Marvel Is Replacing Tom Holland As Spider-Man For This Disney+ Series
The animated series "Spider-Man: Freshman Year," which was first announced in November 2021, is scheduled to release at some point in 2024, with a 2nd season, appropriately titled "Spider-Man: Sophomore Year" already in development. The series follows Peter Parker's early years as the webhead in an alternate timeline where the friendly neighborhood wall-crawler is mentored by Norman Osborn instead of Tony Stark. Another big change, according to an official U.S. Copyright Office filing, is that the actor providing the voice for the titular hero will be Hudson Thames instead of Tom Holland.
For those unfamiliar with Holland's "Freshman Year" replacement, Thames has been adding credits to his body of work since 2006. Many may have seen him during his brief appearances in popular shows such as "Criminal Minds," "Mad Men," "I Think You Should Leave with Tim Robbins," and "Ghosts." Then there are the actor's more notable claims to fame, which include recurring roles in "Greetings From Home," "Malibu County," and "The Secret Life of an American Teenager." While his resume is impressive, the thing that makes him qualified to take over for Holland is his prior experience voicing Peter Parker and Spider-Man in the "What If...?" animated series on Disney+ and "Avengers: Quantum Encounter," a short film for guests aboard the Disney Wish cruise ship shown at the Worlds of Marvel restaurant.
Despite the experience Thames brings to the table, some people may be on the fence regarding "Spider-Man: Freshman Year" without Holland in the mix. But how the actor approaches the character may overshadow any doubt fans might have moving forward.
Hudson Thames' Spider-Man isn't much different than Holland's version
Hudson Thames knew he had big shoes to fill coming in to voice Spider-Man in "What If...?" after Tom Holland's popular run in the live-action MCU films, and the actor didn't want to stray too far from what the fans were used to seeing. But when trying to recreate the same charm of Holland's persona, Thames started to cultivate his own take on the character. "At first, I was definitely trying to sound like Tom [Holland], and then I realized it wasn't going to be a few lines," Thames said during an interview with The Direct. "[I realized] it was going to be me having to find an identity with that character, so I kind of threw that away and did my thing with it. Serendipitously, we sound a bit similar. As I kept going in more and more for more sessions on the episode, I was like, 'Oh, this is an opportunity to live in this character a little bit' and have fun with it."
While Thames inevitably put his spin on the Marvel hero, he still tried to incorporate things Holland did in the films, saying, "I did go through some of the other movies, more to find the playfulness and energy that he brought, because I think it is fantastic." He will most likely bring that same energy for "Spider:Man: Freshman Year," but despite the similarities between the two performances, fans seem to have a wide range of thoughts regarding who should headline the animated series.
Spider-Man fans have varying opinions regarding Holland being replaced
Not having Tom Holland in the lineup to voice Peter Parker in "Spider-Man: Freshman Year" hasn't gone over well with some fans, and several have made it clear they aren't happy. u/blackbutterfree posted, "Disappointing, but expected," and others believe it was a missed opportunity for the actor to show off his vocal talents like, u/_lliisa_, who wrote, "Too bad, would've been great to hear him since he did a good job in ['Onward'] and 'Spies in Disguise.'" But not everyone feels that way, like u/JudasIsAGrass, who praised the move to replace the actor, posting, "Good decision, Haven't been impressed by Holland's voice acting in the past and it's generally a better end product if an actual Voice Artist does the work."
Some feel that the way Thames plays the character is almost identical to Holland's approach, like u/Animegamingnerd, who posted, "Honestly if I didn't [G]oogle Hudson right after finishing that episode, I would have likely thought he was Tom Holland." u/MyMouthisCancerous also showed support for Thames' similar take, writing in a post, "He actually did a pretty solid job with matching Holland's mannerisms on that show imo."
People certainly have mixed views on Thames replacing Holland, and with all this in mind, it will be exciting to see how fans respond to the character when "Spider-Man: Freshman Year" makes its debut.