Tom Holland Says He Would 'Love' to Mentor His Spider-Man Successor and Votes for This Young Actor

Tom Holland opened up about his future hopes for the franchise in a new interview with Esquire. The actor wants another British actor to take on the role of Spider-Man next. Holland said he hopes to mentor the next Spider-Man the way that Robert Downey Jr. mentored him when he joined the Marvel Cinematic Universe (MCU). Tom Holland has an idea of which young actor should be the next to don the Spider-Man suit. Holland, 30, opened up about his vision for the future of the beloved superhero, who he has played for Marvel's franchise of films since 2017's Spider-Man: Homecoming, in a new interview with Esquire. When asked about his future with Marvel's Avengers, he noted to the outlet that while it is 'pretty tough to get a producing credit on future movies,' he hopes to step in and guide his Spider-Man successor. 'In the way that Robert Downey was such a mentor for me in my first three movies, I would love to be that person for whoever is next,' Holland told the outlet of his co-star, who played Iron Man in the MCU. Holland then cast his vote on who he would choose to fill his shoes: Adolescence star Owen Cooper. 'Owen Cooper would be awesome,' Holland said. 'Obviously he's super-talented and the talk of the town right now.' Cooper, 16, has already won Best Supporting Actor in a Limited Series or Movie Made for Television award at the 2026 Critics Choice Awards, Best Supporting Actor on Television at the Golden Globe Awards, Outstanding Supporting Actor in a Limited or Anthology Series or Movie at the Primetime Emmy Awards, and more for his role in Netflix's gripping limited series Adolescence. In the Netflix show, which is shot entirely in a single, continuous shot, Cooper plays 13-year-old Jamie Miller, who is accused of killing his female classmate, as investigators dive headfirst into the 'manosphere' to deduce what brought him to commit murder. The 2025 show was inspired by the real-life knife violence epidemic in the United Kingdom. In England and Wales, the Office for National Statistics reported that the number of knife attacks has nearly doubled over the past decade.