we’re counting down our picks for the best ad libbed lines and improvised scenes from actor Tom Holland. There will be a few spoilers ahead, but be honest – we know you’ve already seen all these movies.
#10: Peter’s Introduction
“Captain America: Civil War” (2016)This important scene has a cool story behind it. During the audition process for the MCU’s Spider-Man, Tom Holland went through a screen test with Robert Downey, Jr. Although Holland had been advised to learn his lines exactly, RDJ immediately started improvising, and Holland played along. Obviously, it worked, and he got the part. When it came time to actually film Peter’s first scene, the two discovered that Holland’s lines had been cut down considerably in the script. Downey insisted that the kid should get more lines, and suggested that the two improvise as they had in the audition. The result is this pitch-perfect introduction, which captures both actors’ charm and natural chemistry.
#9: Falling Asleep Together
“Cherry” (2021)This film has a much darker tone than Holland’s MCU movies. It follows Cherry and Emily, two young people who are deeply in love, as Cherry struggles through PTSD after serving in Iraq. He turns to prescription pills and later illegal drugs to cope with his trauma, and Emily joins him in his downward spiral. This scene represents the moment just before everything goes bad. Reportedly, it was originally planned to be much shorter, but the two actors started improvising and the Russo brothers kept the cameras rolling. It turned into a sweet moment in which Cherry and Emily reminisce about the early days of their relationship. It makes the terrible things that follow that much more jarring by contrast.
#8: Peter and Mysterio's Relationship
“Spider-Man: Far From Home” (2019)The bromance between Holland and Jake Gyllenhaal on the set of this movie became legendary. In fact, the two got along so well that it bled into their on-screen relationship too. Director Jon Watts gave the pair some freedom to improvise while filming. This resulted in a much warmer dynamic between their characters than was originally planned. Peter looks up to Mysterio much like Holland looks up to Gyllenhaal. It makes it easy to understand why Peter eventually hands over Tony Stark’s glasses. It also makes the revelation that Mysterio is a villain that much more shocking.
#7: The Bell Tower
“Spider-Man: Far From Home” (2019)One of the reasons the MCU has been so successful is that most of the movies have plenty of comedy to go along with the action. In this scene in Venice, Spider-Man attempts to prevent a bell tower from toppling while Mysterio fights the Water Elemental. The physical gag that sees Peter repeatedly smack his head into the giant bell wasn’t in the original script. Holland later revealed that he and his brother came up with the idea together. They showed it to Jon Watts, who loved it. It’s a delightful bit of humor amidst the excitement of the battle.
#6: The Rooftop
“Spider-Man: No Way Home” (2021)Holland bonded with the other two Spider-Men in this film much like he did with Jake Gyllenhaal in the previous one. The brotherly dynamic comes across so strongly on screen that it’s hard to believe it wasn’t planned. One of the most poignant scenes where it shows up is on the rooftop after Aunt May dies. It’s the first conversation Peter has with the alternate universe versions of himself. No one knows what he’s going through better than they do. Jon Watts allowed the actors to improvise most of the scene, and the two older Spideys naturally started sharing their own experiences and comforting the younger one. It’s a powerful testament to the talent of these three actors.
#5: Nate and Sully’s Banter
“Uncharted” (2022)It seems like Tom Holland becomes best friends with everyone he works with. That was certainly the case with Mark Wahlberg on the set of “Uncharted.” The two had instant chemistry, and that translated into a lot of hilarious banter between their characters that wasn’t in the script. Director Ruben Fleischer was happy to let them do it, since it produced some of the funniest dialogue in the movie. The relationship between Nate and Sully is at the heart of both the video game and the film, and with two leading men like these in the roles, it was guaranteed box office gold.
#4: Backup
“Avengers: Infinity War” (2018)When you’re playing opposite the king of improv, Robert Downey, Jr., all you can do is try to keep up. During this scene, Tony, Strange, and Peter are trapped aboard Ebony Maw’s spaceship, and Tony is none too pleased that Peter is there. As he and Strange argue, Peter pipes up, trying to be helpful. Holland ad libbed the perfectly timed “backup” line, and without missing a beat, RDJ improvised an impeccable response. Scenes like this prove that when you have a cast of brilliantly talented actors, sometimes the best thing you can do is toss the script out the window.
#3: The Meme
“Spider-Man: No Way Home” (2021)This entire film was basically fan service for long-time Spidey lovers, and the cast and crew knew they had to fit the famous Spider-Man pointing at Spider-Man meme in somewhere. However, it took them a while to figure out the right place for it. Andrew Garfield takes credit for coming up with the idea to put it into this scene in the chemistry lab, and it couldn’t have turned out better. It feels natural enough that it doesn’t take you out of the moment. Instead, it’s a nice Easter egg for attentive viewers.
#2: The Hug
“Spider-Man: Homecoming” (2017)It’s no surprise that Holland’s best unscripted moments happen alongside Robert Downey, Jr. After all, in order for an ad lib to make it into the final cut, the co-stars have to react appropriately, and no one does it better than RDJ. The scene in which Peter spontaneously hugs Tony in the back of the car is one of the funniest moments in “Homecoming.” Once again, Holland came up with the idea, and Downey improv-ed the perfect response. Believe it or not, this isn’t the only improvised hug in a Spider-Man movie. The three-way hug at the end of “No Way Home” was also unscripted. It was based on a real-life moment the actors shared that the director decided to add to the film.
#1: “I Don’t Want to Go”
“Avengers: Infinity War” (2018)It’s pretty widely agreed that this is the most incredible unscripted moment in the MCU. According to co-director Joe Russo, he simply told Holland to act like he didn’t want to go. Holland took the direction literally, and it turned into this absolutely gut-wrenching scene. Amazingly, the parallel scene of Tony’s death in “Avengers: Endgame” was also improvised. The cast was given no script at all, and was simply encouraged to do whatever felt right. That’s putting a lot of faith in your actors. The fact that it turned out so perfect is proof that this group are among the best of the best.
Which unscripted moment is your favorite? Let us know in the comments.
