Dear Evan Hansen Movie Adaptation in Development at Universal

A movie adaptation of Tony-winning musical hit Dear Evan Hansen is in the works at Universal with Wonder director Stephen Chbosky attached, per Variety.

Ben Platt, who originated the titular role, is in early talks to reprise for the movie adaptation, which his father, Marc Platt, is producing with Adam Siegel through Marc Platt Productions. Steven Levenson, who served as playwright on the Broadway production, is penning the script, while Oscar-winning La La Land and The Greatest Showman lyricists Benj Pasek and Justin Paul, who wrote the music for the original show, will executive produce.

Dear Evan Hansen follows anxiety-ridden high school senior Evan Hansen, who gets caught up in a lie after one of his letters to himself gets mistaken for the suicide note of a late classmate.

The musical was nominated for nine Tonys and won five, including Best Musical, Best Actor for Platt, and Best Score for Pasek and Paul. Dear Evan Hansen landed on Paste’s list of the best new musicals of 2016, and we also gave the Broadway production a rave review in 2017. The show is currently on a nationwide tour, which includes an Atlanta stop, starting next April.