# Tom Hiddleston and Genden Phuntsok on real mountain climbs

> Tom Hiddleston and Genden Phuntsok share real mountain climbs in Tenzing film.
- Title: Tom Hiddleston and Genden Phuntsok on real mountain climbs
- Summary: Tom Hiddleston and Genden Phuntsok share real mountain climbs in Tenzing film. Tom Hiddleston and Genden Phuntsok climbed real 40-foot ridges and ice…
- Keywords: tenzing, tom hiddleston, genden phuntsok, apple tv, mountain climbing, himalayas, new zealand, sherpa, everest, climbing, entertainment, culture
- Source: Decider — https://decider.com/2026/10/16/tenzing-interview-tom-hiddleston-genden-phuntsok-tenzing-movie-apple-tv
- Published: 2026-10-16T12:00:00+00:00
- Read time: 2 min
- Topics: tenzing, tom hiddleston, genden phuntsok, apple tv, mountain climbing, himalayas, new zealand, sherpa, everest, climbing, entertainment, culture
## Tenzing film stars
Tenzing, a new biographical drama streaming on Apple TV, stars Genden Phuntsok as Tenzing Norgay, the Sherpa mountaineer who with Edmund Hillary became the first to summit Mount Everest in 1953.
## Real mountain climbs
Hiddleston and Phuntsok climbed real 40-foot ridges and ice crevasses in the Himalayas and New Zealand without sound stages or green screens.
## Tenzing’s story
The film re-centers the 1953 Everest climb to highlight Tenzing Norgay’s role as a Sherpa mountaineer and his spiritual connection to the mountain.
## Phuntsok’s training
Phuntsok learned English and Sherpa for the role and spent 10 days living with a Sherpa sirdar to understand mountain traditions.
## Climbing the Hillary Step
Hiddleston and Phuntsok climbed a 40-foot ridge of rock and ice in New Zealand, mirroring the real Hillary Step on Everest.
## Real crevasse scene
Phuntsok filmed a crevasse scene where he climbed out of a crevasse while pulling Hiddleston up, working for two days without rest.
## Climbing risks
Hiddleston described climbing Everest as an act of worship that requires intense focus and awareness of the mountain’s dangers.
## Phuntsok’s mountain love
Phuntsok loves nature and the sounds of the mountains, hoping to climb Everest one day but admitting he’s unlikely to succeed.
## British perspective
Hiddleston noted the British climbers’ military approach contrasted with Tenzing’s spiritual reverence for Everest as a goddess.
## Shared achievement
Hiddleston emphasized that the 1953 Everest climb was a shared achievement between Tenzing, Hillary, and John Hunt, not a British victory.
## Climbing philosophy
Both actors described climbing as a way to enjoy nature’s beauty and sounds, not for ego or conquest.
## What happens next
Phuntsok hopes to climb Everest’s base camp or higher one day, but Hiddleston says his Everest expeditions end with this experience.
## Key takeaway

Tom Hiddleston and Genden Phuntsok climbed real 40-foot ridges and ice crevasses for Tenzing movie.