Andrew Garfield explains the grief of losing his mother, strikes a chord with fans

Andrew Garfield fights back tears on The Late Show with Stephen Colbert. Photo / Youtube, The Late Show with Stephen Colbert

Hollywood star Andrew Garfield's beautiful answer to a question about his late mother has resonated with viewers around the world.

Hollywood star Andrew Garfield struck a chord with viewers of The Late Show With Stephen Colbert this week as he explained the grief he felt over the loss of his mother, and how he'd turned it into a positive.

Garfield, 38, is best known for his starring roles in The Social Network and multiple Spider-Man films. His mother Lynn died from pancreatic cancer in 2019.

The actor appeared on Colbert's show to promote his new film, Tick, Tick... Boom!, a musical biography of Rent creator Jonathan Larson, who died at the age of 35.

The tragedy of death is at the heart of the movie, and Colbert brought it up.

this is one of the most gorgeous outlooks on grief i have ever heard pic.twitter.com/UwWlPMQo4r

— lucy ford 🍊 (@lucyj_ford) November 23, 2021

"I know you yourself have suffered great grief just recently, with the loss of your mother. And I'm sorry for your family's loss," the host said.

"I'm wondering how doing this show, or any show, how art itself helps you deal with grief."

"I love talking about it, by the way, so if I cry, it's only, like - it's only a beautiful thing," Garfield said, sincerely.

"This is all the unexpressed love, right? The grief that will remain with us until we pass - because we never get enough time with each other, right? No matter if someone lives till 60, 15, or 99.

"So I hope this grief stays with me, because it's all the unexpressed love that I didn't get to tell her. And I told her every day. We all told her every day. She was the best of us."

The actor said his role as Rent composer Jonathan Larson helped him understand the grief he experienced after losing his mother.

Andrew Garfield in a scene from "Tick, Tick... Boom!" Photo / Macall Polay, Netflix via AP

He also drew parallels to the historic figure and his mother, crediting them both for being "warriors of the arts".

"This film is to do with the ticking clock that we all have. We all know somewhere deep down that life is sacred, life is short, and we'd better just be here as much as possible with each other, holding onto each other," Garfield explained.

"And for me, I got to sing Jonathan Larson's unfinished song while simultaneously singing for my mother and her unfinished song."

At this point the actor started to choke up.

"And I'm indebted to John, and I'm indebted to everyone who's brought me to this place so I can honour the most beautiful person that I've ever experienced in my life through my art and use it as a way to heal, use it as a way to sew up the wounds," he said.

The actor has also spoken of leaving the Eyes of Tammy Faye set early to spend "the most profound two weeks of my life" with his mother before she passed.

One of the most beautiful conversations to occur between two human beings.

Watch this. And then, call your Moms—and all your friends and loved ones. ❤️‍🔥https://t.co/jJ4K3uOdJz

— Tito Marco S. (not Marcos) (@AkoSiTitoMarco) November 23, 2021

"The good news about me and her is that we left nothing unsaid," he told Variety.

"To be with her and my dad and my brother, all of her friends, my nephews. It was full of grace in the midst of the terrible tragedy."

Hollywood star Ben Stiller praised Garfield's performance in Tick, Tick... Boom!, urging cinema fans to catch it as soon as possible.

"So @ticktickboom is beautiful, inspiring and full of life. @Lin_Manuel, Andrew Garfield captured Jonathan Larson so movingly. See it if you can," he tweeted.