Tom Holland is a name that any movie-goer will have heard of before (and there’s also no shortage of people who love him!). Most people know him as Peter Parker (i.e., Spider-Man) in the Marvel Cinematic Universe. But have you ever seen Tom Holland dancing?
The dorky British actor has some real moves! From scene-stealing dance scenes to amazing moves during press appearances, Tom Holland has proven himself a masterful and versatile dancer.
In this article, we’ll look at why he excels so much at dancing and show you some clips of some of his ad-hoc “performances”!
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Why Is Tom Holland So Good At Dancing? Tom Holland Dancing Background
Because most people’s attention is drawn to his meteoric acting career, not many noticed his dancing skill. Tom Holland started dancing at a very young age.
According to a source, he began to take ballet lessons in his garage when he was around 9 years old. Eventually, his feet (literally) delivered him to the doorstep of Nifty Feet Dance Studio in London, where he studied hip-hop.
But dancing wasn’t just a hobby for Tom.
His acting career started when he was cast in Billy Elliot the Musical as the main character’s best friend, Michael Caffrey. Because of the theme of the play, Tom had to extensively study and train in ballet and tap dancing for two years.
By the time the play premiered at the West End’s Victoria Palace Theatre in 2008, Tom was 12 years old!
Outside of dance classes, he also took courses in acrobatics, which further trained his physical fitness and flexibility. All of that would pay dividends later on in his role as Spider-Man – a character that’s long since been known for his superhuman flexibility and physics-defying stunts.
Tom Holland’s Dance Experience In Movies & Tv Shows
Tom didn’t keep his dancing talent a secret. If you follow him on social media or watch his other appearances outside of MCU shows and movies, then you’ll find many occasions where he flaunted his skills.
Here are a few!
Tom Holland dancing in “Billy Elliot: The Musical”
The very first role that Tom landed in his acting career was intimately tied to dancing. As Michael Caffrey in Billy Elliot the Musical, he 100% has to know his way around a dance stage. That’s why before his debut in the West End, Tom had to spend over two years studying ballet and tap dancing.
According to an interview, before he was scouted and selected as the actor behind Michael Caffrey, he didn’t know what he would do when he grew up. His mother thought he could be a dancer, what with his talent.
In 2006, when he was performing with his dance class at the Richmond Dance Festival, he was scouted by Lynne Paige, a choreographer, who thought that he would fit perfectly in a stage play.
And that’s how he landed his first acting job as Michael Caffrey in Billy Elliot the Musical. In total, he went through eight auditions. Along with dance classes for two years until the debut of the play, that’s a lot of work for a 10-12-year-old!
According to a review of the play, Tom was known for his “agility and his gravity-defying acrobatic flips” even while he was so young.
Tom Holland’s dancing & gymnastics skills in “Spider Man”
His dancing and athletics skills that he learned from Billy Elliot proved to be instrumental in his eventual casting as a teenage Peter Parker in MCU’s Spider-Man.
According to him, every time he came to an audition for the role, he always made a point to show off his gymnastics ability.
“They gave me two scenes … and I basically did like a somersault into frame, and then a somersault out of frame.” He said in an interview. “They may never see this, but if they do, I need them to know that I’ve got some gymnastic abilities and stuff.”
The trick actually worked, because Joe Russo, the director of Captain America: Civil War later said that one of the contributing factors to the casting decision of Tom for Peter Parker was his gymnastic and dancing skill.
Many other executives for Marvel like Kevin Feige also agreed that the casting decision couldn’t be any more perfect: “Tom could do it and not only be such an amazing Peter Parker but also the best Spider-Man stunt person ever….he’d be giving tips to the stuntmen on how to pose and land!”
Tom Holland dancing as Fred Astaire
We think that the news of Tom Holland being cast as Fred Astaire in a yet-to-be-released biopic of the dancing legend speaks volumes about his dancing skill.
It’s not easy for an actor to take on the role of Fred Astaire. Known as one of the greatest tap dancers of all time, Astaire has starred in well over 30 different musicals and dance movies. He’s also featured in an impressive number of Broadway and West End plays over his long active period of nearly 70 years.
Though one of his wishes, before he died, was to never be portrayed on screen, the movie was greenlit by Sony anyway. Since its announcement, the movie has been hit by a lot of backlash from Astaire’s fans.
Today, we don’t know about the status of the movie, with the trailer, the release date, and even the title of the movie still hush-hush.
But one thing’s for certain: Tom being cast as Fred Astaire was a major testament to his dancing ability.
And a little fun fact about the movie. According to Tom himself, Amy Pascal, the producer for the movie, FaceTimed him about the script while he was in the bath!
“We had a lovely FaceTime.” Cheekily said the young British actor.
Tom Holland on Lip Sync Battle
His appearance on Lip Sync Battle was so legendary that right now if you type the name of the show into Google, the first autosuggestion should be “Tom Holland”.
In the show, Tom performed with his co-star in the Spider-Man franchise and girlfriend, Zendaya. While Zendaya was definitely a great dancer herself, Tom dramatically outshined her with his amazing rendition of “Umbrella” by Rihanna.
The performance was so good, in fact, that it went viral.
It was hard to believe that he was stressed out and nervous at the time. In an interview, he later admitted that: “The funny thing is I was so nervous about doing that show. […] Because I was so stressed, so I came across really aggressive in the show. Yeah, I was stressed that day.”
Other than showing his moves, if you’re ever interested in seeing Tom Holland dancing as a girl, then you definitely have to check out that episode!
Conclusion
Tom Holland has an incredible talent for dancing, which makes him far more awesome and endearing than he already is! While there will always be some debate about which actor makes the best dancer, for us, Tom Holland definitely deserves to be on the top list.
What do you think about Tom Holland’s dancing career? Tell us in the comment section below!