Actor Tom Hanks has signed on to portray America’s friendliest neighbor: Fred Rogers.
TriStar Pictures announced on Monday that Mr. Rogers’ life is coming to the big screen with Mr. Hanks in the starring role. “You Are My Friend” will recount the friendship between the “Mister Rogers’ Neighborhood” host and journalist Tom Junod.
“This is the perfect alchemy of talent coming together at the perfect time to remind us all of the transformative power of kindness and respect to heal and to unite,” Hannah Minghella, president of TriStar Pictures, said in a statement.
Variety noted Monday that director Marielle Heller will work from a script provided by Micah Fitzerman-Blue and Noah Harpster.
“Now more than ever, we all need a re-introduction to Fred Rogers’ message of uncompromising love and kindness between all living things. Mari Heller is the perfect visionary filmmaker to bring Noah and Micah’s script to life and because of her vision and this remarkable script, we have the quintessential actor to play Fred Rogers,” added producers Marc Turtletaub and Peter Saraf of Big Beach Films, Variety reported.
“Mister Rogers’ Neighborhood” first aired on PBS in 1968 and ran until 2000 — 886 episodes in total.
Mr. Rogers died on Feb. 27, 2003, at age 73.
• Douglas Ernst can be reached at dernst@washingtontimes.com.
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