Andrew Garfield Talks to Elmo About Missing His Late Mom and Fans Are Emotional: ‘Sadness Is Kind of a Gift’

Andrew Garfield is having a heart-to-heart chat with Elmo about missing his late mother, Lynn, who died of pancreatic cancer in 2019. In a video shared by the beloved Sesame Street muppet on Friday, Oct. 18, Elmo had an intimate conversation with the Amazing Spider-Man star, 41. “Andrew? Hi, Elmo’s going around Sesame Street checking in on everybody, so Elmo wants to know how Andrew’s doing,” Elmo began. Sitting beside the muppet on a stoop, Garfield told Elmo he had “no idea” how happy he was to see him. Garfield, who said he was “doing okay,” asked Elmo if he was sure he wanted to listen. After being reassured it was a safe space to share his feelings, Garfield gave a vulnerable response.

“I’m just thinking about my mum today,” the English actor said. “You know, she passed away not too long ago, and I just miss her. I miss her a lot.” “Elmo’s really sorry to hear that, Mr. Andrew,” Elmo replied. Andrew told Elmo he didn’t need to apologize, adding that it’s “okay to miss somebody" before giving Elmo a lesson in coping with sadness. “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. And 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. Just like that, and it makes me feel close to her when I miss her, in a strange way,” Andrew said.

Andrew continued: “So, I’m happy to have all of the memories of my mum and the joy she brought me, and the joy she brought my brother and my dad and everyone she ever met — everyone around her. So 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.” “Wow, Elmo really loves that, Andrew,” Elmo replied. Before the clip ended, Andrew shared a sweet secret: “Elmo was my mummy’s favorite!” Elmo's blue muppet pal Grover responded to the video with, “Let me know if you need a warm hug 💙,” while other fans got emotional after watching the clip. “Grief is love with nowhere to go. Andrew’s perspective on his mom is so heartwarming and relatable,” one viewer wrote on X.

Andrew was filming The Eyes of Tammy Faye in 2019 — but left the set to travel to England to be by his mom's side when she died. Speaking to Variety after her passing, he said his mother urged him to continue, telling him, “I would struggle with you not doing it on account of me.” He told the outlet that once the film wrapped, he took time off to "be a human being, not a human doing." Andrew’s next movie, We Live in Time, touches on the topic. In the romantic dramedy, his character Tobias, falls in love with a rising chef named Almut (played by Florence Pugh), who is diagnosed with late stage ovarian cancer. The story is not told in chronological order, but gives viewers a look into the couple’s relationship over the years as they meet one another, fall in love, start a family and ultimately come to terms with Almut's diagnosis.