A: It’s a major motion picture based on the book SIMON VS THE HOMO SAPIENS AGENDA. The film is directed by Greg Berlanti, and is produced by Temple Hill Entertainment, New Leaf Literary & Media, Inc., and Fox2000. It will release in the USA on March 16th, 2018.
Q: What is SIMON VS THE HOMO SAPIENS AGENDA?
A: It’s a young adult novel written by Becky Albertalli (me!), published in the US in 2015 by HarperCollins, and available in over 20 languages. It’s about a gay teen boy named Simon Spier, and his experiences navigating high school, coming out, and falling in love with his anonymous email penpal.
Q: What actors star in LOVE, SIMON?
A: Nick Robinson (Simon Spier), Keiynan Lonsdale (Bram Greenfeld), Alexandra Shipp (Abby Suso), Logan Miller (Martin Addison), Katherine Langford (Leah Burke), Jorge Lendeborg Jr. (Nick Eisner), Jennifer Garner (Emily Spier/Simon’s mom), Josh Duhamel (Jack Spier/Simon’s dad), Talitha Bateman (Nora Spier), Natasha Rothwell (Ms. Albright), Tony Hale (Mr. Worth), Miles Heizer (Cal Price), Mackenzie Lintz (Taylor Metternich), Drew Starkey (Garrett Laughlin), Bryson Pitts (10-year-old Simon), and more!
Q: When will the film release in the USA?
A: March 16, 2018
Q: How do I know if/when the film will release in my country?
A: I don’t have information about international releases, but it might be helpful to keep an eye on this page of IMDB.
Q: The summary on IMDB describes the film as: “A young gay teen takes a novel approach to coming out to his classmates.” Does this description (which seems different from the book) accurately reflect the film?
A: This description on IMDB does not accurately reflect the content of the film. The plot of the film is the same as the plot of the book.
Q: Is LOVE, SIMON a faithful adaptation of SIMON VS THE HOMO SAPIENS AGENDA?
A: It really is. I had the opportunity to see an early version of the film, and it blew me away. It’s not a scene-by-scene adaptation of the book (nor would we want it to be), but it’s very similar, and it perfectly captures the heart of Simon’s story. I’m completely in love with this adaptation, and I know my readers will be thrilled with it.
Q: Will the movie include <insert specific scene or line from the book>?
A: When watching the film, try to let go of the expectation that this will be a scene-by-scene adaptation. Movies and novels are very different forms of media, so you may find that specific details are changed in the adaptation. Angie Thomas (THE HATE U GIVE) brilliantly refers to her movie adaptation as the fraternal twin of her book, and I think that’s the perfect way to look at it. Big picture: I consider LOVE, SIMON to be a very faithful adaptation of my book.
Q: Why did you change the title?
A: The title, like most aspects of the film, is chosen by the studio and production team, not the author. The studio spent months researching the best possible title for this film, and they landed on LOVE, SIMON for many reasons. It captures the heart of the story, it’s easy to say and remember, it has mainstream appeal, and early test audiences responded really well to it. Basically, the studio is REALLY excited about this film, and they want to give it the best chance they can to reach a broad audience. Personally, I’m thrilled with this new title. My book title will remain the same, but this one suits the movie so well.
TL;DR: I didn’t pick it (the studio did), but I’m happy with it!
Q: What are some of the differences between the book and the film that I should prepare for?
A: Alice (Simon’s older sister) isn’t present in the film; Simon wears glasses only in the flashbacks; Bieber is a little pupper instead of a Golden Retriever; a few characters who are white in the book are played by POC actors (this is a really wonderful improvement, IMO); there are a handful of original characters (and you’ll LOVE them).
Q: When should I expect the trailer/movie poster/soundtrack/movie stills to release?
A: I don’t have that information, nor would I be allowed to leak it if I did. Sorry!
Q: Will there be a movie tie-in edition of SIMON VS THE HOMO SAPIENS AGENDA?
A: Yup! It releases January 30th, 2018, and you can preorder it here.
Q: How am I going to make the time pass until March, 2018?
A: Here are some ideas!
-Read my other published book, THE UPSIDE OF UNREQUITED. It’s set in the same universe as SIMON, and it stars Abby Suso’s cousin from Maryland. A few Simon characters make cameos!
-Preorder my next book, LEAH ON THE OFFBEAT. It’s a sequel from Leah’s point-of-view, and it follows Leah, Simon, and the gang as they grapple with senior year, messy crushes, and impending goodbyes. It releases on April 24, 2018.
-Keep an eye on my social media accounts – I post updates when I can! I’m @beckyalbertalli on Twitter and Instagram.
-Preorder the SHORES SIMON VS/UPSIDE fanzine! This zine was created by and for Simon and Upside readers, and it features 56 pages of original fanfiction and fanart. The cost of the zine goes toward production costs, and all profits will be donated to GLSEN and The Hispanic Federation. Check out their Tumblr page here for some amazing sneak previews, and follow the organizers (Dee and Mariana) on Twitter!
-Head over to Ao3 for some absolutely incredible SIMON VS THE HOMO SAPIENS AGENDA fanfiction.
-Follow the Simon and Upside characters on Twitter (bonus: several characters from THE HATE U GIVE and THEY BOTH DIE AT THE END have accounts, too)! These are unofficial, reader-created accounts, but they’re scarily spot on. An awesome reader/writer, Catherine Tinker, created this list to help you find them: https://twitter.com/catherinetinker/lists/fictional-chaos-fun
knitting in the dark 