The film doesn’t have an official title yet but it does have an official first photo. TriStar Pictures has released the first picture of two-time Oscar winner Tom Hanks (Forrest Gump, Philadelphia) in character as Mister Rogers, complete with red sweater vest and tennis shoes.
The film’s being directed by Marielle Heller (The Diary of a Teenage Girl) from a script by Noah Harpster & Micah Fitzerman-Blue. Tom Junod’s “Can You Say…Hero?” article originally published in the November 1998 issue of Esquire serves as the inspiration for the film.
In addition to Tom Hanks as Fred Rogers, the cast includes Matthew Rhys (The Americans, The Bastard Executioner), Susan Kelechi Watson (This Is Us), and Chris Cooper (The Company You Keep). Youree Henley, Marc Turtletaub, and Peter Saraf are on board as producers.
TriStar Pictures is targeting an October 2019 theatrical release.
The Plot: “Two-time Oscar®-winner Tom Hanks portrays Mister Rogers in Untitled Mr. Rogers/ Tom Hanks Project, a timely story of kindness triumphing over cynicism, based on the true story of a real-life friendship between Fred Rogers and journalist Tom Junod. After a jaded magazine writer (Emmy winner Matthew Rhys) is assigned a profile of Fred Rogers, he overcomes his skepticism, learning about empathy, kindness, and decency from America’s most beloved neighbor.”
