John Krasinski’s Nervous Anticipation for Daughters’ Reaction to ‘IF’: Imaginary Friends as Coping Mechanisms in Pandemic-Hit Childhood

John Krasinski, known for his roles in popular TV shows and movies like ‘The Office’ and ‘A Quiet Place’, is feeling nervous about the response to his upcoming film ‘IF’. While he usually doesn’t worry much about reviews, this time it’s different. The movie follows a young girl (Cailey Fleming) who can see everyone’s imaginary friends alongside her neighbour Ryan Reynolds and explores themes around childhood stressors through coping mechanisms such as imagination and creativity. Krasinski explained that he was initially drawn to the idea of making an imaginative, family-friendly film for his children with Emily Blunt after watching how creatively engaged they are. After hitting him with important questions during lockdowns due to COVID-19, Krasinski realised there’s more depth and importance behind imaginary friends as coping mechanisms for daily life stressors such as bullies at school or divorce at home. The film was backed by Paramount Pictures who helped make ‘IF’. Although it explores important themes with the aid of celebrity voices like Steve Carell, Phoebe Waller-Bridge and Matt Damon, Krasinski is still terrified about how his daughters will react to their father’s work for the first time. The film opens on May 17 in US cinemas this year alongside major releases by well known studios as part of a summer full of brands and franchises.