Scan - Andrew Garfield in JOY March 2011 (German)
Q: In the Sci-Fi Drama "Never let me go" you took on the part of a boarding school student who is desired by two young women, played by Keira Knightley and Carey Mulligan, at the same time. How does it feel to be the center of attention?
Andrew: Great! To spend 8 weeks with those beautiful women was fantastic. I can come up with much worse parts. (laughing). From day one the three of us got along so well that the intimacy appeared authentic and even the love scenes with Keira were no problem.
Q: In the movie you are in love with Carey Mulligan, but you are dating Keira Knightley. Do you believe in true love?
Andrew: Yes, life is too short to hide your emotions. There are many forms of affection: for your parents, siblings, buddies - but to your partner it's most intense. I remember exactly when I broke up with my first girlfriend. That hurt so badly that I never wanted to fall in love again! Relationships are difficult, because people are so complicated.
Q: When did you discover your love for acting?
Andrew: Until I was 16 my whole life was about sports: Fitness, Swimming, Rugby. When the physical activities didn't satisfy me anymore, I needed to find a creative outlet. My mother suggested to join the Dramaclub at school. It gave me a whole new confidence once I was successful. After that I wanted to be in movies.
Q: You are born in Los Angeles, why do you speak with a british accent?
Andrew: My father is American, my mother British. When I was four my parents, my brother and I moved to the UK to be closer to my grandparents.
Q: Since your part in the Facebook movie "The Social Network" are you considered the newest shooting star in Hollywood. How does the fast ascent feel?
I am really lucky! There were 35 others who studied with me and none of them have any less talent than I. They just haven't gotten the chance to prove it yet. Sometimes I want to start a theater company to hire all those unemployed amazingly talented actors. But there have been phases in my life as well, where I couldn't get a part for months. You often don't have any influence on your career.
Q: Did you expect to land the lead in the fourth Spider-Man movie?
Andrew: No, not at all. When the call came I literally freaked out! I was fascinated by the concept even as a child. A lanky boy, who has a lot more character strength than his physical appearance suggests. He swings through New York and fights for justice. Isn't that every skinny boys dream?
Q: How did you train for the action sequences?
Andrew: Luckily I am in general very active. I surf, skate, snowboard and play table tennis - which is good to train reflexes. Obviously I needed to take some specific fight training and had to watch my nutrition. I wasn't allowed to eat any cookies, which was the hardest part. (laughs)
Q: What could you never live without?
Andrew: My watch with "Back to the Future" design. (laughs) There's only 20 of them, because the director had them done after the shoot as a special gift for the technical crew. My girlfriend Shannon got it for me on Ebay - it's my lucky charm.