Andrew Garfield addresses potentially playing Jesus inMartin Scorsese’s new movie, saying “You can’t just keep waiting for Scorsese to call.” The legendary director is best known for operating within the gangster genre withMean Streets,Goodfellas,Casino,Gangs of New York,The Departed, andThe Irishman. However, he has also frequently explored religion throughout his career with the religious epicsThe Last Temptation of Christ,Kundun, andSilence –the last of which starred Andrew Garfield.
Within his illustrious filmography,Scorsese’s religious epics tend to be less popularthan his gangster films, despite being equally as masterful. His 1988 epic,The Last Temptation of Christ, was quite controversial for retelling the life of Christ in human rather than divine terms. It ended up being a modest box office success that grossed over $33 million on a $7 million budget. One of his lesser-known films, 1997’sKundun, offered an account of the early life of the 14th Dalai Lama and made only $5.7 million against its $28 million budget.
Scorsese’s most recent and perhaps his greatest religious epic, 2017’sSilence, starred Andrew Garfield and Adam Driver as 17th-century Portuguese Jesuit priests who travel to Edo-period Japan to find their missing mentor, who is rumored to have committed apostasy, and to propagate Christianity. The movie also bombed at the box office, grossing just $22 million against its $40–50 million budget, despite being widely considered one of thebest films of 2016.
Andrew Garfield Addresses Potentially Playing Jesus In Martin Scorsese’s New Movie
The Actor “Can’t Just Keep Waiting For Scorsese To Call”
Andrew Garfield addresses potentially playing Jesus in a newMartin Scorsese movie,The Life of Jesus. In May 2023, the director revealed that one of his next movies would once again be about the life of Jesus, based on the book by Shūsaku Endō, the same author behind the source material for Scorsese’s 2017 filmSilence, which starred Garfield as a 17th-century Jesuit priest. About a month later,a report claimed that Scorsese was interested in reuniting with GarfieldforTheLife of Jesus.
Now, in a new profile byGQ,Garfield addressed the talk about him playing Jesus in Scorsese’s upcoming film. The actor says it’s merely a “rumour” and “it’s not true to [his] knowledge.” Garfield likes to continually work, so he “can’t just keep waiting for Scorsese to call” since “he makes a movie every three years and a lot of the time Leo DiCaprio is in it.” Read Garfield’s full comment below:
There was a rumour. It’s not true to my knowledge. I like working as well. You can’t just keep waiting for Scorsese to call, ’cause he makes a movie every three years and a lot of the time Leo DiCaprio is in it.
What Andrew Garfield’s Comments Mean For Martin Scorsese’s Life of Jesus
He Likely Won’t Be Starring
In May 2024, a report claimed that Martin Scorsese was interested in reuniting with Andrew Garfield forThe Life of Jesus. However, based on the actor’s recent comments, that rumor appears to be unfounded. That same report also claimed thatshooting was expected to startsometime in late 2024 in Israel, Italy, and Egypt. However, now that the new year has begun, that didn’t come to fruition. However, filming in Israel could be presenting significant logistical challenges due to the ongoing conflict with Hamas in Gaza.
Martin Scorsese’s New Movie Can Make Up For Divisive $23 Million Box Office Bomb From 8 Years Ago
A potential reunion in Martin Scorsese’s upcoming movie can make up for his divisive box office bomb from 2016 that only made $23 million.
However, Garfield’s comments don’t exactly rule out the possibility of him reuniting with Scorsese forTheLife of Jesus.Garfield starred inSilenceto much success, with his performance widely acclaimed for its complex exploration of faith and, over the years, he’s had nothing but glowing things to say about working with Scorsese. Though Garfield didn’t explicitly express interest,he would likely be willing to reunite with ScorseseforThe Life of Jesusif the director is interested.
Our Take On Andrew Garfield Potentially Playing Jesus
He’s A Great Choice For The Role
The two-time Oscar-nominated actor gave a powerful performance as a 17th-century Jesuit priest in Martin Scorsese’sSilence, which makes him a great candidate to reunite with the director forThe Life of Jesus. However, the project has stalled and has seemingly been postponed, along with Scorsese’s other upcoming project, a Frank Sinatra biopicstarring Leonardo DiCaprio, echoing Garfield’s point. It’s unclear what project he will make first, but when castingThe Life of Jesus, Scorsese should keep Garfield in mind.
What Will Martin Scorsese’s Next Movie Be?
The Director Has A Few Ideas
Other thanLife of Jesus, which Scorsese says is an option though he’s still working on it,the director has a few ideas for what his next film will be. There’s the reported Frank Sinatra biopic starring DiCaprio andJennifer Lawrence, which has also stalled since it requires approval from the late singer’s daughter. The director is also considering other ideas, including an adaptation of Marilynne Robinson’s 2008 novelHome, which he’s been working on since September 2023, though Scorsese says there’s a scheduling issue there. Scorsese has also suggested stories about his mother and father growing up.
Regardless of his choice, it will be interesting to see what direction Scorsese takes with his next project.
Regardless of his choice, it will be interesting to see what direction Scorsese takes with his next project.The Life of Jesusshould be another religious epic akin toThe Last Temptation of ChristorSilence, while the Frank Sinatra movie might echo some of his past biopics, such asRaging Bull,The Aviator, orThe Wolf of Wall Street– the latter two also starring DiCaprio. Whatever his next project is,Martin Scorsese’s masterful storytelling should be on full display once again.
The director’s latest project wasMartin Scorsese Presents: The Saints, an eight-part docudrama series that he produced for Fox Nation.
Source:GQ
Martin Scorsese
Discover the latest news and filmography for Martin Scorsese, known for Goodfellas and The Irishman.
Andrew Garfield
Discover the latest news and filmography for Andrew Garfield, known for The Amazing Spider-Man and Hacksaw Ridge.
