Alex Billington over at Firstshowing has tweeted that Sony have revealed our new Spider-man, and its Andrew Garfield!
Alex confirmed to me that the news is indeed official, and its now as I type being reported by the trades. So, major turnaround there. Garfield's most mainstream role is probably in Terry Gilliam's
Imaginarium Of Dr Pernassus. He also starred in
Lions For Lambs.
Here are the highlights from the press release..
Director Marc Webb says..
“Though his name may be new to many, those who know this young actor’s work understand his extraordinary talents. He has a rare combination of intelligence, wit, and humanity. Mark my words, you will love Andrew Garfield as Peter Parker.”
Commenting on the announcement, Amy Pascal, co-chairman of Sony Pictures Entertainment, and Matt Tolmach, President of Columbia Pictures said..
“Spider-Man is a classic superhero -- a young man who balances his responsibility to serve humanity and crush evil with the shyness and normalcy of someone struggling to find himself. The role demands an extraordinary actor. You need someone who can magically transform himself from Peter Parker into Spider-Man. An actor who will depict the vulnerability of youth and the strength and confidence of a legendary figure at the same moment. We have found that actor in Andrew Garfield. From the first time we saw him in the upcoming film The Social Network, to his glorious screen test, which floored all of us, we knew that we had found our new Peter Parker.”
Producer Avi Arad added,
“I’m incredibly excited about Andrew Garfield. In the Spider-Man tradition, we were looking for a smart, sensitive, and cool new Peter Parker who can inspire us and make us laugh, cry, and cheer. We believe we have found the perfect choice to take on this role and lead us into the future.”
Producer Laura Ziskin said,
“We are thrilled to have Andrew Garfield for this new incarnation of Spider-Man under Marc Webb’s direction. We were fortunate enough to meet with a group of fantastically talented young men. In the end, we all agreed that in addition to being an extraordinary actor, Andrew had the right mix of humor, youth, and pathos, along with an underlying sense of strength and power necessary to bring Peter Parker and Spider-Man to life on screen.”
So, what do you make of this? I have never seen the guy act but apparently he has some chops. I think he looks the part anyway..at least more so than Hutcherson.
Update: Sorry, I felt the need to add this. I just realized who this guy played in
Red Riding. He was almost unrecognizable in a wig and sideburns!. But this dude has serious ability folks. If you want some type of gauge as to how good an actor he is, check out Channel 4's
Red Riding trilogy online or on dvd.
Here are the announcement pics with Garfield, Director Marc Webb, Avi Arad and Laura Ziskin...
About The Author:
Mark Cassidy is a writer, photographer, amateur filmmaker, and Rotten Tomatoes-approved critic from Dublin, Ireland.