Biography
Talented actor-dancer Tom Holland was discovered in a London hip-hop dance class by choreographers for "Billy Elliot," which led to intensive training and a supporting role in the musical before he took on the title role in 2008. He received stellar reviews for his turn in the show, which then led to his casting as a brave son aiding his mother (Naomi Watts) in finding his father (Ewan McGregor) and brothers in the wake of the 2004 Asian tsunami in "The Impossible." Critical response was again overwhelmingly in favor of Holland, who was soon mentioned in critical circles as a serious contender for the Best Actor Oscar. Holland soon graduated to starring roles in other features, including taking over the role of Spider-Man as the character was integrated into the Marvel Cinematic Universe, underscoring his status as a star in the making in two distinctly different mediums. Born Thomas Stanley Holland in the southwest London borough of Kingston upon Thames, England on June 1, 1996, Tom Holland was the eldest of four sons by comedian Dominic Anthony Holland and his wife, Nicola. Tom attended Donhead Prep School before entering Wimbledon College. While there, he took a hip-hop dance class, where choreographer Lynne Page first spotted him. An associate of Peter Darling, who choreographed both the film version of "Billy Elliot" (2003) and its musical adaptation, Page put Holland through two years of training before he made his West End debut as Billy's best friend, Michael, in "Billy Elliot the Musical" in 2008. He soon advanced to the title role, winning rave reviews for his acting and dancing skills before departing the show in 2010 after performing for both Prime Minister Gordon Brown and the musical's composer, Elton John. In 2011, Holland was cast as Ewan McGregor and Naomi Watts' son in "The Impossible" (2012), a harrowing drama about a Spanish couple and their children caught in the devastating 2004 Indian Ocean tsunami. Critics singled out his performance - his first acting turn in front of a camera - with near universal praise, as well as the Hollywood Spotlight Award from the Hollywood Film Awards. Coverage in Variety and Screen International included Holland in features about up-and-coming young actors, while Summit Entertainment, which distributed "The Impossible," was reportedly campaigning to submit Holland for the Best Actor Oscar over McGregor. He was subsequently cast in a voiceover role for the Japanese animated film "Arriety" (2011) and earned his first starring role in "How I Live Now" (2013), a post-apocalyptic drama based on the novel of the same name by Meg Rossoff and co-starring Saorise Ronan. Holland next appeared in the miniseries "Wolf Hall" (BBC 2015), based on the historical bestseller by Hilary Mantel. In July 2015, Holland was announced as the next Spider-Man, with his character popping up in a cameo in "Captain America: Civil War" (2016) before the release of "Spider-Man: Homecoming" (2017). In between, Holland co-starred in the drama "Edge of Winter" (2016), adolescent fantasy "A Monster Calls" (2016), and adventure drama "The Lost City of Z" (2016) before starring in Irish-made medieval drama "Pilgrimage" (2017).
