Entertainment Movies Tom Holland and 'Spider-Man' Costar Jacob Batalon Open Up About Their Real-Life Bromance Spider-Man: No Way Home costars Tom Holland and Jacob Batalon talk about their close bond, onscreen and off By Jeff Nelson Jeff Nelson Instagram Twitter Jeff Nelson is the Senior News Editor, Entertainment at PEOPLE. For nearly a decade, he has worked across the brand's entertainment verticals, reporting on breaking news and writing and editing across platforms, as well as securing A-list cover exclusives, including Barry Manilow's coming out and an at-home interview with Madonna. Jeff has appeared as an expert on Good Morning America, Extra, HLN and SiriusXM, as well as at RuPaul's DragCon as a moderator. He studied magazine journalism at Drake University, graduating with a B.A. in Journalism & Mass Communication. People Editorial Guidelines Published on December 15, 2021 09:01 AM Share Tweet Pin Email Photo: Mei Tao Spider-Man costars Tom Holland and Jacob Batalon are best friends onscreen and off. In the new issue of PEOPLE, the actors, both 25, open up about fame, family and friendship ahead of the release of Spider-Man: No Way Home (in theaters Friday). After Holland and Batalon were cast, respectively, as undercover superhero Peter Parker and his nerdy pal Ned Leeds in 2017's Spider-Man: Homecoming, director Jon Watts "assigned us the task of becoming best friends, which happened very easily," Holland recalls. Adds Batalon: "We immediately hit it off." Indeed, life imitated art, and the costars quickly became close confidants in real life. "Jacob ended up moving in with me when we filmed the first movie," Holland says of being roommates with Batalon in Atlanta. "I have a scrapbook of Polaroids of us just living in that house and what we got up to. God forbid that scrapbook ever gets out!" Holland and Batalon rose to fame together and say the experience connected them them — as well as Zendaya, Holland's girlfriend both offscreen and in the movies — for life. "Because we went through all of it together, it really bonded us," Batalon says. Tom Holland Plans to Spend Next 5 Years 'Thinking About My Future': 'Maybe' I Want to 'Be a Dad?' Amy Sussman/Getty Never miss a story — sign up for PEOPLE's free daily newsletter to stay up-to-date on the best of what PEOPLE has to offer, from juicy celebrity news to compelling human interest stories. Adds Holland: "[Fame] takes a while for a young kid to figure out. We were lucky that we had each other going through the same thing at the same time. Zendaya was our leader in that sense. All of us are a little family; we all lean on each other." This may be the last Spider-Man movie they make together, and both stars say they're forever grateful for the opportunities and relationships the franchise has provided them. "This job is more than a job — it's changed our lives," Holland says. "Since the first Spider-Man, our lives have changed astronomically. We're so lucky to be where we are, and to be doing it with your mates is what makes it really special." Spider-Man: No Way Home is in theaters Friday. For more on Tom Holland Jacob Batalon, pick up the new issue of PEOPLE, on newsstands everywhere Friday.