Tom Holland Says He Took ‘the Odyssey’ Role Because of Zendaya

Tom Holland says Zendaya joked she’d leave him if he turned down “The Odyssey.”

In an interview with People published Wednesday, Holland said he initially faced a dilemma when Christopher Nolan offered him the role of Telemachus in his latest film.

“To be honest, when I got home after our meeting, I sat down with Z and was like, ‘I’ve been offered this movie,'” Holland said, recalling a conversation with Zendaya, whom he’s been in a relationship with since 2021.

Holland said she immediately guessed the offer had come from Nolan after he told her it was “the big one.”

However, one scheduling conflict stood in the way, prompting Zendaya to joke about what he should do, he said.

“And then we had ‘Spider-Man’ that was literally scheduled to go the same day that we would start shooting,” Holland said. “Z said: I’ll leave you if you don’t do ‘The Odyssey.'”

In June, Holland told GQ that he had to have a “very uncomfortable conversation” with Sony Pictures’ Tom Rothman to shift the production dates for “Spider-Man: Brand New Day.” The film franchise is jointly produced by Sony Pictures and Marvel Studios.

Holland said he believes Sony agreed to delay production because Nolan has a reputation for finishing his films on schedule.

“Any other director, it might have been a slightly different conversation,” Holland told GQ.

Things eventually worked out, allowing Holland and Zendaya to appear together in both “The Odyssey,” which opens in theaters on July 17, and in “Spider-Man: Brand New Day,” which opens on July 30.

Away from the big screen, the couple also marked a major milestone this year. In a June interview with Esquire, Holland appeared to confirm his marriage to Zendaya.

The actor said that AI-generated Lake Como wedding photos circulating online briefly fooled his grandmother into thinking she hadn’t been invited. When asked whether he had to send similar messages to other relatives, Holland said, “No, because they were all there.”