Tom Holland Admits One Role Made Him “Really Hate” Benedict Cumberbatch
Tom Holland and Benedict Cumberbatch have spent years swapping quips and saving the universe on screen. Fans know their easy friendship from press tours where one keeps the other from spilling secrets. Off camera they are the picture of playful respect.
That is why a recent confession from Holland surprises people who think nothing could rattle him about his friend. He said there was a performance so sharp and unsettling that it changed how he felt in the moment. It was not a Marvel scene and it was not a prank.
Holland was talking about Cumberbatch’s turn as Phil Burbank in ‘The Power of the Dog.’ He described first meeting the character on screen and realizing it was nothing like the man he knows in real life. Then he delivered the line that grabbed everyone’s attention. “For the first time in knowing you, I really hated you.”
He did not stop there. Holland added that the portrait was so convincing that it made him recoil. “I thought you were horrible and so grotesque and awful.” He meant it as praise and made clear the film digs into tough themes while showing how a person can become who they are.
The two were speaking during a conversation about the film when Holland moderated and Cumberbatch reflected on the reaction to his work. The actor said he understood why people felt repelled at first and that the role demanded a grim honesty. Some viewers even told him, “I can’t watch all of your film. You’re so awful.”
What makes the exchange land is the contrast with their usual dynamic. On Marvel sets and in interviews, Holland is the exuberant storyteller and Cumberbatch is the steady hand. Here the roles flipped for a moment as Holland tried to put words to the discomfort of seeing a friend vanish into a character. It sounded less like gossip and more like an actor recognizing the craft.
Holland also pointed out that knowing Cumberbatch well gave him a unique window into the transformation. He recalled thinking at the start, “Whoa, that’s not the Benedict that I know. What on earth is going on here?” That shock speaks to why the performance lingered with him long after the credits.
Their exchange has since become a favorite example of how admiration can come dressed as tough love. Holland used the word hate to describe a feeling that was real in the moment yet rooted in respect. Cumberbatch accepted it with a smile because he knew exactly what it meant. For two friends who built a bond on superhero adventures, the most telling moment arrived in a quiet talk about a very different kind of hero story.