Dear Evan Hansen

Dear Evan Hansen is a 2021 American coming-of-age musical film directed by Stephen Chbosky from a screenplay by Steven Levenson, based on the stage musical of the same name by Levenson, Benj Pasek, and Justin Paul. Ben Platt plays the title role, reprising the performance that he originated on stage six years earlier. The cast also includes Kaitlyn Dever, Amandla Stenberg, Nik Dodani, Colton Ryan, Danny Pino, Julianne Moore, and Amy Adams. Dear Evan Hansen premiered at the 2021 Toronto International Film Festival on September 9, 2021, as the opening night presentation, and was released in the United States on September 24, 2021, by Universal Pictures. The film underperformed at the box office and received mostly negative reviews from critics, with most criticism aimed at the casting of Ben Platt (who was 27 at the time) as a high school student, which some attributed to nepotism, as his father, Marc Platt, served as a producer on the film. Criticism was also aimed at its direction, screenplay, lack of faithfulness to its source material, and portrayal of mental illness, though the supporting cast's performances received some praise. Plot Seventeen-year-old Evan Hansen suffers from social anxiety and depression. His therapist recommends that he write letters to himself detailing why "today will be a good day." Evan's mother, Heidi, suggests that he ask people to sign his cast, after Evan had fallen out of a tree and broken his arm, to try and make friends. At school, Evan writes his letter to himself, wondering whether anyone would notice if he disappeared ("Waving Through a Window"). Evan's classmate, Connor Murphy, offers to sign his cast, taking up a lot of space. He finds Evan's letter and becomes furious at the mention of his sister, Zoe, who he learns Evan is attracted to. Believing that Evan wrote the letter to provoke him, Connor storms out with the letter in hand. Three days later, Evan is called to the principal's office and is told by Connor's parents, Cynthia and Larry, that Connor died by suicide. Despite Evan's attempts to tell the truth, the two misinterpret the letter Connor stole as a suicide note addressed to Evan, with Connor's name on his cast solidifying their belief.