The Fault In Our Stars: Q&A (Part 3) with screenwriters Scott Neustadter & Michael H. Weber
Based on the John Green novel, the movie version of The Fault in Our Stars is creating quite a buzz in social media as it approaches its opening in theaters in North America this weekend. So I reached out to the film’s screenwriters Scott Neustadter and Michael H. Weber to see if they would let me ask them 10 questions about the project. They agreed.
I was going to write up a nifty introduction, but a recent feature on the writing duo in the New York Times did a bang-up job, so here it is:
Mr. Neustadter, 37, and Mr. Weber, 36, got their start in 2006 by shopping an original script about a guy who gets his heart smashed after falling for an aloof girl — something that had really happened to Mr. Neustadter. The resulting movie, “(500) Days of Summer,” was Fox Searchlight’s biggest hit of 2009. Last year came “The Spectacular Now,” an indie about love and alcoholism in high school. Adapted from Tim Tharp’s novel of the same name, “The Spectacular Now” was a critical home run, sealing their standing as Hollywood’s go-to channelers of tender teenage angst.
Their fans now include none other than Cameron Crowe, the writer-director behind “Say Anything,” “Almost Famous” and “Jerry Maguire.” “They write characters that are completely free of stereotypes,” Mr. Crowe said in an email. “Their stuff emits a high-pitched signal that says: This is authentic. And funny, too.”
“The Fault in Our Stars,” one of the most eagerly anticipated films of the year, arrives from 20th Century Fox on Friday. Adapted from John Green’s best-selling novel, the film is a bittersweet story about two wickedly witty teenagers and their runaway romance. The punch-to-the-gut twist: Hazel and Gus, played by Shailene Woodley and Ansel Elgort, both have cancer.
Here are two more questions I asked Michael and Scott:
Adaptations are a real challenge in part because some of the toughest issues are not so much what to use from the original source material, but what to omit. In that vein, was there one scene or story element present in the book that you really wanted to include in the script, but couldn’t find a way to justify it in the final draft?
Scott: We’ve gotten a lot of responses on social media from fans of the book who have seen the film saying “thank you so much for not changing anything.” Which is a huge compliment cause it sure ain’t true. But that was always our goal — to create the illusion that this is “Fault in Our Stars” in Final Draft form. Like you said, with any book adaptation certain liberties are taken: scenes get cut, lines are repurposed, characters become composites or disappear altogether. John’s voice is so strong and distinctive, the fans of his writing so rabid and passionate, the last thing we’d ever want to do is draw attention to the differences. So the fact that they’ve gone unnoticed (or, at worst, are being forgiven!) is the best praise we as adapters can get.
I know you both are big fans of John Hughes, especially his teen movies like The Breakfast Club, Sixteen Candles, and Pretty in Pink. Apart from the fact the two lead characters in The Fault in Our Stars are adolescents, were there other elements in the story that resonated with your inner John Hughes?
Weber: Our inner John Hughes connects to almost everything we do! First and foremost, The Fault In Our Stars doesn’t talk down to young people. It treats them like the thoughtful, maturing young adults they are. Also, like many of the best Hughes movies, it’s about a time in your life when you discover the world is a much larger place. And as you are trying to figure out who you are in that world, it also seems to be the time of your life in which you care about music and books and movies with a passion and intensity that is unrivaled by later periods in life. Hazel’s love of An Imperial Affliction is a huge component of TFIOS — and the way she uses the book to make sense of her emotions and the world around her harkens back to John Hughes.
Here is a clip from the movie The Fault in Our Stars:
For Part 1 of the Q&A, go here.
Part 2, here.
Come back each day this week for two more questions and answers from Scott and Michael.
The premiere of the movie happened on Monday night in New York. Here is one account of the event. And it sounds like it was really an event!
The Fault in Our Stars opens in theaters nationwide on Friday, June 9.
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