Love, Simon

Love, Simon is a 2018 American teen romantic comedy drama film directed by Greg Berlanti from a screenplay by Elizabeth Berger and Isaac Aptaker, based on the 2015 novel Simon vs. the Homo Sapiens Agenda by Becky Albertalli. The film stars Nick Robinson, Jennifer Garner, Josh Duhamel, Talitha Bateman, Katherine Langford, Alexandra Shipp, and Jorge Lendeborg Jr. It centers on Simon Spier, a closeted gay teenage boy who is forced to balance his friends, his family, and the blackmailer threatening to out him to the entire high school, while simultaneously attempting to discover the identity of the anonymous classmate whom he has fallen in love with online. Love, Simon premiered at the Mardi Gras Film Festival on February 27, 2018, and was released in the United States by 20th Century Fox on March 16, 2018. Critics praised the film for its "big heart, diverse and talented cast, and revolutionary normalcy", characterized it as a "classic", described it as a "funny, warm-hearted and life-affirming tale" that is "tender, sweet, and affecting" and a "hugely charming crowd-pleaser" that is "funny, heartfelt, and truly touching", and compared it to the teen films of John Hughes. Notable as the first film by a major film studio about a gay teenage romance, it grossed $66.7 million worldwide against a production budget of $10–17 million, and became the 15th-highest-grossing teen film and the 3rd-highest-grossing teen film by 20th Century Fox at the domestic box office since 1980. A sequel television series titled Love, Victor premiered on Hulu on June 17, 2020, and was released on Disney+ on June 15, 2022.