Actor Andrew Garfield is known for roles in hit films like “Spider-Man: No Way Home,” but his string of performances in religious-themed movies has sparked questions about Garfield’s interest in spiritual matters.
From playing heroic World War II Army medic Desmond T. Doss in “Hacksaw Ridge” to evangelist Jim Bakker in “The Eyes of Tammy Faye,” Garfield certainly seems to choose roles with a spiritual bent.
His new limited, true-crime series, “Under the Banner of Heaven,” is the latest project dealing with the topic of religion. Garfield depicts a detective struggling with matters of faith — and murder.
With all this in mind, it’s impossible to ignore the intersection of the actor’s career with journeys of faith.
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And in a recent interview with Vanity Fair, Garfield, while discussing his latest project, made an interesting proclamation: if he weren’t working in Hollywood, he would likely be studying theology.
“Questions of faith and spirituality, and the mystery of a spiritual life, is what I’m drawn to the most,” Garfield said. “If I wasn’t an actor, I think I’d be doing some kind of theological study.”
This is undoubtedly an intriguing proclamation for a famous Hollywood actor. However, Garfield has made other comments in the past about faith and religion that have also sparked headlines.
He made a splash in 2017, when he discussed his role as Father Sebastiao Rodrigues in Martin Scorsese’s “Silence” — yet another faith-themed film.
“What was really easy was falling in love with this person, was falling in love with Jesus Christ, that was the most surprising thing,” he told America magazine of his experience preparing for the role. “That was the most remarkable thing — falling in love, and how easy it was to fall in love with Jesus.”
Just prior to that, in 2016, Garfield, though, described himself as “not a Christian person.”
“I’m not a Christian person,” he told The Hollywood Reporter. “I consider myself pantheist, agnostic, occasionally atheist, and a little bit Jewish, but mostly confused.”
You can read more about his comments on Christ and faith here.
It’s not fully clear where Garfield stands on personal faith today, though his Hollywood journey and his comments show he’s deeply interested in the subject. In fact, he told Collider last year why he’s so interested in portraying characters who grapple with issues of belief.
Garfield said, “life and death is everything,” and noted that he finds himself fascinated by the reality that every human being dies. It’s the “finite nature of being here” that seems to draw him toward the topic.
“For me, it’s a very fertile ground that is endlessly interesting,” he said. “Because if you’re dealing with spirituality, you’re dealing with faith, then you’re really dealing with life and death. And what’s more vital? What’s a greater question?”
Pray that people in Hollywood like Garfield, who continue to take on these roles and ponder what it means to be faithful, will discover the true heart-change and transformation that comes through a relationship with Christ.
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