Andrew Garfield believes Spider-Man could still be gay: ‘Anyone can be in the suit’
Andrew Garfield (Getty Images)
Former Spider-Man actor Andrew Garfield has shared his hope again that the comic book character could be gay, echoing his past comments.
The British actor, who played the hero in the Amazing Spider-Man films, previously said in a 2013 interview with Entertainment Weekly that he didn’t know why the character couldn’t be gay. “Why can’t he be into boys?” he asked at the time.
Speaking to the publication again now, Garfield said his past comments were “an exercise in rebellion that [he] felt passionate about” – but he stands by it.
He said: “I just still believe that anyone can be in that suit.”
Garfield, who has long been a vocal LGBTQ+ ally, added: “That’s the point of why it’s such a kind of universally beloved character, one of the greatly beloved characters in the history of fiction, is because you don’t see skin colour, you don’t see gender, you don’t see sexuality.
“Anyone can project themselves into that suit.”
He went on: “I like the idea of a place where everyone is being honoured and everyone is being included, and it was just a kind of act of saying, ‘Well, why not?’ And you’ll be telling on yourself if you have a strong opinion either way.”
Andrew Garfield’s Spider-Man apology
After he made his initial comments in 2013, Andrew Garfield said he was made to apologise.
He told The Independent in 2021: “I was then put under a lot of pressure to retract that and apologise for saying something that is a legitimate thing to think and feel.
“So I said, ‘Okay, so you want me to make sure that we get the bigots and the homophobes to buy their tickets?'”
The actor has long-held his belief that anyone could play Spider-Man, despite the fact he has always been depicted as a straight, white man in Sony’s live-action films.
He said, as per Comic Book Resources: “What I believe about Spider-Man is that he does stand for everybody: Black, white, Chinese, Malaysian, gay, straight, lesbian, bisexual, transgender.
“He will put himself in harm’s way for anyone. He is colourblind. He’s blind to sexual orientation, and that is what he has always represented to me.”
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