The world needs Mister Rogers now more than ever, and you can see that demand coming to fruition this year. First, there’s the excellent Fred Rogers documentaryWon’t You Be My Neighbor?, which hits theaters on June 8th (click here for my review), and now there’s some momentum on theFred Rogersbiopic,You Are My Friend. Variety reports that TriStar Pictures picked up worldwide distribution rights to the movie, which will starTom Hanksas the beloved TV icon withDiary of A Teenage GirlhelmerMarielle Hellerset to direct from a script byMicah Fitzerman-BlueandNoah Harpster.
Per Variety, “The film is inspired by a real-life friendship between Fred Rogers and award-winning journalistTom Junod. In the story, a cynical journalist begrudgingly accepts an assignment to write a profile piece on the beloved icon and finds his perspective on life transformed.” While that may sound kind of corny, after seeingWon’t You Be My Neighbor?, I totally buy it. That’s not to say that Rogers was a saint, but rather that by living his positive values, he was able to win people over.
“I’m thrilled to be making ‘You Are My Friend,'” Heller said. “The script knocked me out with its message of kindness and its exploration of the human spirit. As a mother, I am so inspired by the teachings of Fred Rogers and as a human I am in awe of his life’s work. I can’t wait to bring his story to the public and be a part of such a thoughtful, smart group of people who are all coming together to make this film, which truly feels to me like an antidote to our very fractured culture.”
The question now becomes whenYou Are My Friendmy shoot. The movie doesn’t have a production date (or an actor to play Junod), and Hanks is also attached to star in the World War II movieGreyhound(which Hanks also wrote) and the sci-fi filmBiosfrom directorMiguel Sapochnik. However, if everything comes together quickly, I wouldn’t be surprised if they’re able to getYou Are My Friendin front of cameras before the year’s end.
