Spider-Man: Homecoming star Tom Holland is no fan of spiders

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British actor Tom Holland stars as Spider-Man in the upcoming movie, Spider-Man Homecoming. But the 21-year-old confesses that he is not a fan of the eight-legged creature.

SINGAPORE - This is the first time that Spider-Man: Homecoming's stars Tom Holland and Jacob Batalon are visiting Singapore and the two have been having a blast taking a dip in Marina Bay Sands' Infinity Pool as well as getting in a bit of golf.

The sweltering weather, however, is something that Holland has been having a hard time getting used to.

The 21-year-old British actor says: "Man, it is hot. I'm not used to that kind of heat. But when we shot the movie in Atlanta, it was a similar heat, and we would be in that shoot all day with me in the Spider-Man suit. It was tough, but it made me look so bad***."

The two are in town for a few days to promote their upcoming film, which opens in cinemas here on July 6. They were speaking to local and regional press at a closed-door red carpet event held at ArtScience Museum on Wednesday (June 7).

Holland is the latest to portray the titular webbed superhero, following previous incarnations of the character by actors Tobey Maguire and Andrew Garfield. Batalon, meanwhile, plays Spider-Man's best friend Ned Leeds.

But just because Holland is Spider-Man does not make him a friend of arachnids.

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He says: "I hate spiders, I'm terrified of them - but I am getting better at it. We were in Brazil the other day where we had to do an interview with a spider, and I held it and it was okay.

"But I think the bigger the spider, the less scared I am, because I can see it. The smaller the spider, the scarier it is."

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American actor Batalon, 20, feeling pumped from the energy at the press event, repeatedly says that he cannot wait for the movie to open in cinemas.

"This is just a small taste of it, but I'm honestly so excited for the film. After we wrapped, I was so anxious to get everything going and now that we're a month away from the release, it's just like crazy now," he says.

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Unlike most movie red carpet events which are open to the public, Wednesday's affair was only limited to the media and invited guests, which included more than 50 local Spider-Man fans dressed up as their favourite superhero and his friends.

University student Ms Choo Wansy, 22, who showed up as Spider-Gwen, says: "I follow Tom Holland on Instagram, and he is just as relatable and friendly in real life as he is on social media. I can't believe I got to see him in person."

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