Tom Holland explains how his failed James Bond pitch turned into the Uncharted movie
Exclusive: From 007 to a PlayStation icon
The name’s Holland… Tom Holland? The Spider-Man actor has revealed to Total Film that it was his James Bond pitch to Sony that helped shape what would later become an Uncharted movie.
Uncharted, which stars Holland as a younger version of the Indiana Jones-esque video game icon Nathan Drake, wasn’t on the mind of the actor when he walked into Sony’s offices with his Big Idea.
"I had a meeting, after or during Spider-Man 2 [Far From Home], with Sony to pitch this idea of a young Bond film that I’d come up with," Holland told Total Film in its new issue – available to buy now.
"It was the origin story of James Bond. It didn’t really make sense. It didn’t work. It was the dream of a young kid, and I don’t think the Bond estate were particularly interested," Holland said.
Yet, there was something there: "The idea of a young Bond film sparked this idea, in turn, that you could do a Nathan Drake story as an origin story, rather than as an addition to the games. And that opened a conversation," Holland recalled.
Holland may have swapped out potential martinis and a licence to kill for traps and treasures – but Uncharted is more than a good fit for the burgeoning action hero.
Uncharted, also starring Mark Wahlberg, Sophia Taylor Ali, and Antonio Banderas, is set to swashbuckle its way into cinemas on February 11 in the UK and in the US on February 18.
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Jack Shepherd is the former Senior Entertainment Editor of GamesRadar. Jack used to work at The Independent as a general culture writer before specializing in TV and film for the likes of GR+, Total Film, SFX, and others. You can now find Jack working as a freelance journalist and editor.