With its gigantic cast list and carefully crafted story, Avengers: Infinity War isn’t a film one would associate with ad-libbing and moments of spontaneity.
And yet, that’s exactly what occurred on board Ebony Maw’s so-called “Donut Ship,” where Tony Stark and a stubborn Peter Parker cobbled together a last-ditch attempt to save Doctor Strange from the clutches of the Black Order. They succeed – barely – in a scene that wouldn’t look out of place in 20th Century Fox’s Alien franchise, but it’s the ensuing exchange between Stark and Strange which sees Tom Holland’s Web-Head pitch in with a line of his own.
The young actor recently took part in a Q&A session at The Brothers Trust charity event (h/t Webbed Media), where he revealed that he actually improvised the line, “I’m back-up,” just as Benedict Cumberbatch and Robert Downey Jr.’s respective heroes consider their next step. But as Holland told those in attendance at the charity event, RDJ is the king of improvising, and quickly retorted with a line of his own: “The adults are talking.”
This is by no means the only time that Tom Holland relied on instinct while filming Avengers: Infinity War. As we learned late last week, the Homecoming star also went off-script during Spider-Man’s final moments, uttering the line “I don’t wanna go” just as Thanos’ snap of doom begins to take into effect and wipe him from existence.
It’s a credit to Holland’s performance, then, that the scene in question never once strained credulity, and that’s despite him being briefed about Spidey’s death on the morning it was being filmed. Yes, when it comes to Avengers: Infinity War and its super-secret sequel, Marvel’s no spoiler policy knows no bounds.