Margaret Qualley and Monica Barbaro are the two contenders to star opposite Tom Holland in Sony's upcoming Fred Astaire biopic. Getty Images Tom Holland is ready to fill his dance card as Fred Astaire.
Sony Pictures’ long gestating and now highly anticipated biopic about the iconic Hollywood hoofer is barrelling ahead and has moved one step closer to finding its leading lady, we hear.
Multiple sources tell Page Six Hollywood that the actresses being considered to play the character of Adele Astaire — the older sister to Fred, who performed and danced alongside her brother in vaudeville shows and then later on Broadway — is now down to two candidates: Monica Barbaro and Margaret Qualley.
Insiders say that another actress, Chloe East, whose credits include Steven Spielberg‘s “The Fabelmans,” was also previously in the running for the role.
Holland is the box office’s biggest current star with his roles in “The Odyssey” and “Spider-Man: Brand New Day,” the two highest-grossing movies of 2026. He’s set to star as Astaire with Paul King (“Paddington”) directing.
“Spider-Man” whiz Amy Pascal is producing the project, which was first announced five years ago.
Holland, who made his West End debut performing in “Billy Elliot the Musical” from 2008 to 2010, recently revealed that he will not use a double in the Astaire film and that he intends to do all the dancing himself.
He’s previously wowed fans with his moves in viral clips, nailing perfect turns at the Royal Ballet School in London and doing a routine that mashed up “Singing in the Rain” and Rihanna‘s “Umbrella” on TV’s “Lip Sync Battle.”
“As soon as I finish with these tours, I’m diving back into the dance studio,” Holland said during a July appearance on “Good Morning America” promoting “Spider-Man: Brand New Day.” “I did my first few rehearsals recently, and it both filled me with excitement and absolute dread because I’ve got so much work to do to try and do Fred proud.”
Both Qualley and Barbaro are classically trained ballet dancers.
Qualley studied dance at the North Carolina School of the Arts and was an apprentice at the American Ballet Theatre when she attended the New York’s Professional Children’s School. She also danced on stage at the 97th Oscars as part of a tribute to James Bond.
Barbaro earned a BFA in dance from NYU’s Tisch School of the Arts.
We also hear that Jake Myers, a producer on “Mission: Impossible – Fallout” and an executive producer on “Interstellar,” is joining the Astaire film as a line producer.
