"It's a Mystery and a Thriller" Tom Holland & Cast on 'Spider-Man: Brand New Day'

What is happening to me? Did you miss me, Spidey? I'm losing my mind. I am totally out of control. I gotta fix whatever this is right now. I got to see a clip yesterday of this film, Insane, Edge of My Seat. Just for each of you, can you just talk about something that is different from this movie that's separate from other Marvel pieces of work that you've done? This was different. It was very different. The size, the scope, the possibilities, the attention level of detail and artistry in front of the camera, behind the camera. He's a wonderful leader, and he cares deeply. And it was inspiring, and it was great. For me, it's the mystery and the thriller. I think for a large portion of the movie, even Spider-Man is trying to figure out what is going on. And I have never made one of these movies where the audience isn't one step ahead. And I think at this point, when you watch this film, you are in lockstep with Peter Parker. You are finding these things out, as he is. And I think that's a testament to who Destin is as a director, because he found a way to take the action to a new level, but make a movie that feels more personal than we've ever made before. Yeah, I would say the same. I think the writing has leveled up a lot. I think from the first thing, we were very much kids. And just watching the maturity and the storytelling just kind of level up in a great way is really, really fun and rewarding. And Spider-Man has been all over the world, but we get to bring him home to New York City. I know the fans were really enjoying that. What was that element like, just bringing it to that street level? I think it's really important. Something I did when I was wrestling with the idea of making this movie was, what is it that the fans want? And I really spent some time online listening to podcasts and watching fan reactions to stuff. And one of the most obvious things that they wanted was this street-level crime, a New York-based story. And what's so wonderful about this film is, New York is as much a character in this film as any of us are. New York is such a unique place. It's so rich in culture. And the texture of the city is incredible. So Charlie Wood, our production designer, we built this set on the back lot of Pinewood. I mean, what was four city blocks in two different directions? And it gave us so much freedom to try and bring New York to life. Yeah, and just watching this villain that's possessing people, it's so unfair. You don't know who to trust. So I'm curious if you guys had that ability, whose body would you jump into? And what would you do? In life. Let's do MCU. Oh, in the MCU? Yeah, that would be cool. Whose body would I jump into? I'd probably be messy for the World Cup Final on Sunday. That'd be pretty fun. I wouldn't want to play. That's a lot of pressure. If I could just experience it. Right, yeah. Right, and then get out before the game starts. Yeah, exactly. I want to be in the game. I'm chilling on the game. There's no way. Something different about them today. I don't know. I mean, I guess Hulk's. I mean, I guess that that would be, you know what I mean? I mean, I feel like that would be hard. Like you couldn't go into a lot of places and stuff, but. Would you believe Sadie said Hulk? Huh? Sadie said Hulk. Sadie said Hulk? Yeah, yeah. I mean, I think that's what Pop said. Probably MJ, just to feel loved by Spider-Man, I guess. That's such a warm answer. Tom? In the MCU, I'd have to say Thor. Chris Hemsworth, man. And you're a god. Yeah. I don't know if you've heard about this, but your role has been kept very secret. I don't know if people are talking about this. That's what I'm told, yes. Yeah. What is the wildest fan theory about who you're playing, like that you've heard? I don't know. I think it's less about the specific fan theory and more just like the quantity of them. I've been like, I think 18 different characters at this point. And which one is the right one? Just so I have that. We'll have to wait and find out. Okay, got it, got it, got it. How hard is it to keep this kind of secret when you're in the biz? It's not that hard. You just don't tell people. But I do feel bad sometimes about having to be so cagey. We're almost there. Yeah. Then you can be free. Yeah. What is that moment when you're on set? You're like, okay, I'm really in this Spider-Man movie. What was that moment for you? I think just seeing Spider-Man. That'll do it. Yeah. I feel like watching the clip yesterday. It's just like the world of New York City felt so immersive. Can you talk about that experience? Because Spider-Man has been all over the world for so long. And now he's back home in Queens and doing all the on the ground stuff. What was that experience like? Yeah. It's so cool to see that in the film. It really feels like a love letter to New York in a lot of ways. Truly. You definitely feel the heartbeat of the city and New York being kind of a character in this film. Yeah. I can't wait to see the rest of it. What were you able to do in this film that you haven't done acting-wise yet? It's a good question. I don't think I can really answer that yet. But I did do some things that were different. And then I'm watching this villain who's taking over people's bodies in the clip. And it's just so unfair. You don't even know who to trust. I'm so curious if you had that ability, whose body would you jump into? And what would you do? Oh, God. Like within the Spider-Man world? Let's just do MCU. MCU. I think it'd be pretty cool to be Hulk, I guess. Oh, nice. Right? I can't imagine even getting angry. So you might not even get the full Hulk experience. Well, I mean, yeah. I guess you'd have to find out. Yeah, yeah, yeah. Exactly. Maybe the small inconveniences would just start triggering you. Right, right. What do you think would be your message to fans? Like what to look forward to about when they get into that theater, that premium format? What are they going to experience? Oh, yeah. I think it's so cool to see this incredible cast back in these characters that you know and love and then also some new faces. And I think I grew up with Tom's Spider-Man. So to watch as a fan, objectively, it feels like it kind of grew up with the audience. And yeah, I think they've got a lot to look forward to. Was there anything surprising about like working with Tom when you were actually on set? Like, wow, like you grew up watching this guy and here you are. I mean, I just think he's like such a natural leader and such a physical actor as well, which is perfect for this role. So I think that was not surprising, but just cool to witness. And did he give you like a couple of good nuggets? Like, is there anything you can share that's like on set? It's like working, you know, your MCU movie, your debut, like some good like golden nuggets? Yeah. I mean, he definitely kind of told me about his experience with spoilers. Oh, yes. Yeah. So we talked a bit about that. Dr. Banner, you found a way to suppress mutating DNA, right? If you see me with this stuff, run. Checked out the clip yesterday and just blown away on the edge of my seat. Needed some more time in there. But the first thing I noticed was just the web swinging just felt different than I've seen in a while. So I'm wondering if you put your own spin on it and what you were aiming for there. Our whole team was really chasing the challenge of trying to do something different, trying to allow the audience to have a new experience with the swinging and where to place the camera, how to really give you the feeling of looking off the edge of a building, let the audience feel that vertigo. We looked at a lot of footage of, you know, we're just pouring through footage online on YouTube of parkour footage and wingsuit footage and skydivers and how that action was captured, really informed where the best place is to put the camera and what types of lenses to use. So all of that created, I think, some swinging that people haven't seen before. Yeah, no, it was insane. And just talk about, you know, Spider-Man's been all over the world. We brought him back home to New York City. We got that street view. Talk about what you were looking to make sure that you nailed with that piece of the movie. It was really important for us to bring Spider-Man home and to keep our story New York-centric. We began our whole journey with all of our department heads right here in New York. And we spent a week here just walking the streets and taking pictures and feeling the vibe and the essence of the people here. And I always thought if we could capture the feeling that you have when you walk down the streets of this city, all the complexities of it, not just the glitz and the glamour of Times Square, but the more grungy parts or the multicultural aspect of it, if we can capture all of that and have that be the backdrop of our movie, I do feel like it's capturing the heart of Peter Parker. Yeah, I agree. And can we talk about the suit? Was there anything that you wanted to do differently with the suit this time around? The suit is a natural progression of the story. This is Peter Parker's first time being entirely alone. So the suit is not given to him. It's not made for him. It has to be something that you could believe that he could have made himself. It's also a suit that is highly influenced by the other Spider-Men that he came in contact with. So you'll see a lot of nods to the comics. You'll see a lot of nods to those previous suits. And we worked very closely, not only with Sonya, our costume designer, but our whole team at Marvel worked very hard to create a very special suit. Yeah, and seeing this villain that is possessing people, it's like the most unfair villain. I don't even know how you track this person down. I'm curious, if you had that power, whose body would you jump into and what would you do? Oh, man. If I could jump into anybody, wow, that is a great question. I don't know, man. I don't know. Who would you jump into? Honestly, I think I have to jump into LeBron James and tell him to come to the next But I don't know if that's the right answer. All right, just give me a sec. Give me a sec. I'm not in high school anymore. Did you stretch? Are you a big stretcher? It's so good for you. Kevin, I'm going to start with you. You said that this chapter is a return to the classic Spider-Man. How do you balance focusing on those classic elements and still being able to make it feel so grand, which I think you've done? Well, everybody's done that. And Destin has done that. And it doesn't, I mean, frankly, it doesn't take much to make Spidey feel grand. There is that sense of swinging through the canyons of New York, which is something we had actively avoided in our first few movies with Tom Holland because it had been done so many times wonderfully. And we wanted to chart new ground for him. But returning to it and with Destin at the helm, and the very first week of production was that sequence where he's chasing the tank through the streets of New York, and it got so much coverage because we shot so much of it practically. It was actually very exciting to see the crowds that came out in person there and the reaction and the response online to what Destin was doing. It takes a lot of effort and a lot of time and talent. But making Spidey grand is kind of what Stan and Steve started all those years ago. Yeah, truly. And then Amy, I want to talk to you about this element of surprise. We know people still love surprise, but we also know people love to figure stuff out. So in the world of fan theories and leaks, how do you balance that mystery versus giving the audience something to discover? You know what, it's great when people want to guess what's happening. It means they're interested and they're leaning in and that's part of the fun. But what we really have to do is deliver them a story that they're going to like when they get there. And if we allow ourselves to get too caught up in leaving Easter eggs and make people think this is going to be this, I think then we're not focusing on the right thing. But I wanted to say something about what you just asked, Kevin. I think the reason that Spidey always is mythic is tied to the fact that he is an ordinary person. And it doesn't sound like those things would go together, but they do. Ordinary people who rise to extraordinary things are so inspiring to all of us. It's such a mythic thing. And somebody who wants to stick up for the little guy and that that's his aim and that's what he's always been about, I think it catapults him to a different level than you would think. And so balancing the action and the surprises and the villains and the other characters, I think it's easier than people think because of who Peter is. I think that's exactly right. But I'm curious to get Kevin's opinion on the element of surprise. And I know Sadie's character has been heavily debated online. How do you guys choose which things you reveal in trailers or in talks or what you keep more to the chest? It's entirely about maintaining the best experience for when the lights dim in the theater and the audience, as Amy said, just gives itself over for the first time, the way we unveil the story. And the way her story comes together over the course of the movie is what the entire movie is about. And as much of the mystery of the movie. And why give away the mystery of a story before people watch the story? And, you know, people think they want to know. They think they want to know and they think they want control over everything. But in truth, the joy of going to a movie theater is that you don't control time and you have to completely allow yourself to have that experience and somebody else is controlling it. And I think people don't really want to know. I think they think they do. But I think the experience of being in a movie theater is about something else. There's also a lot they know. We've shown Punisher. We've shown Hulk. We've shown ninjas. There's a lot to take into the movie. And because that element is so tied to the mystery and to the story. I personally never want to know. I'm with you. If someone's right, then it's like I see my brain now. I know. And that's the incredible thing about going and sitting in a movie theater and the lights going off and you're still and you're sitting there in the dark with a bunch of people you don't know. And it happens. And it can only happen in a movie theater. Yeah. And when you guys have these mystery elements, how hard is it to keep those things under wraps? You guys have done an excellent job. Just never answer any questions. Yeah. And never talk to anybody. That's good. And here we are throwing it off. I want to switch gears to talk about Destin. In the clips that I've seen, it just feels different. It's amazing what I'm seeing from the web slinging to the city elements. I'm loving these comic book cover shots that you guys were able to execute. What was it about Destin that made him perfect for this installment? Well, I mean, he'd done amazing work with us on Shang-Chi and was finishing a show called Wonder Man for us when we were working on this story. And Amy and I had a conversation. We were looking for filmmakers. And I thought we would be very lucky to get Destin for all those reasons that he could bring a new eye to it for action, but also that he keys in on the emotion so, so much. And he is a very humble man who was very complimentary of the other Spidey movies and the movies that John had made for us and wanted to embrace all those elements while bringing his own. Many people want to come in and put a big stamp on it and change things to change things. And to be very honest with you, Amy and I were trying to change more things that ended up changing because Destin came in and said, but I love those elements that John did. He did. He said, hello, are you guys crazy? But the other thing about him is beside that he's a great action director and a great storyteller is he's so authentic. He's so authentic as a person. His filmmaking is so authentic. Everything comes from, I don't believe this or I do believe this. And that is a good barometer for making a movie. Amy, I'll stay with you. I want to switch gears to Tom. It's my understanding he had more impact on building the story out. I'm curious. He did. I mean, it's his fourth movie. He knows his character better than any of us at this point. And he's really smart. And if you've ever spoken to him, which I'm sure you have, he's incredibly eloquent. And he is, he knows Spider-Man and he is Spider-Man and he's real smart. So it's, you want good ideas from everybody, especially from the person playing the character. It is one of the great privileges in this job to watch actors grow with the characters and take ownership of the characters in such amazing and become the characters in many ways. And we've always wanted input from the actors, but in this case, Tom was just very, very interested and hungry to be involved in it. And thank goodness he was because he helped make the movie what it is. I mean, you guys have a huge year ahead of you. How does Peter's story here get us to Doomsday? I mean, this is very much a movie that takes place before, I won't say long before, but before Doomsday in its own contained way. So it is very much the story we're telling for Peter is contained before the events of Doomsday. Understood. And with all the success that you guys have both accomplished, your movies are some of the things I treasure the most. With today's day and age, how do you benchmark your success? How do you know that a project met the mark? If I love the character. If I love the character and you stick with the story being about the choices that the character makes, that's the plot, then you know you're okay. Love it. First job often is make a movie that you're proud of. Yeah. And then the rest is up to the audience. Yeah, we're both lucky that we get to keep doing this. And I think loving it, you know, I think that's a big part of it.