BWW Blog: Lights, Camera, Teenage Anxiety! - Stephen Chbosky's DEAR EVAN HANSEN Film Rounds Out Principal Cast

For quite some time now, there has been talk of a big screen adaptation of Dear Evan Hansen, and in the last several weeks many details have come out about the film and who we can expect to see bring the nervous teenager and his friends from the stage to the screen.

For those who are not familiar with the Tony-winning musical, Dear Evan Hansen is about a 17-year old boy with social anxiety disorder who, per an assignment from his therapist, writes a letter to himself as a sort of pep talk. When the letter is taken from him by another student who later dies by suicide, Evan accidentally gets caught in a lie that gives him everything he ever wanted, including a chance to finally be seen.

The musical opened on Broadway at the Music Box Theatre in December 2016, with Ben Platt in the title role. A critical success, Dear Evan Hansen swept the 71st Tony Awards, winning 6 awards, including Best Musical and Best Performance by a Leading Actor in a Musical for Platt.

The film adaptation is directed by Stephen Chbosky, who is best known for his novel The Perks of Being a Wallflower and its film adaptation. Obviously Chbosky is no stranger to the teen drama genre, but he's also no stranger to movie musicals, having penned the screenplay for the 2005 film adaptation of Jonathan Larson's musical Rent and the live-action remake of Beauty and the Beast.

Returning to write the screenplay is Tony winner Steven Levenson. Benj Pasek and Justin Paul, who won the Tony for Best Original Score for their work on Dear Evan Hansen, are attached to write new songs for the film.

The film is obviously in good hands, and I am very excited to see what Chbosky does with the story. However, the part I am most excited about is the cast.

Ever since the plans to adapt Dear Evan Hansen for the screen were first announced, Ben Platt became the topic of conversation almost immediately. People wondered whether he would reprise his Tony-winning performance or if someone younger would take on the role. Platt, who was 21 when he first donned Evan's now iconic polo, is nearing 30, and many people (myself included) find that he has finally reached that point where he cannot pass for a teenager anymore.

Fans of the musical and Platt's portrayal of Evan are in luck, because it has been confirmed that he will star in the film, once again assuming the role he originated back in 2015.

I am a huge fan of Ben Platt, and his performance as Evan was phenomenal, so of course I am excited to see him return to the role. I think it'll be easy to look past the age gap between Platt and his character and enjoy seeing him return to the role after several years.

Joining Platt in the film is Kaitlyn Dever (Booksmart) as Zoe Murphy, Amandla Stenberg (The Hate U Give) as Alana Beck, Colton Ryan (former understudy in Dear Evan Hansen on Broadway) as Connor Murphy, and Nik Dodani (Netflix's Atypical) as Jared Kleinman. The cast also includes Academy Award winner Julianne Moore as Heidi Hansen, Academy Award nominee Amy Adams as Cynthia Murphy, and Danny Pino as Larry Murphy. In addition to characters from the stage production, a new character will be introduced in the film: Oliver, who will be played by Broadway actor DeMarius Copes (Mean Girls).

I think that this cast is going to do such a stellar job. While it's mildly disappointing that they didn't bring back more members of the original Broadway cast (*cough cough* Rachel Bay Jones), I have to say that whoever was in charge of casting this film really nailed it. The casting choices are so perfect.

Seriously. Go watch Atypical on Netflix and see Nik Dodani steal literally every single scene that he's in. He is the perfect Jared Kleinman.

It might be a while until we actually get to see the film, but I am looking forward to the day it is finally released. I know that oftentimes movie musicals aren't well-received, and Dear Evan Hansen certainly is not to everyone's tastes, but I also know that it appeals to many young theatre fans who will flock to the movie theaters in large quantities to see it.

Or they'll flock to their living rooms. These are uncertain times.

I, for one, will be keeping an eye out for any new updates on the film, like a dog waiting by the front door waiting for its person to come home. I will also keep my fingers crossed that this is the film that will help Ben Platt-who already has an Emmy, a Grammy, and a Tony-achieve EGOT status. Doesn't "Oscar Winner Ben Platt" have a nice ring to it?

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