Andrew Garfield is the new Spider-Man
Posted on July 3, 2010 at 8:21 am
British actor Andrew Garfield has been cast as Peter Parker for the next Spider-Man movie. He is an exceptionally talented young actor with an already-impressive body of work is just right for portraying this especially soulful and angsty super-hero. Now, who should play Mary Jane?
Warning: brief very strong language in this clip
We will next be seeing Garfield in “Never Let Me Go,” with Kiera Knightly and Carey Mulligan in the story of students at a mysterious school, based on a book by Kazuo Ishiguro, the author of “The Remains of the Day.”
I do not dispute that Andrew Garfield is a good actor–he was terrific in “Red Riding: 1974”–but I must say I am very disappointed by this casting. When it was announced that the SPIDER-MAN franchise would be rebooted, taking Peter Parker back to high school, I naturally assumed they would be getting a teenager for the part–or at least someone notably younger-looking than Tobey Maguire. Andrew Garfield, however, will be 27 next month, well before shooting begins. He is way too old for the part and his casting completely defeats the purpose of the filmmakers’ and studio’s intentions of making it a younger story. If we were still in Raimi’s universe, Peter Parker would be about 25, 26 now–the age of Andrew Garfield–so why even go back to his high school years if they are simply going to cast someone who should be attending his 10-year high school reunion this year? Josh Hutcherson or Logan Lerman–actual teens–would have been such better choices.
I see your point, Dustin. Ultimately, though, I’d go with acting ability over age. Leonardo DiCaprio was a convincing teenager in “Catch Me If You Can”at age 24. Hutcherson and Lerman are appealing performers but I have not seen in them the kind of intensity and depth that Garfield has brought to every one of his roles. So, I’m keeping an open mind.