Young man in a white shirt sitting cross-legged in a guest chair on The Tonight Show set, speaking with the host across a wooden desk, NYC skyline backdrop behind them.
Todd Owyoung/NBC
Gossip

Tom Holland Shot His Shot with Erling Haaland at the Monaco Grand Prix and Got Completely Ghosted

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The reason is better than any excuse: Haaland had no idea who Spider-Man was. A message came in asking to grab dinner, he didn’t recognize the name, so he left it on read.

Erling Haaland holding a taxidermy raccoon as he deplanes at Oslo's Gardermoen Airport
Clutching a taxidermy raccoon, Erling Haaland steps off the plane at Oslo’s Gardermoen Airport on July 13, 2026, after Norway’s World Cup run ended in the quarter-finals. Photo by Jan Langhaug / AFP via Getty Images.

“I don’t watch movies much, so I have no idea who people are,” Haaland said on the Norwegian show A Laget, explaining the silence. “There was one asking if we could go out for dinner, but I’d never seen him, so I didn’t bother to answer.”

The dinner invite went out over Monaco Grand Prix weekend in June. Holland spotted Haaland in a hospitality suite across from his own while watching Lewis Hamilton race and figured, “I just thought I’d shoot my shot. Why not?”

A young man in a white shirt sits with one arm outstretched toward the host's desk on The Tonight Show set, animatedly telling a story.
Leaning forward mid-story, Holland gestures toward Jimmy Fallon while recounting the Monaco dinner snub on The Tonight Show, Season 13. Photo by Todd Owyoung / NBC.

Someone eventually clued Haaland in that the stranger in his DMs was Spider-Man. The penny dropped, and he’s said he owes Holland a reply.

The kicker: Holland is deep in promo mode for the movie he personally moved mountains to make. He had an “uncomfortable conversation” with Sony boss Tom Rothman to push Spider-Man: Brand New Day back so it wouldn’t clash with Christopher Nolan’s The Odyssey. Sony obliged. The Odyssey lands July 17, Brand New Day July 31.

A young man in a white shirt sits cross-legged on a chair on The Tonight Show set, arms folded, speaking to the host across a wooden desk.
Arms crossed on the Tonight Show couch, Tom Holland recounted being left on read by Erling Haaland during his Season 13 appearance on The Tonight Show Starring Jimmy Fallon. Photo by Todd Owyoung / NBC.

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Odyssey shooting had its own fanboy moment. Mid-fight scene, Matt Damon (playing Odysseus) grabbed Holland and dropped an iconic Jason Bourne line straight at him, and Holland was completely starstruck opposite one of his action heroes.

Holland confirmed the ghosting on The Tonight Show and treated it as a healthy ego check. “That is exactly the type of humbling experience that is important for actors. I texted him. I’ll take him to dinner. Not even a response. Not an excuse. Not, ‘I’m busy tonight, I’m playing football.’ Nada. Nothing.”

Two tall blond men in matching white Norway Giovani polo shirts hold champagne flutes and chat at an indoor reception.
Norway goalkeeper Ørjan Nyland and striker Erling Haaland hold champagne glasses at a royal palace reception in Oslo on July 13, 2026, following the team’s return from the 2026 World Cup. Photo by Amanda Pedersen Giske / AFP via Getty Images.

Fallon leaned all the way in. The segment ran a round of Odyssey-themed Cyclops Beer Pong (non-alcoholic) and a full “Holland vs. Haaland” bit, so the whole thing played as comedy, not a callout.

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About the author

January Nelson

January Nelson

January Nelson is a writer, editor, and dreamer. She writes about astrology, games, love, relationships, and entertainment. January graduated with an English and Literature degree from Columbia University.