Andrew Garfield Tears Up About His Mother’s Death on ‘Sesame Street’ 

Andrew Garfield Tim P. Whitby/Getty Images

Andrew Garfield could have a second, and very successful, career as a therapist.

The actor, 41, shared his wise thoughts about grief and loss with Elmo on Sesame Street. Their heartfelt conversation, which aired Friday, October 18, went viral online, with fans sharing clips of Garfield tearing up as he spoke about the loss of his mother, Lynn, who died from pancreatic cancer in 2019.

“It’s actually kind of OK to miss somebody,” Garfield told the furry red muppet. 

“It is?” Elmo replied. “Elmo always feels really sad when he misses somebody.”

“Me too,” Garfield said. “But, you know, that sadness is kind of a gift. “It’s kind of a lovely thing to feel, in a way, because it means you really loved somebody when you miss them. When I miss my mom, I remember all of the cuddles I used to get from her, all the hugs I used to get from her, and it makes me feel close to her, in a strange way. … When I miss her, I remember it’s because she made me so happy. So I can celebrate her, and I can miss her at the same time.”

Garfield seems to have channeled these deep emotions into his latest film, We Live in Time, where he plays the partner of an award-winning chef (Florence Pugh) dealing with a serious illness. The drama hit theaters in the U.S. on Friday, and premiered in the U.K. at the BFI London Film Festival on Thursday, October 17. Garfield walked the red carpet with a cardboard cutout of Pugh, 28, who was unable to attend the event due to filming commitments for her upcoming role in East of Eden, which is currently filming in New Zealand.

With Pugh on location, Garfield has been out and about promoting We Live in Time, and seemingly everywhere: At screenings; on podcasts; on Sesame Street; and on Amelia Dimoldenberg’s Chicken Shop Date YouTube series, where he and Dimoldenberg, 30, made headlines for their flirty banter. 

During the interview, the pair played into romance speculation after fans have gushed about their chemistry on red carpets over the past few years.

“I think that there’s something going on,” she asked the newly single Oscar nominee, who replied with a question of his own. 

“Do you actually think that, or is this for the [cameras]? If this wasn’t here, do you think we’d actually go on a date? Do you think this is f—ed up, the fact that we could have actually gone on a date at some point? Maybe,” he stated. “Take out all the practicalities and the logic. I actually believe, maybe, we could have without all of this.”

Later in their conversation, Garfield said he thinks the two of them would “have a really nice time” hanging out together off-camera. “I think we’d just enjoy each other’s company.” Dimoldenberg, however, shut things down by declaring, “I think we should be friends.”

After expressing regret for friend-zoning Garfield, the host admitted that she doesn’t know what she’s looking for when it comes to a relationship. Garfield wrapped up the discussion by making a proposition.

“I feel like this is, like, should be a practice round,” he stated. “I feel we should do it again, actually, and better. This should just be, like, a rehearsal.”