Andrew Garfield has played many iconic roles over his career— taking over the Spider-Man mantle, making his Broadway debut as Biff in Death of a Salesman, and bringing the late RENT creator Jonathan Larson back to life.
However, it turns out that he missed out on one big role.
The actor recently shared in an interview that he had auditioned for the role of Prince Caspian in The Chronicles of Narnia. The role ended up going to Shadow and Bone’s Ben Barnes. Much to the dismay of his fans, Garfield revealed that he wasn’t “handsome” enough to get the part.
Andrew Garfield opened up about losing Narnia role
In an interview with Entertainment Weekly, it was reported that the Amazing Spider-Man actor lost out on his chance to star in The Chronicles of Narnia movie series. The series ended up releasing three blockbuster movies from 2005 to 2010. Garfield told the outlet, “I remember I was so desperate. I auditioned for Prince Caspian in The Chronicles of Narnia and I thought, ‘This could be it, this could be it.'”
He continued, “And that handsome, brilliant actor Ben Barnes ended up getting the role. I think it was down to me and him, and I remember I was obsessed.”
After asking his agents for some feedback, she told him, “it’s because they don’t think you’re handsome enough, Andrew.” The actor went on to gush about Barnes’ talent, adding, “in retrospect, I’m not unhappy with the decision and I think he did a beautiful job.”
Garfield responds to SAG nomination
In other news, Garfield has been nominated for a Screen Actors Guild Award for Outstanding Performance by a Male Actor in a Leading Role. His nomination came from portraying playwright Jonathan Larson in Lin-Manuel Miranda’s Netflix musical Tick Tick Boom.
Speaking to PEOPLE about his nomination, he said, “It’s a strange thing because I would’ve played Jonathan Larson for free. I would’ve played Jonathan Larson to an audience of one in my living room.”
This is the actor’s first SAG nomination since 2017 when he was nominated in the same category for his role in the war drama Hacksaw Ridge. He ended up losing to Denzel Washington in Fences.
Garfield went on to say, “Working with this company and being part of Lin-Manuel Miranda’s vision and getting the chance to tell Jonathan’s story and honor Jonathan was always enough. And then to have the community that I’m a part of, SAG members, welcoming me in this way and saying, ‘Keep doing what you’re doing,’ it’s quite humbling, really.”
He went on to express that he feels “lucky” for his career and his experience with the cast and crew. Additionally, he gave a shout out to the other actors nominated, saying, “to be recognized in this way amongst this incredible group of actors that I am just eternally inspired by, legends like Javier [Bardem] and Will [Smith] and Denzel [Washington] and Benedict [Cumberbatch] … these guys, I look up to so much.”
He concluded his statement with, “I love actors and I have forever been inspired by the greats. And I’m surrounded by that in this category and it’s like it doesn’t get any better than this.”
The 28th Annual Screen Actors Guild Awards are expected to take place on Sunday, February 27.