The Time I Met Tom Holland
As in the actor, yes. It almost seems like a dream to me. Now here I am, waiting to watch the new Spider-Man movie. I can’t believe I have followed the guy’s different films for a decade now.
Way back in 2018, I was going to smaller Comic Con events, I somehow got lucky and managed to travel for it twice. First I went to Glendale, AZ. Then Seattle, WA later in the year. I had a goal in mind to meet an another MCU actor that shall not be named. Due to various reasons, it never happened. I felt defeated and depressed about it. Anyway, I don’t want to focus on the bad, I’d rather discuss the good today.
My trip to Seattle was special, it became one of my favorite vacations ever. The city was full of life, the food was delicious, the hotel my parents and I stayed in was cozy, and I got to watch a Pride Parade for the first time. People celebrating all over was wonderful to see.
I remember arriving at the hotel and Tom shared a video of himself dancing in a car on his Instagram account. That’s when reality sunk in.
On day 1 of the convention, my parents helped me get everything prepared. I got my guest wristband, ticket, etc. Looking back, I don’t know how to feel about celebrity photo ops at a smaller con. Both times I experienced it, it was disorganized and chaotic. The staff acted a bit cold, probably from being under the stress of having to manage so many people. I get it, I really do.
We walked through the small artist alley first. At the time I didn’t quite understand what artist alleys were for. It was new to me. The comic related fanarts on display were so cool! I hope those artists are still drawing today. We left after that, my parents were getting hungry. So was I.
Day 2 was picture day. I could have gotten an autograph too, but the photo alone was very pricey. I was in group D? I think? The very last of the groups. So after spending hours exploring the city, I had to stand around and wait. Being in that line was an experience itself. I caught a glimpse of Grant Gustin saying hi to his fans in the next line over. Some teens were behind me chatting while scrolling on their phones. Lots of people were doing the same. I think I only used my phone to check the time.
I had butterflies in my stomach. I was not in the mood to mindlessly scroll. When it was my turn, one of the staff members advised me to “just breathe and don’t cry.” I was calm as I could be. I don’t get star struck very often. I was more reserved than anything. I don’t even remember making eye contact with Tom. Everything happened so fast.
So I walked up to him and he kindly asked how I was doing. After standing around in a crowded space for maybe..2 hours, it was nice to feel noticed by one of the many strangers there. I gave my usual go-to answer to that casual question, “I’m good.” I replied shyly. I didn’t ask to do a specific pose or anything. That was way too out of my comfort zone. Before I knew it, they took the photo of us. I was in and out of there in seconds.
The picture turned out really cute, I still have it somewhere. I’d prefer to keep it to myself. I don’t want to boast about it, I hope it’s not coming across that way in this blog post. That’s not my intention.
The title for Spider-Man: Far From Home was revealed by Tom at some point as well. It was exciting to see his video before I went to sleep.
Then I spent the final day of this trip resting in the room. I got a really bad nasal drip overnight so I couldn’t make it to the convention again. I still felt accomplished, I did what I came there for.