Tom Holland has shared the amusing story behind how Zendaya pushed him toward joining Christopher Nolan’s latest epic, The Odyssey, revealing she gave him a dramatic warning when he hesitated over the role.
The film opens in theaters across the US on July 17 and brings together a packed ensemble cast. Holland appears as Telemachus, the son of Odysseus, while Zendaya takes on the role of Athena.
It marks one of the biggest pairings yet for the couple, who have mostly been seen together in the Spider-Man franchise and have become one of Hollywood’s most closely watched duos. Nolan’s film has also drawn attention for its scale, with reports of large practical sets, extensive location shooting and a star-packed cast that includes Matt Damon, Anne Hathaway, Robert Pattinson, Charlize Theron and Lupita Nyong’o.
Audiences are especially excited to see the couple appear in the same project beyond their work in the Marvel franchise, but Holland has now explained that the collaboration almost did not happen without some encouragement from Zendaya.
While promoting the movie, the actor looked back on the moment Christopher Nolan approached him about the part and how the conversation at home quickly made clear that turning it down was not likely to go over well.
Holland said he spent time seriously weighing the offer when Nolan, 55, asked him to join the production as Telemachus, especially because of scheduling complications.
“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 recalled.
“And she was like, ‘By who?’ And I was like, ‘It’s the big one.’ And she was like, ‘Chris?’ I was like, ‘Yeah, it’s Chris Nolan.’”
“And then we had Spider-Man that was literally scheduled to go the same day that we would start shooting,” he added.
Zendaya, a longtime admirer of Nolan’s filmmaking, evidently felt there was only one acceptable decision and made that crystal clear in her own memorable way.
““Z said, ‘I’ll leave you if you don’t do The Odyssey>!'” admitted Holland.
In the end, Holland accepted the role, allowing both of them to be part of one of Nolan’s most talked-about productions.
It also meant Holland had to navigate a rare scheduling clash between two huge franchise films. In recent interviews, he has said the overlap with the next Spider-Man movie made the decision more complicated at first, but that Nolan’s project was impossible to pass up once the logistics were worked out.
Even so, their characters occupy separate corners of the story, meaning they do not share dialogue scenes or appear together on screen. Holland was, however, seen backing Zendaya on her first day of filming.
Interest in the movie has already surged online, especially after Nolan singled out Zendaya’s work and described her performance as “perfect” during a recent interview.
That praise also sparked some lighthearted teasing, with Holland joking that he is still waiting for Nolan to give him the same kind of glowing review.
The couple’s easy chemistry and public support for one another continue to make them a major talking point in entertainment, and their latest behind-the-scenes story has only added to the buzz around The Odyssey.
With the film now just days away from release, attention is likely to stay fixed on both Nolan’s latest spectacle and the off-camera story of how Zendaya helped ensure Holland said yes to joining it.