In one of the most obvious moves of the year, a studio has bought the big screen rights to the massively popular, Tony Award-winning Broadway musical “Dear Evan Hansen.”
According to Deadline, Universal has bought the rights for the musical and wants Stephen Chbosky to direct the feature film. For those that haven’t seen the Broadway blockbuster, “Dear Evan Hansen” follows a young teenager with social anxiety that devises a plan to become closer to the family of one of his classmates who recently committed suicide. The musical stars Ben Platt, who has appeared in films like “Pitch Perfect” and “Billy Lynn’s Long Halftime Walk.” The actor earned a Tony Award for Best Actor in a Musical for his role, but it’s unclear if Universal will tap him to reprise the role on the big screen.
Chbosky is probably best known as the writer-director of “The Perks of Being a Wallflower.” He also is the author of the novel of the same name. Most recently, however, Chbosky wrote and directed the breakout hit film “Wonder,” which starred Julia Roberts. For “Dear Evan Hansen,” the writing duties are being given to Stephen Levenson, who is the author behind the novel the musical is based on and helped adapt the story for Broadway, eventually winning the Tony for Best Book of a Musical.
READ MORE: ‘Wonder’ Is A Lightly Affecting Weeper For All Ages [Review]
The musical minds behind “Dear Evan Hansen” will be involved in the film as well. Benj Pasek and Justin Paul are best known for writing songs for “La La Land,” which earned them the Golden Globe and Oscar for Best Original Song. They also wrote songs for “The Greatest Showman.”
There’s no release date for the film, as of now. However, with the Broadway show still being talked about, it’s clear that Universal will want to get this film going as soon as possible.
