Andrew Garfield Proves Emotional Literacy Is Sexy As Hell

The man cannot be stopped (being delightful and vulnerable).

This press tour will be studied for decades. Andrew Garfield has taken to the road to promote his new movie ‘We Live In Time’ with Florence Pugh. But instead of just sitting in front of a poster board and answering tired, trite questions, the press team have let him flourish in a way he is most exceptional as a Hollywood leading man; being vulnerable.

It began a few weeks ago with Garfield appearing on a New York Times podcast speaking about love and loss. The highlight is him reading an essay on modern love, that he can barely get manage retelling through the tears. It went semi-viral and set the tone for the week ahead.

Next up was a visit to Sesame Street. The viral clip from this visit was a two minute chat with Elmo about grief, specifically the loss of his mother which he has spoken about in many interweaves and podcasts before. But there is something about speaking to a gentle muppet that makes it even more powerful than when he is talking to Colbert or whoever. You see him as a child. This is rare for such a high profile male star.

But the emotional peak of the tour was the much anticipated ChickenShop Date with Amelia Dimoldenberg. The two had flirted on red carpets before and so the mere teaser clip of the two sitting down and Andrew biting his lip… set the interwebs into frenzy.

It is less an interview than it is a little dance of earnest charm. And it unfolds with the pace of two people who understand how to play off each other's rhythms. Garfield mixes actor polish with self-effacing appeal, so intentional, it can’t help but signal he has understood the assignment. Amelia, who delivers a trademark deadpan, with more control than ever, making you believe she has something to hide. Their conversation has little to do with the content of the questions but is instead about the spectacle of public intimacy.

Despite the ostensibly shallow premise of the show, there is a confessional tenderness. Dimoldenberg’s mask slips, if only for a millisecond, into genuine amusement as Garfield parries with a theatrical earnestness so layered it’s impossible to tell where the joke ends and the sincerity begins. They are playing characters of themselves, but not in a way that feels dishonest; rather, it’s as though both are subtly acknowledging the awkwardness of love and celebrity and celebrity love.Are they serious? Is he acting? Is he genuinely nervous?