In just over a week, legendary director Steven Spielberg will return to the silver screen with The Fabelmans, his deeply-personal love letter to film-making and a semi-autobiographical look at his life growing up in a post-World War II United States. The film follows the young Sammy Fabelman (Gabriel LaBelle) and the conflicts he comes across in his artistic pursuits as a young filmmaker. At the center of it that conflict is his family. Between his mother Mitzi (Michelle Williams) who is deeply supportive of his dreams and his father Burt (Paul Dano) who is more straight-laced and scientific, Sammy is caught in the ideological divide between the two. One thing Spielberg's real-life parents could agree on, however, is that they always wanted him to do a film about their family.
Sitting down with THR, Spielberg went in-depth on the film and the meaning of it all to him and his family. When it came to making The Fabelmans, he emphasized just how eager his parents, the late Arnold Spielberg and Leah Adler, were to see their history on-screen before they died despite how personal it all was. He said in the interview:
"They were actually nagging me, ‘When are you going to tell that story about our family, Steve?' And so this was something they were very enthusiastic about.”
Although The Fabelmans takes some liberties with the telling of the director's life story, he stuck very close to reality with his parents. Adler was always the creative heart of the family, instilling many of the same ideals in her son. She, like him, had her own pursuits as a pianist and artist, though Spielberg also wanted to emphasize her most fun side that made her love and appreciate her growing up. As for his father, who was an accomplished engineer, Spielberg wanted to show his methodical nature, especially in contrast with his free-spirited mother. Despite their differences, he was still described as very sweet and his influence was just as important to the director growing up.
The Fabelmans is a family affair through and through with Spielberg re-teaming with his longtime producer Kristie Macosko Krieger and recent collaborator Tony Kushner to make his passion project a reality. Sadly, neither of Spielberg's parents will see the film. His mother passed away in 2017 while his father died in 2020, an event that largely spurred Spielberg to spend more time on the film with Kushner. Aside from being a personally important film for the director, it's expected to be a fruitful awards contender too. The film debuted at the Toronto International Film Festival and early reviews praise his latest as another classic. Collider's own Ross Bonaime gave the film an A in his review, hailing it for pulling back the curtain on Spielberg's own life and what guided his eye for film-making.
Who Else is Involved in The Fabelmans?
Starring in the film alongside LaBelle, Williams, and Dano are Seth Rogen as Bennie Loewy, Sammy's honorary uncle based on Spielberg's favorite uncle and Judd Hirsch as Uncle Boris. Jeannie Berlin, Julia Butters, Robin Bartlett, and Keeley Karsten round out the star-studded cast. Carla Raij and Josh McLaglen were also on board to executive produce.
The Fabelmans will arrive in theaters on November 11. Check out the trailer below.