Tom Holland admits risky dehydration stunt failed for shirtless scene
Tom Holland tried a bodybuilder’s dehydration trick to look more defined for a shirtless bathhouse scene in the new Spider-Man film, but found it left him irritable and offered little visual benefit.
During production of Spider-Man: Brand New Day, Tom Holland experimented with a dehydration technique commonly employed by bodybuilders to temporarily reduce sub-skin water and accentuate muscle tone for a shirtless Russian bathhouse scene with Florence Pugh. The actor reported that the method merely caused him to feel cranky and yielded minimal visual improvement. He highlighted Pugh’s comedic presence on set and noted that the absence of his wife Zendaya and colleague Jacob Batalon made the situation less awkward.
Holland also recalled that Henry Cavill had spoken about using prolonged dehydration for similar purposes while filming The Witcher. The anecdote was shared in an interview with Entertainment Weekly published on August 3. The stunt underscores the lengths actors sometimes go to for on-screen aesthetics, though Holland concluded it was not worth the discomfort.
Why it matters
It shows how actors sometimes use extreme physical tricks for minor visual gains, raising questions about health and on-set practices.
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