Director John Krasinski’s 2024 movie IF is all set to hit the theatres in May 2024 and coincidentally, it was made alongside a film with a similar “imaginary friends” theme movie directed by Jeff Wadlow called Imaginary. In a recent interview, Wadlow opened up about running into Krasinski several times as their films were edited in the same building.
The films are not the same, as Krasinski’s IF is an animated fantasy comedy film while Wadlow’s Imaginary is a supernatural horror film, however, due to the similar themes admitted that he “kept his head down” whenever he bumped into Krasinski in New York.
Imaginary director Jeff Wadlow was trying to avoid John Krasinski
Director Jeff Wadlow recently acknowledged the fact that his 2024 film Imaginary shares a similar theme to John Krasinski‘s 2024 movie IF. The director explained in an interview with The Hollywood Reporter that their films were edited in the same building in New York and he avoided eye contact with Krasinski,
“They actually edited [IF] on the same floor of the same New York City building where we edited Imaginary. I walked by John Krasinski a few times and just kept my head down because I knew what was going on – But I’m sure there’s plenty of space in the market for both films. They are tonally very different, and it’s just exciting to know that we’re tapping into a zeitgeisty idea. The time has come for some movies about imaginary friends.”
The films have entirely different genres but still, they have this common idea of “imaginary friends.” Wadlow’s Imaginary was released in the United States by Lionsgate on March 8, 2024, while Krasinski’s IF will be released in the United States by Paramount Pictures on May 17, 2024.
Imaginary has received negative reviews
Unfortunately, Wadlow’s Imaginary was not well-received by the fans as well as critics. The film made $3.6 million on its first day and with a budget of $10-12 million, many believe that the film will be a financial loss for the studios. The film features DeWanda Wise, Tom Payne, Taegen Burns, Pyper Braun, Matthew Sato, Veronica Falcón, and Betty Buckley.
As for John Krasinski’s IF, it seems like there isn’t a lot of anticipation for it. After the release of the trailer, fans complained that the film looked very similar to Inside Out and Foster’s Home for Imaginary Friends. Krasinski has stated that he made the movie keeping his kids in mind and it dives into the mind of a child, bringing their imagination onto the big screen.
