Before He Became Spider-Man, Andrew Garfield Starred In A Tom Cruise Flop
Andrew Garfield has turned himself into quite the actor over the last decade or so. Not only does he star in acclaimed films such as "Tick, Tick...Boom!" or the recently released "We Live in Time" for A24, but he's also capable of delivering the goods in blockbusters as well. He was a major reason why 2021's "Spider-Man: No Way Home" became one of the biggest movies ever. But before he became an A-list actor capable of walking comfortably in both of these worlds, he starred in an oft-forgotten drama alongside Tom Cruise.
The movie was 2007's "Lions for Lambs," directed by cinematic legend Robert Redford, who also stars in the film. Not only that, but Meryl Streep, one of the greatest actors of all time, was in the film as well, as was future big star Michael Peña. In hindsight, it looks like a murderer's row of talent. For Garfield, it was a big break, becoming just his second major movie credit after "Boy A." Despite the talent pool, "Lions for Lambs" was a critical flop and a commercial disappointment.
"Lions for Lambs" holds a pretty lousy 28% critical approval rating on Rotten Tomatoes to go with an equally lousy 47% audience score. That reception was reflected at the box office, as the film made just $64.8 million worldwide against a $35 million budget. Given that home video and cable were a bigger deal at the time, the movie might have eventually made its money back. Still, it was far from a success, to put it mildly.
The film centers on a pair of young men who are inspired by their idealistic professor Dr. Mallery (Redford) to do something meaningful with their lives. So, they join the military and ship off to Afghanistan. Their experiences tie together two seemingly unrelated stories. In California, Mallery is attempting to get through to a disaffected student named Todd (Garfield), while in Washington, D.C., a presidential candidate (Cruise) is set to give a journalist (Streep) the scoop of her career.
Lions for Lambs didn't work, but it helped Andrew Garfield build his career
Oddly enough, the more running Tom Cruise does in a movie, the more money the movie tends to make at the box office. Coincidentally, Cruise does precisely zero running in "Lions for Lambs." While this disappointment didn't hurt the careers of Cruise or any of the other titans involved, it didn't help Garfield as much as an acclaimed hit might have at that time. Still, Garfield managed to build off of this role into a damn fine career in Hollywood in the years that followed.
Garfield would go on to star in films like "The Imaginarium of Doctor Parnassus," "Never Let Go," and David Fincher's hugely acclaimed "The Social Network" before eventually getting the chance to play one of the biggest superheroes on the planet, Spider-Man, when he took over for Tobey Maguire in 2012 with the release of "The Amazing Spider-Man." Sadly, the actor's time in the role was cut short after "The Amazing Spider-Man 2" fell short of sky-high expectations, even though it was a big hit on paper.
After his time as Peter Parker came to an end (before his unexpected return in "No Way Home"), he decided to focus on non-franchise fare such as "99 Homes," "Hacksaw Ridge," "Silence," and "Under the Silver Lake." He has since been nominated for two Oscars, three BAFTAs, an Emmy, and won a Golden Globe. Safe to say, everything worked out just fine in the end.
"Lions for Lambs" is streaming on MGM+, or you can grab the movie on Blu-ray via Amazon.