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Musical faces fierce first reviews, weak following and criticism for picking 27-year-old Ben Platt as a high school student
Platt, who created the role of high school student Evan Hansen on stage and won a 2017 Tony Award for the role, responded over the weekend. “I’m doing my best to fix it because there is nothing I can do about my age,” he told NBC News’ Kate Snow on “The Drink.” “All I can do is play a character, and when I play a character there are all kinds of things about me that don’t look like who I am – I weigh a little less or I dress. a little different or my hair is a little curly, and in this particular case, I’m someone younger than me and it’s my job as an actor to play things that are not like me.
Universal insiders confessed they were hurt and disappointed by the film’s early response and bristled at the idea that the production was exploiting teenage anxiety and the tragedy of suicide.
A senior executive said there would be no change in the marketing campaign, despite the swift response. But another insider said that in light of the bad reviews, the challenge was to convey “there’s something good here – so how do the studio and the filmmakers get that message out against all the negative noise? “
Another executive said the studio took great pride in the work and that the film’s producers – including Platt’s own father Marc E. Platt (“La La Land”) – were in fact defiant in the face of the backlash.
A studio insider also reaffirmed that the executives “are deeply proud of” Dear Evan Hansen “ and the remarkable performances of the film’s talent. There is confidence in the Universal Lot that the general public will be hitting theaters until the fall. “
“Dear Evan Hansen,” which will open exclusively in theaters on Friday in approximately 3,300 locations, currently sits at an opening of between $ 9 million and $ 11 million – a disappointing projection despite the state of the box office in the era. of the pandemic.
Thankfully, the movie doesn’t appear to be as much of a financial risk as the 2019 buzz bomb from Universal “Cats,” another Broadway musical adaptation that notoriously spat a hairball with just $ 73.8 million at the box office. worldwide on a budget of $ 95. million.
Although the studio did not disclose the budget for “Evan Hansen,” Oscar-winning “La La Land,” cost $ 30 million (and grossed $ 448 million worldwide). And Fox’s 2017 musical “The Greatest Showman” – which like “Evan Hansen” and “La La Land” featured a score by Benj Pasek and Justin Paul – also garnered mixed reviews and only opened. at $ 8.8 million but reached $ 436.7 million worldwide. (It’s true that neither was released during a global pandemic.)
According to an insider, studio executives reached out to key reporters to seek champions for the film and promote a bunch of regular fans offering heartfelt support for the music, themes and in particular Platt’s performance as what makes ” Dear Evan Hansen “special. Marketing has also rolled out a number of other music videos featuring Carrie Underwood and featurettes that aim to highlight some of the film’s other strengths. But many of those marketing elements were planned months before the film’s Toronto premiere, insiders said, including the use of positive reviews from critics in the film’s current and final trailer. There are no plans to call out critics of the film as the studio did in late-night commercials for “Cats”, including a spot saying there are “people who don’t like ‘Cats’ and people who are wrong “.
A film marketing veteran who asked not to be named said: “In my 16 years (in a big studio) we never changed campaigns because we got bad reviews.” However, he added that audience data from test screenings of the film or its trailers can often cause a studio to rethink its launch campaign. “It’s not ‘These reviews are horrible, we’re going to do something’ – it’s the playability of the movie, if people just don’t respond to it,” he said. “We do absolutely more if we can’t move the needle on a movie to see.” TV spots in the last three weeks before the opening date can be crucial in changing the angle of a campaign, the executive said.
Not everyone thinks negative reviews will depress the box office – especially since the film’s target audience is young and often less influenced by reviews.
“The bad news, of course, is that the reviews have been less than kind, to put it mildly… but teens and young adults care less about reviews and more about what their friends say,” Gene Del Vecchio, assistant professor of marketing at USC Marshall School of Business, told TheWrap. But he added that while the first trailer for “Dear Evan Hansen” racked up 21 million views on YouTube alone, Universal might consider focusing more on the romantic and comedic scenes of the film rather than its more romantic side. dark of suicide, anxiety and regret.
“What they’re obviously trying to do is attract a younger audience. It’s a teen drama, it definitely is, and teens and young audiences have really dominated the box office, ”Comscore’s Paul Dergarabedian told TheWrap. “You have Julianne Moore in the movie, you have Amy Adams, you have a mix of younger and older cast members. It’s a musical, but it’s a teen drama, and they’re really trying to do it. ‘operate at many different levels.
Still, the online reaction to the film’s first screenings can put a damper on even critical-proof young audiences. Online commentators called the film “really vile characters“said he was” deeply offensive “or sent a”disturbing message, “and claimed it” exploits “a teenager’s suicide for an uplifting musical. A one-star review with RogerEbert.com even called it a” total dud. ” an emotionally manipulative and overly long funeral song made up of sickening songs, lackluster vocal performances and even worse writing, ”Robert Daniels wrote for RogerEbert.com.
And Platt, who started playing the role in workshops as a teenager, has been particularly criticized for his attempts to come off as a high school student on screen. While it’s not uncommon for young people in their twenties to play teenagers (the film’s other young co-stars are also in their twenties, and Jordan Fisher, who currently plays Hansen on Broadway, is also 27), many critics have said Platt lands in the “strange valley” or looks like an “otherworldly intruder quirk”.
In a post-screening Q&A with director Stephen Chbosky and the cast hosted by Katie Couric earlier this month, Ben Platt championed how the film and the series moved people for the better. “I saw with my own eyes how it changes people’s lives, starts conversations. Everyone is looking for something to dislike right now. We are bored and outraged and tired and frustrated. I understand. We are going through a horrible time ”, Platt noted. “People who want to love him will love him and those who want to hate him will hate him… And everyone hates musicals.”
With all the pedigree behind it, the studio continues to host guild screenings in the name of a rewards campaign. And Steve Pond of TheWrap previously wrote (in his positive review) that the film has a good chance of being nominated for one of its two original songs, including one co-written and performed by Amandla Stenberg.
And the production crew and cast took the opportunity to echo one of the central themes of the musical, reminding fans “you’re not alone.” “There are millions of children struggling, going through so much. We did it for them. Millions of children will be affected by this ”, Chbosky said Couric. “But the enemies will hate it.”
Sharon Waxman contributed to this report.
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