Even Tom Holland gets starstruck: Lionel Messi left him speechless in Paris
Tom Holland reveals meeting Lionel Messi in Paris left him speechless — but what exactly left him so stuck for words?
Back in late 2021, during the Ballon d’Or festivities in Paris, Tom Holland and Zendaya slipped into a room full of soccer royalty while he was in Europe promoting Spider- Man: No Way Home. Holland says the mood flipped the instant Lionel Messi arrived — the night the Argentine great accepted a record seventh Ballon d’Or — and even the guy who plays Spider-Man felt like just another fan.
Sharing the memory on the Dish podcast, Holland admitted athletes short-circuit his usual composure in a way actors don’t.
“I do not usually get starstruck around people that do what I do, but athletes, there is just something about performing on that stage week in and week out, dealing with that pressure,”
He contrasted an actor ’s press cycle — intense, then it eases once a movie opens — with elite players who have to deliver every single week. That grind, he said, is why meeting Messi in Paris hit differently from any Hollywood encounter.
Honest about the hard sells
The conversation also turned to the less glamorous side of publicity. Holland didn’t pretend every junket is a joy, especially when he isn’t sold on the film he’s there to promote.
“I’ve had experiences before when people say, ‘Why should you see this movie?’ And in the back of your mind, you’re like, ‘You shouldn’t, because it’s s***,’”
He added that when he genuinely loves the work, the enthusiasm takes care of itself — a stark contrast to the tap dance required when he doesn’t. Holland told both stories on the Dish podcast while looking back at that Paris night.