"Pushing 30": Tom Holland’s Spider-Man Deadline Could Mean Big Things For Spider-Man 4

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Now that Tom Holland is "pushing 30," a deadline is approaching that could significantly impact Spider-Man 4 and the wider MCU. Following recent announcements, it looks like Spider-Man 4 is finally moving forward in earnest with Shang Chi and the Legend of the Ten Rings director, Destin Daniel Cretton, reprising his position for the next Spider-Man installment. It was also confirmed that Chris McKenna and Erik Sommers will be returning to write the movie after having penned the entirety of Spider-Man's Home trilogy. Filming will commence in early 2025.
While there is little else in the way of Spider-Man 4 details, previous production schedules suggest that Spider-Man 4 could hit theaters in 2026. Whenever it does, Tom Holland will earn the accolade of being the Spider-Man actor who has appeared in most solo movies - though he is already the most prolific of the three Spider-Man actors thanks to his Avengers and Captain America appearances. His contribution to Spider-Man's MCU timeline has therefore left an indelible mark on the wall-crawler's cinematic legacy, and it's one that has sparked a somewhat surprising conversation surrounding his age.
Spider-Man 4 Viral Post Comments On Tom Holland "Pushing 30" An X User Has Called Tom Holland "Washed" Close A viral post by @advitwake on X derisively highlights Tom Holland's age while suggesting the fact that he is returning for a fourth Spider-Man installment, supposedly in lieu of any other "career," means he is "washed." Unsurprisingly, the remark has sparked a healthy debate about Tom Holland's MCU contribution.
The post has garnered several retorts from Holland's supporters pointing out that using the adjective "washed" for one of the MCU's most recognizable and bankable actors is a little strong. Tom Holland has also starred in several movies outside the MCU, including as Nathan Drake in 2022's Uncharted, and recently returned to the stage in the West End's Romeo & Juliet, where he portrayed Romeo.
Spider-Man: No Way Home is the MCU's third-highest-grossing movie and the seventh-highest-grossing movie of all time.
Nevertheless, assuming Spider-Man 4 is scheduled for 2026, Tom Holland, now 28, will turn 30 around the time that Spider-Man 4 is released in theaters. Excluding Spider-Man: No Way Home, which has technically augmented Tobey Maguire's and Andrew Garfield's tenures, Holland has now portrayed Spider-Man the longest out of any Spider-Man actor.
Spider-Man Actor
Total Years Portraying Spider-Man (Excluding No Way Home)
Total Years Portraying Spider-Man (Including No Way Home)
Spider-Man Movie Appearances
Release Date
Principal Photography
Age During Filming
Tobey Maguire
5
20
Spider-Man
June 14, 2002
January 2001
25
Spider-Man 2
July 16, 2004
April 2003
27
Spider-Man 3
May 4, 2007
January 2006
30
Spider-Man: No Way Home
December 17, 2021
October 2020
45
Andrew Garfield
3
11
The Amazing Spider-Man
July 3, 2012
December 2010
27
The Amazing Spider-Man 2
May 2, 2014
February 2013
29
Spider-Man: No Way Home
December 17, 2021
October 2020
37
Tom Holland
8
8
Captain America: Civil War
April 12, 2016
April 2015
18
Spider-Man: Homecoming
July 7, 2017
June 2016
20
Avengers: Infinity War
April 23, 2018
January 2017
20
Avengers: Endgame
April 22, 2019
August 2017
21
Spider-Man: Far From Home
July 2, 2019
July 2018
22
Spider-Man: No Way Home
December 17, 2021
October 2020
24
Should Spider-Man 4 be released in 2026, Tom Holland will have portrayed Spider-Man for a decade after first appearing in Captain America: Civil War. This could be where Holland hangs up the spandex, however, as this will also hit his self-imposed deadline.
Tom Holland Does Have His Own Spider-Man Deadline He Wants To Pass The Torch Very Soon Close Irrespective of outside opinion, Tom Holland has stated himself that he would have done "something wrong" if he still held the Spider-Man mantle at age 30. He said as much in an interview with Esquire Middle East in February 2022, just a couple of months after Spider-Man: No Way Home was released, when he would have been 26. The full quote is as follows:

"If I am 30 and still playing Spider-Man and I haven't passed on the baton to a Miles Morales or a Spider-Woman or something more diverse, then I will have done something wrong in the sense of duties that I have to the character."

The five-year gap between Spider-Man: No Way Home and the potential release date for Spider-Man 4 means that Holland will have hit his self-imposed deadline in only his next Spider-Man appearance. Given this interview took place more than two years ago, however, it is possible that Tom Holland may have changed his mind, especially if the narrative justifies him sticking around. Alternatively, Tom Holland may be about to fulfill his "duties" after all.
The MCU's Spider-Man 4 Could Introduce Tom Holland's Spider-Man Replacement Miles Morales Is A Clear Frontrunner Close When he debuted in Captain America: Civil War, the fresh-faced Holland was lauded as one of the most comic-accurate depictions of the teenage Peter Parker - thanks in no small part to the fact he was still a teenager himself. Now, as he nears 30, Holland is closer to becoming the older, wiser version of Peter Parker from Marvel Comics who is ready to pass the torch to a protégé. Spider-Man 4 could, therefore, be the movie in which the MCU's Miles Morales finally debuts and Holland's Peter Parker steps back to embody the mentor role.
The "Secret Wars" comic book run in 2015 saw Peter Parker and Miles Morales team up to help defeat God Emperor Doom before Miles Morales was properly incorporated into Earth-616 by its conclusion.
Given Donald Glover's Aaron Davis - Miles Morales' uncle - already debuted in Spider-Man: Homecoming, Morales seems like the most obvious successor. Other replacements are also possible, however, given that Sony's Spider-Verse movies have already fronted Morales as their main character. In that regard, there's no shortage of alternatives.
Holland himself mentioned that Spider-Woman could also be a viable successor. Outside of Madame Web's underwhelming debut of several Spider-Women, a comic-accurate Jessica Drew, Julia Carpenter, or Mattie Franklin has yet to make a significant debut in live-action, and could be a novel route through which Marvel can help keep the MCU fresh. Whatever the case, Spider-Man 4 could easily be the place for Marvel to at least tease Tom Holland's Spider-Man successor at last.

Spider-Man Homecoming 4 Not Yet Rated Spider-Man: Homecoming 4 is the first sequel to the MCU's Spider-Man trilogy starring Tom Holland as the titular wall-crawler. After wiping his identity for the public's memory in Spider-Man: No Way Home, Peter Parker continues his crime-fighting adventures without the aid of Iron Man technology or the support of his former allies.
Studio(s) Columbia Pictures , Marvel Studios , Pascal Pictures Distributor(s) Sony Cast Tom Holland , Zendaya , Jacob Batalon Franchise(s) Marvel Cinematic Universe , Spider-Man Upcoming MCU Movies