The ongoing battle between film fans and non-disclosure agreements continues.
In a new interview, actor Andrew Garfield-who played Spider-Man in two of Sony’s films — said that despite what you may have read on the internet, he hasn’t been called to reprise the role in the upcoming Spider-Man: No Way Home. Garfield was speaking on the Happy Sad Confused podcast when he described, in detail, how he feels seeing unsubstantiated rumours online and how he wishes he could just squash them.
“Listen, I can’t speak for anyone else but myself. They might be doing something, but I ain’t got a call,” Garfield said in regards to the new film. However, when asked point blank if he’s in the film or not, Garfield answered by saying “Haven’t I just said that?” Which… he sort of did? More heavily implied it, really. You can watch the full clip below.
Andrew Garfield is ready to talk about those rumors about his return as Spider-Man. You might be surprised to see what he has to say. Watch the full interview on the brand new #happysadconfused patreon! https://t.co/e84Wokl1SQ pic.twitter.com/Civpe3Am5p
— Josh Horowitz (@joshuahorowitz) May 4, 2021
You’d love to take Garfield at face value but you can’t deny these two facts; 1) if he is in the film, he would not be able to say either way, 2) if he isn’t in the film, he probably shouldn’t say because cutting off buzz or the possibility wouldn’t be looked favourably upon by people in the industry. So giving a definitive answer is not a possibility.
Whether he’s in the movie or not though, his answer here is a masterclass of semantics. That he “didn’t get a call” doesn’t mean he’s not in the movie. It could mean he got an email. It could me he was Facetimed. Or his agent was called and set up a meeting. Oh, sure, it implies that he’s not in it, but he doesn’t say it, which both satisfies the purpose of the interview, but also the secrecy he would have been sworn to the studio.
Personally? I think he’s lying here. His choice of words, the stammering, the fact that he’s a great actor — it’s the perfect performance under the circumstances. If that’s the case though, I do wish he didn’t have to lie but such is the ongoing battle between journalists and fans hungry for information and actors who sign their lives away to be in these movies. (Unless they’re Alfred Molina, who straight up said he was in the movie.) We’ll find out what the case is in a few months when Spider-Man: No Way Home opens on December 26.