While actors are just people who play roles, they also have a tendency to become role models. This tendency only increases when the role your playing is that of a superhero. Tom Holland is one of the most recent actors to have joined the ranks of the on-screen superhero, but he appears to have adapted to it quite well. While filming Spider-Man: Homecoming, Holland took some time to visit local children's hospital, in costume, of course.
Sp[ider-Man: Homecoming is filming at Pinewood Studios outside Atlanta, Georgia, making Egleston Hospital for Children an easy, nearby stop to visit some kids who could use a visit from their friendly neighborhood Spider-Man. Tom Holland posted a couple pictures of his time there to his personal Instagram account, showing him, as well as some kids, apparently having a great time.
One of the things that happens when you play a superhero on the big screen is that people expect you to act that way in real life. For the most part, Marvel Studios appears to have done a great job finding people who are willing to take that extra step and play their "hero" part when the cameras are not rolling too. We've seen Robert Downey Jr. do a number of different things to help out, again, mostly kids, and just like Peter Parker is the protege of Tony Stark on screen, Tom Holland appears to be following Downey's lead here.
Tom Holland wasn't the only Spider-Man: Homecoming star to make the trip, however. His co-star Jacob Batalon was also there to say hello to the kids, even the smallest ones.
Several years from now some little kid is going to go nuts when they see a picture of themselves being held by freaking Spider-Man.
While there's never any specific requirement for those who play heroes to be heroes, that makes it all the sweeter when somebody takes that step. In some cases, an actor like Mark Hamill, who also makes a point of visiting children's hospitals regularly, had no idea what the role of Luke Skywalker would mean for his career and pop culture in general. At some point, he came to realize that he could do good by bringing some joy to the lives of those whose lives may be lacking in it. When Tom Holland decided to become Spider-Man, the weight of that responsibility was likely apparent and was probably considered in the calculation.
We expect to be seeing a lot of Spider-Man in the Marvel Cinematic Universe going forward, as such, we'll likely be seeing a lot more of Tom Holland being generally awesome.
