Tom Holland Says His Father Tried to Prevent His Epic Lip Sync Battle 'Umbrella' Performance

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Tom Holland is looking back at his epic performance on Lip Sync Battle and revealing the reason he almost didn't appear on the show.

In a new cover story for British GQ's April issue, available via digital download and on newsstands March 4, the Spider-Man: Far from Home star shared that his father tried to steer him away from his unforgettable performance back in May 2017.

During an episode of Lip Sync Battle, Holland commanded the stage for a showstopping performance of Rihanna's 2007 pop hit "Umbrella" complete with elaborate choreography, pyrotechnics and stage precipitation. The video has since been viewed more than 77 million times.

The actor, 24, told GQ that his father, Dominic Holland, called him prior to the performance, urging his son to tell everyone that he'd "changed his mind" about doing the show.

The Cherry star explained that his father was worried that his suggestive performance could affect his career path.

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"My dad always taught me when I was younger and coming up in the business that you want to get famous as slowly as possible," he said. "You don't want to get super famous tomorrow, because you won't be able to handle it. It will ruin your life."

The star said he is "very selective of who I talk to and what I do" as he does not "want to overexpose myself, because my privacy is the last thing I own."

"I think that's why he was so worried," Holland said of his father. "And he'd tell me the same thing today I am sure: 'Pace yourself, you've got a long career ahead of you.' I don't want to lose myself to all... this."

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Still, Holland said he is glad he went through with the performance.

"Look, I am really glad I did that show and I had a lot of fun. It was incredibly stressful," he said.

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Even more, Holland said the performance "has been incredibly successful and has been a really great thing for my career."

Speaking to PEOPLE in 2017 about the episode, Holland said it was "more nerve-wracking than Spider-Man."

"That was so stressful; it was probably the biggest thing I've had to get over," he revealed.

Holland, who spent most of his early life as a talented young dancer, performed the song in a Rihanna-inspired getup. "I'm not gonna lie, I didn't mind being in drag," he said, but revealed he declined to dance in heels.

"I said, 'You want me to dance in the rain and do a front flip? I can't do that in heels,' " he said. "I wish I had now. That would have shut things down."