NICK ROBINSON is a fast-rising young actor who is solidifying his status as a leading man. In Love, Simon (which opens on May 9 in the Philippines from 20th Century Fox) Robinson stars as the title character, Simon Spier, a gay teen who has not come out to his family and classmates. With his tight-knit group of friends branching out in new directions, his e-mail correspondence with a stranger named Blue growing more significant every day, and a classmate’s potential threat hanging over him, Simon starts to feels out of control. Now he has to find a way to step out of his comfort zone before he’s pushed out—without alienating his friends, compromising himself or losing a shot at happiness with a guy whose real name he doesn’t even know. Directed by Greg Berlanti, the film also stars Jennifer Garner, Josh Duhamel and Katherine Langford.
Love, Simon was adapted from Becky Albertalli’s acclaimed best-selling young adult novel Simon vs The Homo Sapien’s Agenda. Published in January 2012, the book won the William C. Morris Award for Best Young Adult Debut of the Year and was included in the National Book Award Longlist. Albertalli never imagined that her book would be published, let alone become an award-winning best seller and now a major motion picture.
A Seattle native, Robinson developed an eye for classic films and theater at an early age. After winning praise for his work in several local Seattle productions, including To Kill a Mocking Bird, Mame, A Thousand Clowns and Lost in Yonkers, Robinson relocated with his family to Los Angeles to pursue his acting career. Robinson then has landed plum roles in different genres, such as Everything, Everything, The 5th Wave, Being Charlie, Jurassic World and The Kings of Summer. He will next be seen in William H. Macy’s comedic drama Krystal and Strange But True.
What attracted you most to the film?
I think the attraction for me was twofold. First of all, I fell in love with it as a story for a movie. I thought it was a great entertaining script. Isaac (Aptaker) and Elizabeth (Berger) did a fantastic job (in adapting the novel to a screenplay).
Second, I fell in love with the message of the film, as well, what it’s saying. The fact that this is the first studio film that’s a teen romance with a gay protagonist, this kind of feels like it’s an overdue story to be told.
This story has not been told before, in this way. This movie has the potential to reach a lot of people and help them in a way that hasn’t been done before. I feel like this telling was past due, and I wanted to be part of the team that helped tell it.
What can you say about Simon?
Simon is, on the surface, he’s a young man in high school. He “meets” another young closeted teen and they have a relationship online. I think Simon is someone who’s constructed his entire life around keeping his sexuality a secret. So he checks all the boxes, kind of living this manicured life. I think he’s a creature of habit and it’s an interesting character arc for him to see all of that get turned on it’s head, and see how he sort of has to deal with these new realities of being an out person and, you know, speaking with his parents, speaking with his friends and seeing what impact that has on his relationships. But I think Simon is sort of an everyman, so to speak—he’s someone who has spent so much time worrying about what people think about him that he’s suppressed some of his personality and I think he is trying to kind of ride at neutral.
How do you think the story will resonate today?
Yeah, Simon is gay and he is closeted and it’s a story of self-acceptance and tolerance, and he meets another closeted gay teen in high school and they have a correspondence. I think everyone has been through this at some point in their lives. Trying to find yourself and being the person that you’re meant to be is very universal. I think everybody can relate to that.
How was it working with Greg Berlanti?
Greg has been the champion of this project from the beginning. He was the one that brought it to my attention. Through our conversations, he was the one who convinced me to do it and I think he’s the right person to tell this story. I mean he went through this experience as a closeted teen in high school, and he has a very unique perspective and a unique voice, and he’s also been a champion of these kinds of films and this kind of representation for years. I mean he’s worked in television—Dawson’s Creek, Brothers & Sisters and all of the many, many Berlanti projects. He has been slowly but surely advancing this kind of representation in Hollywood and in media in general.
How do you relate to Simon, and how would Simon identify with the audience?
I think Simon is actually a very easy character to identify with, and one of the strengths of the film is that he’s someone that you’re kind of rooting for along the way regardless of your sexuality. I think everyone wants to find someone, and everyone wants to find happiness and that’s really what the film is about—Simon finding happiness, acceptance, self-acceptance and, ultimately love. I don’t feel that should be a controversial idea, for this young man to find love. One of the things I like about the story is that it doesn’t highlight Simon’s sexuality necessarily. It really feels like this is a story about a young man in high school going through something, and he also happens to be gay.
What was your experience working with Jennifer Garner and Josh Duhamel as your parents on the set?
Jennifer and Josh were…the dynamic you see onscreen is, I think, very much what it was like to be on set. They’re very lovely people and they signed onto this movie for a reason. I think they were both excited by the concept, and I think they both did a great job with their performances. They are the support network to Simon in seeing what happens when things go the right way, you know, when things are represented in the best light possible—when someone comes out, when your parents are sort of everything you want them to be and accepting and tolerant and compassionate. So, yeah, I think Josh and Jenn were excellently cast.
Simon has great relationship with his family and friends. How does that affect his coming out?
He has two families: his nuclear family—his mom and dad, and his sister—and he has his friends. It sort of raises the stakes for him, as well, because I think Simon as a character when he’s trying to come out, one of his major concerns is that he’s going to be changing his relationships, ones that he’s cultivated his entire life. His friends and his family obviously, and I think that’s why Simon, like many people, try to wait until later in life, until college or after, to come out. Because they’re afraid of the consequences. But I think, that Simon is very protective and grateful for his family; I don’t think he takes it for granted. I think he sort of sees what he has and he’s afraid to lose it.
What can the audience expect from the movie?
I would hope for audiences, first and foremost, that they find it an entertaining movie with a story that I think is funny, heartwarming and sweet. I hope they also embrace the great message of the film. I don’t mean to be to preachy or anything, but it’s a good message. I think it’s a positive thing to be out there right now, especially in this climate. I think there’s a lot of great moments in the movie they can look forward to. There’s the carnival sequence, you know, and a big dance number. There are plenty of quieter beats, as well, between Simon and his friends. Him and Leah, him and Abby, they all have sort of a moment together. I think audiences should look forward to seeing a film that’s very much in the vein of that John Hughes template. Love, Simon is a film that they maybe haven’t seen before, or they think they have but there’s a different perspective that’s being told.