Nearly a decade after the franchise that brought them together, Hollywood star couple Tom Holland and Zendaya will be seen in the fourth film Spider-Man: Brand New Day, on the heels of The Odyssey. During the London leg of promotions, the newlyweds spoke to us. Excerpts:

Zendaya: When we are all together, we start acting like kids again! We bring out a childish joy and youthful, reckless abandon in each other. Yes, we have all grown a lot, but we are still the same kids from the very beginning.

Tom: I agree.

Zendaya: Yes, it’s pretty much with these two (Tom and co-star Jacob Batalon). I never know what they will do when they get together, and then they start riffing off each other. I never know where or in which direction they could go. Most of it gets left on the cutting-room floor since it’s not usable. It’s about never knowing what fun things you’re going to find in a scene.

Tom: Yes, pretty much, and most of it is not usable. But there’s always that little bit of gold in there.

Tom: I think in exactly the same ways. We’re actors who really love to have fun on set, try new things, think outside the box, improvise and keep everyone on their toes.

Tom: Both of those things are true. In some circumstances, pressure is a privilege; we’re really lucky to be a part of these films. Understanding that there is great anticipation and excitement for these movies is a great motivator. And we have always taken the responsibility of representing these characters to heart.

Zendaya: I associate different movies with different foods. I’ll find a food and that’s all I will eat through the whole shoot. On No Way Home (2021), I had the same pasta every day for months. For Brand New Day, I had these potato things with a little dipping sauce every day. For Dune (2021), I ate so many peanut butter and jelly sandwiches. Early Euphoria (web series, 2019-2026) had so many Cool Ranch Doritos. It’s just funny that you get stuck on a food, and that represents the film for you.

Tom: I really don’t have a ritual, but I do carry a lot of Peter Parker with me.

Tom: Maybe I try to live my life a little bit like Peter, in the sense that he’s just super positive all the time. Being positive is something I really work towards and try to imbibe.

Zendaya: I like MJ’s weird, oddball energy.

Tom: Maybe.

Tom: That’s a great question!

Jacob: Yeah, I mean, let’s say so.

Zendaya: Let’s say so… I think that what’s so special about Peter is he’s like – there’s such a quality that feels like he could be your best friend, like he could be your brother, like he could be any person in your life, and he could be yourself. And he kind of, at least I know for me, he’s always trying to look for the positive in life, in other people, and in certain scenarios, even when it’s kind of detrimental to himself, he’s always trying to do the right thing. And I think that quality alone, that positivity, that optimism, is really refreshing in a character and it makes you really want to root for him. And it also makes you feel kind of positive as well. Like when you’re watching and you see him, you just root for him and you want him to do well and you want him to like succeed. But he just constantly gets hit by these challenges. And it’s like, well, if he can get through that, I can get through that.

Jacob: And he’s very respectful.

Zendaya: Yeah. And he’s just like a nice guy. And I think that ultimately, like, I think it’s nice to – it’s nice to see characters that have an optimistic view on life, and bring you joy and still try to do the right thing. And also feel like they could be a friend, and someone that you would want to have in your life.

Zendaya to Tom: Look what I’ve done! (laughs) I think we’ve helped each other, honestly, because I think he’s better at creating boundaries with people and being like, ‘Actually, I’m having a day with my family, actually,’ you know. So I think I’ve gotten better at saying, being able to say no.

And I think I’ve helped you (Tom) be more open to saying yes, and remembering that you are – you know, a lot of the times to people, whether they might feel like a stranger to us, we don’t always feel like a stranger to them.

And we need to keep that in mind, that our experience of each other is different, you know and how we react to that, because even in that split moment, that’s the lifelong kind of impression that they’ll have of you. Even if you’re having a bad day. So I think we’ve helped each other in that regard.

Tom: (speaking through the laughter of Jacob and Zendaya) I think we’re just really good friends.

Jacob: Yeah. I agree. It’s hard to be jealous of like a really close friend. Otherwise, you wouldn’t be close friends.

Tom: And also we’ve been through every part of this experience together. And I think that, you know, words on the page don’t necessarily equal importance in a movie. And I think that the three of us share the responsibility of representing this franchise equally, because we are all three equal parts as much as what makes this franchise tick.

Tom: Loved it. I thought it was an amazing place. I thought Mumbai was a city that was really vibrant and exciting. I’m excited to spend a little bit more time there than we did last time. I remember loving the food, met some lovely people. We went to an amazing cultural event. So it was really fun. (This discussion was before Tom landed in Mumbai again for The Odyssey.)

Zendaya to Tom: I think you could!

Tom: Whether I could is definitely different to whether or not I should.

Zendaya: If you want to, you definitely could.

Jacob: Yeah, you could if you want to do it.

Tom: I think having seen Destin (Destin Daniel Cretton) do it this last time, I’d rather just work for him. (Collective laughter)

Zendaya: Destin is the best!

Jacob: Yeah, he does a lot.

Zendaya: That is very, very true. And he also has such a calm energy and is such a leader. So chill. Such great energy, so collaborative, and just makes everybody feel… He’s like Peter Parker! He’s got such a Peter Parker vibe.

Tom: He’s probably the most Peter Parker person ever.

Zendaya: Yeah, so positive, and you know, you go in and he might be stressed, but he is just like, yeah, we’re gonna have a great day, and everything’s gonna be fine.