We all love Andrew Garfield as the amazing Spider-Man. Which is why, when he donned the Spidey suit once again in Spider-Man: No Way Home, our happiness knew no bounds! Apart from playing Spider-Man, Andrew Garfield has played a ton of other characters, each of which showcases the incredible amount of talent the guy possesses.
However, did you ever stop and wonder what Andrew Garfield could be doing today if not acting? He could have been a super-intelligent scientist, a kindergarten teacher, or even an astronaut. The choices are unlimited! Although, there is one career that Andrew Garfield realized was not for him – gymnastics. While he was interested in the field, he soon realized that it was not going to work out for him and the story is hilarious!
Andrew Garfield Realised Gymnastics Wasn’t His Cup of Tea
When we see Andrew Garfield in action as Spider-Man, swinging from building to building, we cannot help but wonder if he would have actually made a pretty solid gymnast. However, as Garfield hilariously recalls, some things are better to let go of.
Talking to Ellen DeGeneres on The Ellen DeGeneres Show during his very first appearance, Garfield talked about the time in his childhood when he wanted to be a gymnast. DeGeneres asked him, “…so you were in a tiny town in England and you wanted to be a gymnast when you grew up?” Garfield replied stating,
“That’s something that I found myself doing and I had a nice moment with that. I was very young and I realized that it probably wasn’t for me at that very young age. There was a moment where I think I was 11 and I came to consciousness in box splits with a very overweight man sat on my back. I was just like, ‘This is no place for an 11-year-old.'”
While there is no doubt to the fact that if Garfield had pushed himself he would have made an excellent gymnast, we are glad he decided to switch tracks when it came to his career. Can you imagine not seeing Garfield as the friendly neighborhood superhero? We sure can’t!
Why Andrew Garfield Left Gymnastics
Talking to The Guardian, Garfield stated that he was born and raised in a household that valued sports. He stated, “…very competitive with my older brother. My dad’s a swimming coach, I did gymnastics and swimming, rugby and cricket and football.” However, what pushed him toward acting was his mother, who passed away due to cancer in 2019. Garfield recalled that she saw him struggling at school and wanted him to try his luck in the entertainment industry.
“What a dangerous, bold, loving, soulful thing to do. She knew I probably wouldn’t make any money from it but she saw her son was having trouble and was not feeling a sense of joy about being alive.”
Garfield was also inspired by gymnast Simone Biles when it came to choosing his own well-being. Biles ended up pulling out from five of her six Olympics finals to take care of her mental health. This became somewhat of an inspiration for the Hacksaw Ridge actor who stated,
“The fact that she decided to publically honor her own fallibility may be the most inspiring move she could make…I said, ‘I don’t want a big fat Russian gymnastics coach to be sitting on my back while I do the box splits at the age of nine. I wanna go be a punk with my friends and go skateboarding and listen to Rage Against the Machine and be a bit of f*ckup for a minute.’ There was a natural inclination to own being a f*cking idiot.”
I guess his fans have to thank his mother and Biles for pushing him into doing what he really wanted to. We couldn’t imagine being robbed of such incredible talent!
Source: The Ellen DeGeneres Show
