Florence Pugh and Andrew Garfield discuss the horse meme “We live in time”

TORONTO (AP) — Florence Pugh and Andrew Garfield have made one of the most emotionally wrenching and tender films ever. Films her career. But what is went viral from “We Live in Time”? A horse.

“We Live in Time” by John Crowley (“Brooklyn”) premiered at the Toronto International Film Festival over the weekend. Pugh and Garfield play a couple whose life together is not told chronologically, but rather through their meeting, falling in love, the birth of a child and the battle against cancer.

The film that A24 Cinema release: October 11 captures some elemental passages of life, with Pugh and Garfield delivering exceptionally vivid portrayals.

When one of the first images from the film was released, the couple was seen on a carousel, a good representation of the film at its most lighthearted. But at the bottom of the image was a yellow carousel horse with a cartoonish googly-eyed expression.

The Internet quickly got to work. One post was viewed almost 50 million times. Stephen Colbert made it a segment of his late showCountless iterations followed.

When Pugh and Garfield sat down for an interview the day after its premiere, the conversation inevitably turned to the runaway meme and the horse, which (despite Pugh's initial confusion) appears very, very briefly in the film. Here are their (somewhat offensive) comments, straight from the… well, you know.

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GARFIELD: What do you think about the horse?

PUGH: I was just so grateful that it actually wasn't in the movie.

GARFIELD: It's in the movie. It was there.

PUGH: No, it's not. The head was there. The eyes weren't. I was waiting for that.

GARFIELD: Dude, there it was. I'm sorry.

PUGH: When?

GARFIELD: In the scene we're in. I promise you that.

PUGH: I don't think so. I heard you laugh.

GARFIELD: It was there for a moment. Am I mistaken?

PUGH: I don't think that was in the movie, baby.

GARFIELD: Baby. There's no question about that.

PUGH: OK, maybe it wasn't as much in there as the picture. But I was so worried when it started popping up (all over) the Internet. It was hilarious and funny. But that part of the movie is my favorite part of the movie. It's when they say, OK, let's go. Let's go out. Let's have sex. Let's get pregnant. Let's just do it.

GARFIELD: And then the horse steals the show!

PUGH: And I was just so scared that this incredible, beautiful, sparkly moment was going to be ruined by this horse meme – which was hilarious, of course. But I was like, “No! Not at this point in the movie.” So last night I think I was so grateful that it didn't, like (makes horse face) do what it does in this shot, ruin it.

GARFIELD: Man, I love the horse meme. I was about to go on a retreat for six days where I wouldn't have my phone with me. And then I saw this image for our movie that just came out. And I noticed the horse. And I thought, “Wow, that's an interesting choice.” I don't know, did I approve of that? I'm pretty sure Florence didn't approve of that.

PUGH: You know, it wasn't approved.

GARFIELD: (Nodding). So, I saw that and I was like, “Oh, that's a decision, man.” Ah, I'm sure I'm the only one who notices that. I turn my phone off for six days. When I'm in the departure lounge and wherever I come back from, I finally turn my phone on. And it's just a horse meme. I was wrong. People noticed. And Colbert noticed and did a whole monologue about it. Honestly, I cried.

PUGH: I loved “Shining”. It was brilliant. “BoJack Horseman.”

GARFIELD: And that where it says: we all have the horse face. I have saved some of my favorite photos. (Garfield takes out his phone, then changes his mind.) Actually, I'm not going to open my photos now.

PUGH: What's on your phone?

GARFIELD: Just a lot of dick pics. My own. Stop it.

PUGH: I didn't know you could do public relations like that. I didn't know you could say something rude and then say, “Cut.” And what's worse, they're next to your horse photos.

GARFIELD: Yes, it looks like the ratio is wrong.

PUGH: For God's sake, Andrew.

GARFIELD: What, you tricked me.

(A publicist nearby sighs audibly.)

PUGH: Did you just hear our press officers sigh? Please don't edit that out. He should be punished. He will never do it again.

GARFIELD: I will, that's the problem. I'm insatiable when it comes to stupidity.