Tom Holland Explains How He Pulled Off One Of Uncharted's Biggest Stunts
It's safe to say that Tom Holland is no stranger when it comes to stunt work. The "Spider-Man: No Way Home" star famously spent his youth learning gymnastics and classical dance, breaking into acting with his role in "Billy Elliot: The Musical" back in 2008 –- a part which required extensive ballet training (via Vox). Unlike the prior two live-action iterations of Peter Parker, Holland has genuine experience pulling off the flashy acrobatics one might expect from Spider-Man, and he has posted plenty of his stunts online to show off his skills.
Holland's penchant for gymnastics has also led to him performing plenty of his own stunts on set, and it's clear that trend continued with his new role in "Uncharted." In the film, Holland plays Nathan Drake, an amateur treasure hunter who sets out on a quest for the lost treasure of Magellan. The video game series the film is based on is famous for its immersive action set pieces, and it's clear that the filmmakers did their best to replicate those sequences in the film –- with plenty of action-packed stunts for Holland to take part in.
Holland says the film's car and airplane stunt was incredibly difficult
We actually get to see one of these harrowing stunts in the film's trailer, which shows Drake getting hit by a car and falling out of a cargo plane. In a recent interview with Fox 5 Washington DC, Holland explained exactly how they were able to make that stunt look so incredible. "Myself and the car were attached to the same rig," Holland explained. "And it was just like the front of the car, like the bonnet of a car, and then it would crash into me, I would sort of bounce off the bonnet."
Holland described how he had three sets of "points" or wires stabilizing him as he flew into the open air, and he explained that the hardest part of the scene was making sure he "stayed horizontal" in the air after being hit by the car. He said it took a long time and plenty of car crashes to get right, but finally he was able to get hit by the car, keep his body horizontal, and then slide off into the open air, before going into a full body spin while free falling. Considering the fact that Holland had to maneuver his body on wires to get the desired effect, the end result really does look incredible, and it's yet another testament to his skill when it comes to stunt work.