Andrew Garfield has already had a long and wildly successful career, one that earned him an Academy Award nomination recently. While he’s a household name, he largely came into the public consciousness thanks to David Fincher’s acclaimed drama The Social Network. And the 41 year-old actor recently recalled how he and Jesse Eisenberg thought the movie was going to fail, even thinking “we screwed it up.” Let’s break it all down.
While fans are curious about The Social Network‘s sequel, details are still coming out about David Fincher and Aaron Sorkin‘s original movie. I had the chance to attend an In Conversation with Andrew Garfield at the Hamptons International Film Festival, where the chat eventually landed on the 2010 film. That’s when Garfield got real about this self-doubt at the time, offering:
I’m so grateful for that experience and to be part of such a seminal film that we didn’t have any idea was going to be seminal. In fact, Jesse Eisenberg and myself were huddled in the corner of the premiere afterparty which I believe was happening in New York. Talking to each other and going ‘It’s bad, right? It’s bad and we’re bad? Yup, we’re bad. It’s bad. Everyone is blowing smoke and they’re full of shit. And they’re just preparing us for the fallout of this. We screwed it up.’ It’s just a pure protection mechanism. The way of beating ourselves up before being beaten up by anyone else.
Well, that’s surprising. While The Social Network was universally acclaimed and has aged like fine wine, it sounds like Garfield and Eisenberg weren’t always convinced of its success… particularly when it came to their own performances. But it sounds like this might have been their way of coping with all of this new acclaim.
Out of David Fincher’s filmography, The Social Network is usually up there for most moviegoers. Andrew Garfield’s performance is one big reason the movie works, particularly in the epic scene where he confronts Mark Zuckerberg. Later in the same appearance at HIFF, the actor explained why he loves Fincher’s way of working, saying:
It was a very beautiful experience because David is so unbelievably competent and confident and ingenious. And a lot of people dislike the amount of takes he does but I absolutely adored it. Because there’s nothing worse as an actor than going home at the end of the day and thinking of all of the different ways you could have done a scene. It’s much better to go home at the end of the day going ‘I never want to do that scene again.’
This makes a great deal of sense, and shows the type of actor Andrew Garfield ultimately it. He’s known for bringing all of his heart and talent into performances, so getting lots of takes while working with David Fincher didn’t seem to bother him.
While Jesse Eisenberg’s Now You See Me 3 is coming down the line, fans are left wondering about the development of the Social Network sequel. It should be interesting to see if that project comes together, and which members of the cast return. For now, check the 2025 movie release dates.