Actors With a Big Year Ahead: Andrew Garfield

From up-and-comers getting their big breaks to massive stars headlining multiple movies, I’m going to be taking a look at some of the actors who we’re likely going to hear a lot about over the next eleven months. Here’s a look at British actor Andrew Garfield’s upcoming projects.

This young actor scored a BAFTA for his fantastic work in the 2007 British TV movie, Boy A (which earned limited theatrical release in North America in 2008). If you haven’t seen Boy A yet, be sure to track it down. Garfield’s performance alone is well worth the price of a rental, and it’s a really solid (but dreary) little film. While his list of film work is short (he’s appeared in Lions for Lambs, The Other Boleyn Girl, and The Imaginarium of Doctor Parnassus), Andrew Garfield now has a number of high-profile projects slated for a 2010 release.

The Social Network – October 15, 2010

David Fincher (The Curious Case of Benjamin Button, Fight Club) is an edgy director, so it makes sense that his latest project is one of the more baffling ones on the horizon. But this story about the founders of the popular social networking site Facebook is nothing if not relevant. Jesse Eisenberg stars as Facebook CEO Mark Zuckerberg, and Garfield plays the site’s young co-founder, Eduardo Saverin. The film also stars Rashida Jones and Justin Timberlake. The fact that it’s directed by David Fincher, mixed with people’s general curiosity (or scepticism) about the project and the inescapable presence of Facebook in our world is likely to get The Social Network – and Garfield – a lot of attention.

Never Let Me Go – late 2010

Based on Kazuo Ishiguro’s acclaimed 2005 novel, this story of English boarding school students adds a sci-fi twist to an otherwise typical period drama. But apparently the book focuses far more on the relationships between the protagonists, rather than fantasy sensationalism. The film is helmed by director Mark Romanek (One Hour Photo), and it stars Garfield, Keira Knightley, Sally Hawkins (Happy-Go-Lucky), and Britain’s newest darling, Carey Mulligan (An Education). Fox Searchlight has the U.S. distribution rights, and with Knightley’s attachment and the success of the book, it’s one of the more highly anticipated films of the year.

Red Riding – February 5, 2010 (limited)

(Pictured above)

IFC Films has picked up this three-part British made-for-TV film for limited release in North America. Shot by three separate directors, each part of this film features a fictionalized account of a crime that took place in Yorkshire during the 1970’s and 80’s. The total running time is five hours, and Garfield is featured in all three segments (co-stars include Rebecca Hall and Sean Bean). It’s also currently available on DVD and Blu-Ray in the UK, and through IFC’s “On-Demand” service.

You can watch a trailer/featurette for Red Riding here.

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