Tom Holland: Fred Astaire fans criticise ‘bizarre’ casting in new biopic

‘Dreadful. Leave Astaire alone,’ wrote one commenter

News that Tom Holland has been cast as Fred Astaire in a new biopic has been met with mixed reactions on social media.

The Spider-Man: No Way Home star is set to play the revered actor and dancer in a new film from Sony, which is currently unnamed.

Holland made the announcement while speaking at a London event last night (5 December).

However, some have expressed scepticism about the project, with many social media users highlighting the late Astaire’s wish that he never be the subject of a biopic.

Others cast doubt over Holland’s suitability for the role.

“Dreadful. Leave Astaire alone,” wrote one person.

“Tom Holland is a great Spider-Man, but nobody can dance like Fred Astaire,” wrote someone else.

Another compared it to the casting of Holland in the forthcoming Uncharted movie, writing: “Tom Holland isn’t Nathan Drake and he for sure isn’t Fred Astaire. Bizarre casting.”

“Are we gonna talk about the stunt cast in Fred Astaire‘s biopic?” asked another Twitter user. “Not that there’s anything wrong with Tom Holland, but Fred Astaire stated Explicitly that he didn’t want a movie made about him. Stop making films about people who express their wishes against it. It’s disrespectful.”

Some commenters, however, were more positive, with one person writing: “TOM HOLLAND IS GONNA KILL IT AS FRED ASTAIRE.”

“Tom Holland as Fred Astaire. This casting is absolutely perfect,” wrote another.

In 2017, Holland performed a tribute to Gene Kelly’s Singin’ in the Rain dance on the series Lip Sync Battle, combined with Rihanna’s “Umbrella”, which went viral online.