Andrew Garfield Admits to the Pressure of The Amazing Spider-Man; Producer Avi Arad Offers New Details and Spoilers
Posted 01.21.12 by Ryan
The first trailer for the upcoming Spider-Man reboot, The Amazing Spider-Man debuted last July, but Sony has yet to release another. Impatient fans have had to be content with posters, set photos and official photos in the meantime. While Sony has yet to reveal new footage from the movie, the press tour has officially begun, with actors Andrew Garfield and Emma Stone (who play Peter Parker and Gwen Stacy, respectively), and producers Avi Arad and Matthew Tolmach attending a Japan-based press conference for the movie. THR reports that Garfield discussed the pressure he felt in taking over as the iconic title character for the first time since the successful trilogy of Spider-Man movies ended in 2007 with Spider-Man 3.
Not just because of the fact Tobey [Maguire], [director] Sam [Raimi] and Miss [Kirsten] Dunst did incredible work and honored the vision of Stan Lee, but actually because of the further history of the character. Of Peter Parker, how he originated and all the original evolutions that he's ever gone through.
I think if we didn't feel any pressure, we wouldn't be doing our jobs properly. It's an important, mythical, fictional figure, that I know is deeply, deeply important to me personally. I think a healthy amount of pressure is probably a positive thing.
Garfield admitted that he underwent about "four months of training" for the role, and explained, after some seven minutes of footage was screened for critics, that the intense training was necessary for the physical demands of the role.
As you can see, a lot of the stunts are practical and grounded in reality. That was something that Marc [Webb], the director, really wanted to make sure happened in this movie to set it apart from previous ones... I would exhaust myself every day and get into near-death experiences every hour on the hour.
... I collaborated with [the stunt team] not only on the big stunt set-pieces but also on what happens to Peter’s body when he gets bitten. What happens to his DNA and how that effects the way he moves and the way he interacts with objects. The idea that he has spider DNA running in his system. What that will do to his sense of space. What that will do to the sensitivity of his skin. To have an opportunity to play in that forum with creative and talented people was a real opportunity and gift.
During the press conference, ScreenRant reports Arad said that The Amazing Spider-Man is not really about from some "incredible outlandish event from happening" but that the reboot, which will again explore the character's origins, is "very down to Earth." [WARNING: POSSIBLE SPOILERS BELOW]
In our movie, [Andrew Garfield as Peter Parker] finds his true love. Gwen Stacy [Emma Stone] was always the true love of Peter Parker… We found a very, very good story about what makes a human being. About what sets their destiny.
... We introduce our villain, Dr. Connors [Rhys Ifans], and in the great tradition of Marvel, Dr. Connors is going to be connected to Peter Parker and, in our case even more interesting, to Gwen Stacy. Right there, the challenge of having to deal with a villain who is a mentor and the only one who you can look at and say, "So what really happened to my dad?" That’s a very hard person to fight.
Unlike Raimi's movies, The Amazing Spider-Man will include Peter Parker's parents (played by Campbell Scott and Embeth Davidtz), which Arad said was "the untold story" of Peter Parker and said his parents provided a key to being able to re-tell the characters origins. END SPOILERS
Perhaps more will be revealed once a new trailer airs. Fortunately, fans won;t have to wait much longer. Webb told Collider that a new trailer would be released "within the next month."
The Amazing Spider-Man was written by James Vanderbilt and Alvin Sargent. The cast includes Denis Leary as Capt. George Stacy, Irrfan Khan as Van Atter, C. Thomas Howell as Ray, Chris Zylka as Flash Thompson, Martin Sheen as Uncle Ben, and Sally Field as Aunt May.
Next Showing: The Amazing Spider-Man opens July 3