With all the interest in Mr. Rogers inspired by the documentary Will You Be My Neighbor? (which was shockingly snubbed for the Oscar nomination last year), this movie may turn out to be a hit later this fall. It’s directed by Marielle Heller, who got nominations last year for Melissa McCarthy, Richard E. Grant and her screenplay for Can You Ever Forgive Me? I think this looks like it could be good, but Tom Hanks is still mostly Tom Hanks to me- he’s not really the kind of guy who can make himself disappear into a famous person, especially one as distinctive as Fred Rogers was. This would have called for a character actor who’s not so distinctively famous himself. That doesn’t mean he won’t be good, just not, you know, Mr. Rogers.
