Antonio Banderas wants Tom Holland to take on the Zorro legacy
The Puss In Boots: The Last Wish star also said he'd be open to returning as Zorro so he could pass on the mask to someone new
24 years have passed since the release of 1998's The Mask Of Zorro, which means that the swashbuckler has hit prime real estate for a nostalgia-based remake. It’s safe to say that the success of any reboot starts with the casting, and the former man behind the mask Antonio Banderas has a suggestion of his own: MCU web-slinger Tom Holland.
The casting choice came about when the Puss In Boots actor was asked by ComicBook.com about a possible successor to his version of Zorro.
“Tom Holland,” Banderas quickly told the outlet. “I did Uncharted with him and he’s so energetic and fun and he’s got this spark, too. Why not?”
While Holland makes sense in terms of a potential young action star who can do acrobatics with ease, we have to wonder if he could pull off Zorro’s more rakish sensibilities. Remember Banderas’ and Catherine Zeta Jones’ simmering chemistry in the duel scene from the 1998 film? We’ve yet to see that type of energy from Holland, but maybe in a few movies from now, he’ll give us something that will make him more believable as the cunning fighter.
Along with the truly inspired casting of Holland as the first caped crusader, Banderas also spoke about wanting to return in a reboot so he could pass on the rapier to someone new—just as his predecessor did in 1998.
“Yes, I would. I would consider that possibility. Why not?” Banderas said. He added: “I think during today’s interviews I said something like that to somebody… I said that if they call it Zorro, I will do what Anthony Hopkins did in the first movie and so give the torch to somebody else.”
While there are a few adaptations of the Zorro character running around, including an upcoming Disney+ series starring That 70s Show’s Wilmer Valderrama, Banderas has spoken before about throwing back on the black cape. Earlier this year, the Pain And Glory actor told USA Today about a conversation he had with director Quentin Tarantino regarding starring in a Zorro/Django Unchained crossover film alongside Jamie Foxx, based on Tarantino’s own comics on the characters.
“He talked to me, I think on the Oscar night [in 2020] when I was nominated for Pain and Glory,” said Banderas. “We saw each other at one of those parties. He just came up to me and I was like, ‘In your hands? Yeah, man!’ Because Quentin just has that nature to do those type of movies and give them quality. Even if they are based on those types of B-movies of the ’60s and ’70s, he can take that material and do something really interesting.”
He continued, “We’ve never worked together, but it would be great because of him, because of Jamie Foxx and because of (playing) Zorro again when he’s a little bit older. It would be fantastic and funny and crazy.”
Unfortunately, that Quentin Tarantino crossover seems to have stalled as of right now, but we’ll still get to see Banderas performing some feats of action alongside Harrison Ford in next year’s Indiana Jones 5.