Andrew Garfield received a second Oscar nomination for his luminous performance in the Netflix film “Tick, Tick… Boom!” directed by Lin-Manuel Miranda. Garfield brings a warm earnestness and passionate vocal skills to the role of writer and composer Jonathan Larson. The film is an adaptation of Larson’s autobiographical one-man musical about the horrors of turning thirty and also follows his artistic struggles leading up to the success of the famed Broadway hit “Rent.”
But the biggest film that Garfield was a part of in 2021 was the rousing success “Spider-Man: No Way Home,” the third entry in Tom Holland’s “Spider-Man” series, what many consider to be the best one yet and a film that grossed over $1.8 billion worldwide. “Spider-Man: No Way Home” widens the scope of the Marvel Cinematic Universe to explore the exciting wonders of the multiverse, enabling the inclusion of beloved former Spider-Men Garfield and Tobey Maguire.
Garfield played Spider-Man in “The Amazing Spider-Man” series during 2012 and 2014. The series was met with tepid reviews, but Garfield was praised for bringing a darker nuance to the role. In a recent interview with The Telegraph, Garfield explained about carrying the weight of a superhero blockbuster on his shoulders. “I love that character,” he said. “And taking the role honestly wasn’t just a money gig. But I came to accept that playing it meant having one foot planted in the more mercenary side of the business, no matter how much I personally bumped against the values of it.” His love for the character was what made him return to the role “Spider-Man: No Way Home,” despite his misgivings about being a “38-year-old in spandex.”
The Telegraph also asked Garfield how he felt about the film being snubbed for an Oscar nomination, and the actor sounded unbothered and grateful for its many milestones. “I don’t know. I mean, it’s the sixth biggest movie in the history of movies. Making a film that a gajillion people want to see together is a miracle. Making a film that an awarding body loves is also a miracle. Sometimes those miracles overlap, and sometimes they don’t. But I personally feel pretty satisfied with the audience response. I think that’s plenty.”
The exclusion of superhero films from Oscar nominations is a long-lasting controversy. Audiences were satiated when “Black Panther” was nominated in 2015, but there are many other profitable and critically-beloved superhero projects that audiences still feel deserve recognition.
While Academy Award voters seem to disagree, even Christopher Nolan’s “The Dark Knight” was snubbed for an Oscar Best Picture nomination. The latest ‘Spidey’ entry in the Tom Holland-led series does have one consolation prize: the chance to win the Twitter contest for #OscarsFanFavorite.
