Tom Holland’s “Romeo & Juliet” Splits Critics: Co-Star Steals the Show

Mar­vel’s Tom Hol­land divides crit­ics in his return to the West End stage with Shake­speare’s “Romeo & Juli­et.” While some review­ers praised the chem­istry between Hol­land and new­com­er Francesca Amewu­dah-Rivers as Juli­et, oth­ers found Hol­land’s por­tray­al of the star-crossed lover lacking.

Mixed Reviews for Holland’s Romeo

Direct­ed by Jamie Lloyd, the pro­duc­tion gar­nered a mixed response. The BBC’s Hugh Mont­gomery acknowl­edged Hol­land’s stage pres­ence but felt his per­for­mance lacked depth, with Romeo appear­ing “uncon­vinc­ing­ly psy­cho­log­i­cal­ly round­ed.” Reviews like The Guardian’s, how­ev­er, high­light­ed the duo’s on-stage connection.

Rising Star Francesca Amewudah-Rivers Shines

In stark con­trast, Amewu­dah-Rivers received unan­i­mous praise. The Guardian’s Ari­fa Akbar laud­ed her por­tray­al as “a mix of inno­cence and street­wise steel,” while the Finan­cial Times’ Sarah Hem­ming com­mend­ed her for her “hon­esty, resolve and sharp wit.” 

This pos­i­tive recep­tion comes after Amewu­dah-Rivers faced racist abuse fol­low­ing her cast­ing announcement.

Over­all, Tom Hol­land’s “Romeo & Juli­et” presents a split deci­sion for crit­ics, with Francesca Amewu­dah-Rivers emerg­ing as the break­out star.