Ben PlattandKaitlyn Deverdid a lot of crying on the set ofDear Evan Hansen.
Here, the two actors break downEvan’s path from stage to screen.
Did you have any hesitation about tackling it again?
Ben Platt.Pooneh Ghana
BEN PLATT: Certainly.
I think I was very scared to reenter the world ofDear EvanHansen, for a myriad of reasons.
Obviously, on a personal level, it’s painful material.
Kaitlyn Dever.Pooneh Ghana
It’s a vulnerable place to go emotionally.
Kaitlyn, what was it about Zoe that you connected with?
KAITLYN DEVER: I sawDear Evan Hansenabout three years ago with my mom on Broadway.
‘Dear Evan Hansen’.Erika Doss/Universal Pictures
[Laughs] What really struck me when I saw Zoe on Broadway was her resilience and her strength.
And I was so excited to be able to sing for the first time and work with Ben.
When did plans for a movie start to take shape?
I think everybody was really interested in only making that version of the film, which I really appreciate.
It was sort of a sink-or-swim, now-or-never kind of vibe.
DEVER: We actually talked a lot about this when we were shooting.
I hope this is a movie that is going to allow people to feel really seen in that way.
Are there any particular memories that stand out most from filming?
DEVER: There was this one moment where we’re singing “Only Us.”
We had done it all day, and we couldn’t stop laughing.
I’ve never squeezed someone’s hand so hard.
Everyone else is like, “We want to go home.”
DEVER: I think they actually used the shot of us almost peeing our pants.
I got a little emotional because it was our last time singing together.
PLATT: For me, it was all about the fact that we watchedLove IslandU.K.
every night when we got home.
How was quarantining together?
PLATT: It just made it so much warmer and a more familial experience.
My birthday was [during] shooting as well.
There were balloons, and she got me this vintage T-shirt with Pikachu on it.
It was like having my family waiting at home.
The film makes some changes from the show: There are new story linesand music.
What change were you most excited to explore?
PLATT:For me, the most exciting change is the third act of the film.
In the [stage] musical, there’s very little closure once Evan confesses to the family.
He doesn’t have to repent in any real way.
That was the part that really got me because it was new.
You don’t necessarily think of movie musicals as being so intimate and serious.
How did you find the right tone?
It was about keeping it at a level where it never felt like we were pushing it.
PLATT: Totally more so than any musical movie I’ve ever seen.
The texture of it stays really small and real, and it never becomes operatic or theatrical.
It stays really close to the ground in a beautiful way.
Ben, you’ve obviously grown up sinceDear Evan Hansendebuted on Broadway in 2016.
How did you approach the physical parts of playing him for the movie?
I shaved my arms to make a run at give a little more of a teen vibe.
I just wanted to do everything in my power to feel like him.
Julianne Moore plays Evan’s mom, and Amy Adams plays Zoe’s mom.
How was working with those two?
PLATT:Julianne Moorewas amazing and just so warm.
She jumped right in and made me feel that we had known each other for a really long time.
DEVER: Amy is truly such a light on set.
She literally just felt like my mom.
And getting to watchAmy Adams, it’s like a full-on master class.
I walked downstairs, and Kaitlyn and Amy were walking around the dining-room table, singing something together.
It was like Karen Carpenter or something.
DEVER: I think it was.
Amy Adams does love a good karaoke moment.
DEVER: And you wore your original Evan shoes.
PLATT:I did!
They are barely holding together.
[Laughs]
This interview has been edited and condensed for length and clarity.
A version of this story appears in the September issue ofEntertainment Weekly, on newsstands now.
