The 15 Best Tom Holland Movies

Kevin Macdonald's (The Last King of Scotland) adaptation of Meg Rosoff's 2004 young-adult novel casts Saoirse Ronan as Daisy, a prickly American teenager shipped off to her cousins in the English countryside just as a nuclear attack plunges Britain into war. One year after his big-screen debut in The Impossible, Holland appears as Isaac, one of the cousins whose idyllic summer is shattered by the conflict.

Critics were split. Many admired Macdonald's fusion of first-love reverie and survival thriller, along with Ronan's committed lead, but a sizable contingent felt the film's back half lost the tension and focus of its dreamy opening. The result is a coming-of-age drama reviewers found more evocative in mood than in plot.

"Because it serves up Armageddon with a side order of teen romance, How I Live Now is not always credible. But as a portrait of a surly 16-year-old whose internal crisis is overtaken by an external one, the movie is persuasive." —Mark Jenkins, NPR

Brendan Muldowney's medieval road movie sends a small band of 13th-century Irish monks across hostile terrain to deliver a holy relic to Rome, only to find that faith and greed make for a perilous escort. Holland plays Brother Diarmuid, a wide-eyed young novice, alongside Jon Bernthal as a silent, battle-hardened protector and Richard Armitage as a ruthless envoy.

Critics were divided down the middle: Several praised the film's handsome location photography, brooding atmosphere, and bursts of brutal action, while others found its meditations on faith thin and its violence wearying. Reviewers repeatedly singled out Bernthal's near-wordless performance as the standout. Holland has considered Bernthal a mentor since working together in Ireland, and their bold bond shines strong this month with both actors appearing in The Odyssey and Spider-Man: Brand New Day. 

"Holland does fine work as the novice, but it's Bernthal who owns the screen as The Mute, who will protect the relic and his brothers at all costs. It's fiercely effective work." —Richard Roeper, Chicago Sun-Times

Just off his role in the 2019 animated holiday season release Spies in Disguise, Tom Holland would star in another animated movie right before the world sank into the COVID-19 pandemic. In Pixar's Onward, he voices Ian Lightfoot, a shy elf who, along with his boisterous brother Barley (Chris Pratt), embarks on a quest to resurrect their late father for one last day. Director Dan Scanlon (Monsters University) drew on his own experience of growing up without a father, giving the road-trip fable a believable emotional undercurrent.

Critics generally enjoyed Onward while ranking it a notch below top-tier Pixar. Reviewers praised the brotherly chemistry (perhaps honed during Avengers: Infinity War), inventive world-building, and a genuinely moving finale, even as several found the premise safer and less magical than the studio's boldest work. 

"Onward may be middle-of-the-pack Pixar but it's still a real pleasure." —Tim Robey, The Telegraph

Holland, now the first actor to play Peter Parker in four solo films, returns to the role that made him a global star in Spider-Man: Brand New Day, the latest entry in his MCU Spider-Man series, with the director's chair now filled by Destin Daniel Cretton (Shang-Chi and the Legend of the Ten Rings). The film reunites Holland's Peter Parker with a mix of new (Sadie Sink) and returning (Mark Ruffalo's Bruce Banner) faces and, after the reality-altering events of No Way Home, is expected to chart a fresh course for the character, bringing him back to his street-level origins. Opening in theaters this weekend, it arrives on a wave of strong early buzz.

"A more mature, emotional and distinctly ground-level Spider-Man, Brand New Day doesn't escape some of the usual MCU pitfalls but finds its heart in an earnest performance from Tom Holland." —John Nugent, Empire

Tom Holland's delivery of "Mr. Stark, I don't feel so good" in the finale will still send many viewers reaching for a tissue. The Russo brothers' colossal crossover gathers most of the Marvel Cinematic Universe to confront Thanos (Josh Brolin), a cosmic warlord bent on wiping out half of all life in the universe. Tom Holland's Spider-Man joins Iron Man and the Guardians of the Galaxy in a desperate off-world last stand, sharing some of the film's most affecting moments.

Reviewers admired the audacious scale and the sheer feat of juggling dozens of characters, along with a genuinely menacing villain and a gut-punch ending, though some found the overstuffed roster and relentless spectacle exhausting. It became one of the highest-grossing films of all time, crossing $2 billion worldwide.

"As a virtuoso juggling act, Infinity War has no real parallel in popular culture; as a movie, it's an impressive montage of greatest hits until the gut punch of a finale." —Eric Kohn, IndieWire

The Night Monkey begins! The second chapter of director Jon Watts' Spider-Man "Home" trilogy whisks Peter Parker and his classmates on a European vacation that's hijacked by Nick Fury (Samuel L. Jackson) and a charismatic new hero, Mysterio (Jake Gyllenhaal). Holland convincingly leads the film as a grieving teenager who is reluctant to shoulder the mantle left behind after the events of Avengers: Endgame, while his romance with Zendaya's MJ blossoms.

Critics welcomed Far From Home as a breezy, funny, action-packed crowd-pleaser and praised Gyllenhaal's scene-stealing turn, though some judged it a lighter follow-up to Homecoming. Many reviewers noted how confidently Holland now carried the franchise, and the film's jaw-dropping mid-credits twist became a major talking point. The globetrotting sequel went on to gross more than $1.1 billion worldwide.

"It's not quite the home-run of Homecoming, but Far From Home isn't far from matching it, with heaps of humour, energetic action, and the answers Endgame left you craving." —Ben Travis, Empire

With his identity exposed to the world and his character slandered, Peter Parker (Holland) asks Doctor Strange to cast a spell so the world forgets he's Spider-Man. But Strange's spell backfires, cracking open the multiverse and unleashing villains from across Spider-Man's cinematic history, as Holland grounds the fan-service spectacle with his most emotionally demanding work in the role to date.

Critics called it a rousing, heartfelt celebration of the character, praising its nostalgia, humor, and surprising emotional weight, even as a few felt it leaned heavily on audience goodwill. A pandemic-era box-office phenomenon, No Way Home grossed nearly $2 billion worldwide and reaffirmed Spider-Man's blockbuster pull. Its emotional stakes and multiversal premise made it one of the most talked-about releases of its year, leaving fans wondering how they'd follow up the heartbreaking ending. 

"No Way Home feels like a full and complete film in a way that earlier MCU entries failed to. No Way Home takes a cynical corporate elevator pitch and uses it to examine what it means to be Spider-Man in a world where Holland's Peter isn't the only hero." —Christopher Machell, CineVue

Following his scene-stealing debut in Captain America: Civil War, Holland headlined his first solo Spider-Man filmin 2017. Homecoming is a John Hughes-inflected high-school comedy in which Peter Parker juggles homework, a crush, and his eagerness to prove himself to mentor Tony Stark (Robert Downey Jr.). Michael Keaton (Batman) co-stars as the Vulture, a (human!) blue-collar arms dealer widely praised as one of Marvel's more fully-realized villains.

Critics embraced the film's fresh, small-scale, teen-movie sensibility and Holland's authentically adolescent take on the hero, calling it one of the most purely likable entries in the MCU. It reset the character after two prior franchises and grossed north of $880 million worldwide.

"Tom Holland masterfully channels Peter's teenage angst, which could easily come off as melodramatic or superficial, and infuses it with respect. Watts's artful work makes you realize how often we don't take teenagers' anxieties, joys, and fears seriously. Peter's life in Homecoming is a frustrating, jagged journey toward figuring out what kind of person he is." —Alex Abad-Santos, Vox

Based on true events, J.A. Bayona's harrowing survival drama recreates the 2004 Indian Ocean tsunami through the story of a single family torn apart amid the disaster. In his film debut, Holland plays Lucas, the eldest of three young boys, whose mother, Maria (Naomi Watts) is gravely injured while trying to hold onto him during the tsunami's violent second wave; the duo then navigate the disaster's bleak aftermath in an agonizing attempt to reach safety and reunite with Lucas' father (Ewan McGregor) and two young brothers.

Critics hailed the film's technically astonishing, terrifyingly realistic staging of the tsunami and praised its raw emotional power, with Watts earning an Academy Award nomination for her visceral performance even as some critics flagged the film's sentimentality. Reviewers repeatedly singled out then-13-year-old Holland, who essentially takes over the second act and whose anguished, resourceful, and physically grueling portrayal announced a major new talent. 

"The Impossible, based on a true story, derives most of its impressive power from two remarkable performances: Naomi Watts as Maria, and Tom Holland as Lucas." —Joe Morgenstern, Wall Street Journal

The Russo brothers' ensemble epic fractures the Avengers over government oversight, pitting Captain America (Chris Evans) against Iron Man (Robert Downey Jr.) in a superhero civil war. The film's show-stopping airport battle is best remembered by Holland fans as the MCU debut of his Spider-Man, whose youthful, wisecracking energy and athletic grace instantly won over both critics and audiences alike.

Reviewers praised the movie for grounding its spectacle in a genuine moral conflict and for balancing a sprawling cast without collapsing, ranking it among Marvel's strongest efforts. For many viewers, Civil War doubled as a stealth Avengers sequel—it also introduced Chadwick Boseman's Black Panther—and it went on to gross more than $1.15 billion worldwide.

"Despite its stars-and-stripes title, Marvel's latest billion-dollar-blockbuster-to-be, Captain America: Civil War, is essentially a third Avengers movie – it's also the best one yet." —Chris Nashawaty, Entertainment Weekly

The Russo brothers' three-hour climax to the Infinity Saga sends the surviving Avengers on a time-bending mission to undo Thanos's devastation. Tom Holland's Spider-Man returns for the film's operatic final battle, part of an emotional reunion that pays off more than a decade of storytelling. Critics celebrated the film as a triumphant, fan-pleasing capstone, praising its emotional payoffs, humor, and sheer ambition, even if a few found its time-travel mechanics convoluted. It briefly became the highest-grossing film of all time, earning nearly $2.8 billion worldwide, and brought together the largest roster of Marvel stars ever assembled on screen in one of the defining pop-culture events of its decade.

The film returns to theaters this September as Avengers: Endgame Encore with new footage to help set up December's Avengers: Doomsday. 

"I have to admit, in all its surreal grandiosity, in all its delirious absurdity, there is a huge sugar rush of excitement to this mighty finale, finally interchanging with euphoric emotion and allowing us to say poignant farewells." —Peter Bradshaw, The Guardian

James Gray's stately period adventure follows real-life British explorer Percy Fawcett (Charlie Hunnam) and his obsessive, decades-long search for a lost civilization in the Amazon. Holland appears as Fawcett's eldest son Jack, who grows from a resentful boy into his father's fellow adventurer and joins the fateful final expedition.

Critics admired the film's old-fashioned craftsmanship, lush cinematography, and thematic ambition, with many calling it one of Gray's finest achievements and reminiscent of classical Hollywood epics. Reviewers praised the ensemble, including The Odyssey co-star Robert Pattinson and Sienna Miller, though the film's contemplative pace divided some audiences. 

"The Lost City of Z is a rare piece of contemporary classical cinema; its virtues of methodical storytelling, traditional style and obsessive theme are ones that would have been recognized and embraced anytime from the 1930s through the 1970s." —Todd McCarthy, The Hollywood Reporter

This Studio Ghibli adaptation of Mary Norton's book series The Borrowers, directed by Hiromasa Yonebayashi, imagines a family of tiny people who live beneath the floorboards of a country house and survive by "borrowing" from the humans above. Tom Holland voiced Sho, a sickly boy who befriends the miniature heroine Arrietty (Saoirse Ronan), in the film's UK/Ireland dub version.

Critics were enchanted, praising the studio's exquisite hand-drawn animation, gentle pace, and tender attention to the natural world, even if reviewers noted it lacked the grand sweep of Ghibli's Miyazaki masterpieces. It remains one of the most warmly reviewed titles in Holland's filmography.

"Even when making movies for small children, Studio Ghibli produces stories that are more emotionally sophisticated, and less philosophically polarized, than most adult fare." —Tasha Robinson, The A.V. Club

Steven Knight's daring minimalist thriller unfolds almost entirely inside a car, as construction manager Ivan Locke (Tom Hardy) drives through the night while his career, marriage, and conscience unravel over a series of hands-free phone calls. Holland never appears on screen: He's one of the disembodied voices on the other end of the line, playing Locke's son Eddie (making future Venom future Spider-Man's son?!!).

Critics were near-unanimous in their acclaim, marveling at how Knight and Hardy sustain gripping tension with a single actor, a car, and a phone, and hailing Hardy's performance as a tour de force. The highest-scoring title on this list, it's a showcase for a formidable ensemble voice cast which, in addition to Holland, includes Olivia Colman, Andrew Scott, and Ruth Wilson. 

"Nobody fires a shot. Nobody topples a kingdom. But as Ivan Locke's life unravels behind the wheel of his car, which he drives almost from the first frame to the last, we can't look away." —Lawrence Toppman, Charlotte Observer

Already one of the biggest movies of 2026, Christopher Nolan's adaptation of Homer's epic follows Odysseus (Matt Damon) on his perilous, decade-long voyage home from the Trojan War, beset by gods, monsters, and his own hubris. Holland plays Telemachus, Odysseus's son, who comes of age defending his mother Penelope (Anne Hathaway) against the suitors besieging Ithaca in his father's absence—part of a sprawling ensemble that includes Zendaya, Robert Pattinson, Charlize Theron, and Samantha Morton.

Shot entirely on IMAX film cameras, Nolan's 172-minute spectacle has drawn mostly rapturous reviews, with critics hailing its old-fashioned grandeur, Damon's performance, and the director's command of scale and time, even as a handful found it more spectacle than substance. The highest-scoring title on this list, it stands as one of the most acclaimed films of Holland's career even if, as of the time of publication, his performance seems to be the most polarizing one in the film. 

"Indeed, every actor brings a firm conviction to material that could slide into silliness or grandiosity with the slip of a single line." —Josh Larsen, LarsenOnFilm