Los Angeles — Florence Pugh is giving Tom Holland credit for helping bring her Marvel character, Yelena Belova, into “Spider-Man: Brand New Day.”
Appearing Monday night on “The Tonight Show Starring Jimmy Fallon,” Pugh explained that Holland played a role in generating fan excitement around the possibility of the two actors appearing together.
“This all happened because of Tom,” Pugh said. She recalled that years ago, shortly after she began her relationship with Marvel and “Black Widow” was released, Yelena was not yet as prominent as some of the franchise’s other superheroes.
According to Pugh, Holland was asked on the red carpet for one of his earlier movies who he would like to work with in a future film. He responded, “No, actually, I want to do it with Florence Pugh, who plays Yelena.”
Pugh said Holland’s comments helped spark enthusiasm among fans for the idea of seeing the pair together.
Pugh first portrayed Yelena in 2021’s “Black Widow.” She later returned as the character in 2025’s “Thunderbolts*” and again in 2026’s “Spider-Man: Brand New Day.” Within the Marvel Cinematic Universe, Yelena is an assassin who succeeds the Black Widow title.
“Spider-Man: Brand New Day,” which premiered on July 31, has earned $2.49 billion at the domestic box office, making it the third highest-grossing movie of all time. It trails 2009’s “Avatar,” which earned $2.92 billion, and 2019’s “Avengers: Endgame,” which grossed $2.88 billion.
“Well done, Spidey!” Pugh said of the achievement.
Pugh is also scheduled to return as Princess Irulan Corrino in Denis Villeneuve’s “Dune: Part Three,” which is set for release in theatres on Dec. 18. On that same day, audiences will also see her reprise Yelena in “Avengers: Doomsday,” directed by Anthony and Joe Russo as a follow-up to 2019’s “Avengers: Endgame.”
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