‘IF’ a story you have to believe to see…
IF is an upcoming American live-action/animated fantasy comedy film written, produced, and directed by John Krasinski. The film features an ensemble cast that includes Cailey Fleming, Ryan Reynolds, Krasinski, Fiona Shaw, Alan Kim, and Liza Colón-Zayas, along with the voices of Phoebe Waller-Bridge, Louis Gossett Jr., and Steve Carell. Its plot follows a young girl and her neighbor who find themselves able to see imaginary friends.
A young girl named Bea, who has been going through a troubling experience in her life, unexpectedly gains the ability to see people’s imaginary friends (referred to as “IFs” for short) who have been abandoned by the kids they helped. Bea then discovers that her neighbor, Cal, has the same ability. Together they join forces to reunite the IFs with their former kids.
In October 2019, Paramount Pictures outbid Lionsgate and Sony, among others, to win the rights to Imaginary Friends, a project developed by John Krasinski and Ryan Reynolds, with Krasinski set to write and direct it. In May 2021, Krasinski’s Sunday Night Productions and Reynolds’s Maximum Effort signed first-look deals with Paramount. In October 2021, Phoebe Waller-Bridge and Fiona Shaw joined the cast. In January 2022, Steve Carell, Alan Kim, Cailey Fleming, and Louis Gossett Jr. joined the cast, with the film retitled IF. The film reunites Krasinski and Carell, who both starred in The Office (2005–2013). In August 2022, Bobby Moynihan was added to the cast. The voice cast and premise were revealed in April 2023 at CinemaCon 2023.
IF is scheduled to be released in the United States by Paramount Pictures on May 17, 2024.