Tom Hardy's Tense 2013 Thriller On Netflix Features Tom Holland In A Brief Role

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Steven Knight's 2013 film "Locke" caused a bit of a stir when it first hit theaters, largely because it only features one on-camera actor. Tom Hardy plays Ivan Locke, a man who spends the entire movie driving his car and fielding phone calls from people in his life. Locke is a construction foreman, and the following day, he is scheduled to oversee a massive concrete pour for an enormous building in Birmingham. This sounds quotidian, but as it so happens, a concrete pour of that size is a logistical nightmare that involves timing, the redirection of traffic, and lots of truck drivers.

Locke, however, will not be present for the pour. He is, instead, driving out of town and trying to get his assistant Donal (Andrew Scott) on the phone to pass off as much responsibility as he can, despite Donal being very clearly ill-prepared to oversee such an important job. Locke is also leaving his family behind, including his wife (Ruth Wilson) and sons. The sons are played by Bill Milner and — although may not be able to recognize his voice because he's so young — Tom Holland. Locke had promised to spend the night with his loved ones, but he's since driven away at the last minute without warning.

And where is Locke going? To London. And what's in London? It turns out that Locke previously had a brief affair with Bethan (Olivia Colman), a former co-worker he barely knows. Because of this, Bethan is now pregnant and has gone into premature labor. Determined to not be like his absent father, Locke is willing to risk everything just to be present for the birth of his child.

Critics loved "Locke" upon its theatrical release. It's now on Netflix, waiting for you to hit "play."

Locke is a true showcase for Tom Hardy

"Locke" is, of course, most striking for its minimalism. Steven Knight (who also created "Peaky Blinders" and both wrote and directed the bizarro 2019 thriller "Serenity" starring Matthew McConaughey) keeps the drama taut with some clever editing, but there aren't that many interesting camera angles one can attempt when filming a single individual who spends the entire movie driving in a car at night. That's not an exaggeration, either. Ivan Locke doesn't exit his car, take a break to pee, or grab a quick dinner on his way out of town. The camera is essentially on him throughout the entire film.

And Tom Hardy, having to carry the whole movie, gives an excellent performance. We learn a lot about his character through his phone calls. To make sure we get a little extra backstory, Steven Knight contrives a few scenes where Locke imagines talking to his father, all the while addressing the empty backseat of his car. It's during these moments that we learn all about Locke's backstory, his disappointments in himself, and his bloody-minded determination to be present whenever one of his children, even one conceived from a meaningless affair, is born.

As mentioned earlier, the stellar supporting cast never appears on camera despite featuring heavy hitters like Olivia Coleman and Ruth Wilson. The former would later win her first Oscar for the 2018 movie "The Favourite" in 2019, whereas Wilson was nominated for a Tony in 2015. Meanwhile, Andrew Scott was best known at the time for his occasional appearances on "Sherlock" as Moriarty. He would go on to achieve more widespread fame for his appearances in movies like the 2023 drama "All of Us Strangers."

Locke was part of Tom Holland's pre-Spider-Man career

Tom Holland was just a kid when he made "Locke." He began his professional stage career back in 2008, appearing as the character of Michael and then playing the titular role in "Billy Elliott: The Musical." He thereafter landed a high-profile dubbing role, working on the English-language dub for the 2010 Studio Ghibli film "The Secret World of Arrietty," before playing a kid in the 2012 tsunami survival drama "The Impossible." Three years later, Holland appeared opposite his future Marvel Cinematic Universe co-star Chris Hemsworth in director Ron Howard's 2015 "Moby-Dick" origin story movie, "In the Heart of the Sea."

2016 was, naturally, a banner year for Holland, as that was when he appeared in "Captain America: Civil War" as Spider-Man. It was the first time the character had showed up in the MCU. (As noted, Holland's "In Heart of the Sea" co-star Hemsworth plays Thor in the franchise.) Since then, Holland's career has been on a prolonged upswing. He's reprised his role as Spider-Man many times since then, in addition to portraying the adventuring hero Nathan Drake in a film adaptation of the video game "Uncharted" and starring in other huge projects. Holland has even married his "Spider-Man" movie co-star Zendaya, so he's doing just fine.

Really, it's astonishing how many actors from "Locke" have gone on to become even more famous than they were going in. Consider this your sign to pay more attention to smaller indie dramas and intense British imports. They'll show you a lot.