Tom Holland to Star in Drew Pearce's Thriller ‘Penthouse’ for Sony — and I'm Still Not Convinced He’s a Movie Star

Here’s Deadline reporting that Sony has pre-emptively bought “Penthouse,” an original thriller from writer Drew Pearce (“The Fall Guy,” “Hobbs & Shaw,” “Iron Man 3”), and it's being developed as a starring vehicle for Tom Holland. No plot details yet, just “thriller.”

Of course Sony is doing this. “Spider-Man: Brand New Day” has made over $2 billion worldwide, and they will keep Holland happy any way they can. He's also got that Fred Astaire movie at Sony with Margaret Qualley and Sabrina Carpenter. “Penthouse” is basically a thank-you card.

With all that in mind, I'm going to say what a lot of people think, and won't say out loud: I don't believe Tom Holland can be a movie star outside of Spider-Man. That's been my genuine hunch for a few years now.

Nice kid. Seems like a genuinely good guy. Great on a press tour. But there's no “it” factor there. He doesn't command the screen. Put him in a room with real heavyweights, and he kind of just... disappears.

I was a fan of “The Odyssey,” but Holland didn't do it for me there either. Nolan hands him Telemachus, a juicy role, puts him next to Matt Damon and a huge cast, and Holland just kind of… blends into the background. He's fine. He's earnest. He hits his marks. But I never once felt like there was any real depth to his delivery.

Furthermore, look at what happens when here’s no Nolan, or the Spidey suit comes off. “Cherry”? Nobody saw it. “Chaos Walking”? A disaster. “The Crowded Room” on Apple came and went. “Uncharted” made money, sure, but that was a video game IP, and I promise you nobody walked out of that movie hyping Tom Holland. The best thing he's ever done might still be “The Impossible,” and he was a teenager.

A thriller needs a lead with some edge. Some danger. An actor who's fascinating to watch and hard to crack. That's not Holland. And next up he's supposed to play Fred Astaire? Fred Astaire! The most effortlessly magnetic man to grace a movie screen in his heyday. Good luck with that.

Would love to be proven wrong. Not holding my breath. Just needed to vent this out.