Dear Zoe (film)

Dear Zoe is a 2022 American drama film directed by Gren Wells from a screenplay by Marc Lhormer and Melissa Martin. It is an adaptation of the 2005 novel of the same name by Philip Beard. The film stars Sadie Sink, Theo Rossi, Kweku Collins, Jessica Capshaw, Justin Bartha, and Vivien Lyra Blair.

Plot
Fifteen-year-old Tess DeNunzio lives in Pittsburgh with her mother Elly, stepfather David, and younger half-sister Em. Tess’s biological father Nick, a German shepherd breeder, lives nearby in a poorer neighborhood. After Tess’s three-year-old half-sister, Zoe, died in a hit-and-run accident on September 11 while Tess was supposed to be watching her, Tess helped David care for Em while Elly coped with depression. The family attends therapy together, though Tess feels excluded from David and Elly’s grief. Tess has a breakdown after discovering of Elly's emotional affair with Justin, a much younger grocery store clerk. Tess moves in with Nick, though she regrets abandoning Em. Tess begins to care for one of Nick’s puppies, whom she names Frank. Nick agrees to drive Em home from school so that the sisters can spend time together. Tess and Nick attend church together, but she runs from the church screaming when a hymn reminds her of 9/11.

Tess is attracted to her neighbor, Jimmy Freeze, who claims to know her father. She offers him a beer, but Nick intervenes and instructs her not to socialize with him. When a suspicious man approaches Tess on the porch with a wad of cash, Tess realizes that Nick is dealing drugs out of the back of his truck. Tess confronts her father, who doesn’t stop selling drugs, but gives the man a black eye for appearing at his home. One night, Jimmy climbs through Tess’s window. While smoking weed together, Jimmy reveals he struggles to bond with his father and stepmother, and was sent to a correctional facility. He also discusses his mother’s death, though Tess doesn’t mention Zoe. They kiss goodnight. Jimmy continues to visit her at night, but Tess keeps their developing relationship a secret from Nick.

When summer begins, Em feels isolated, as she only sees Tess on rides home from school. Tess and Elly begin to have weekly phone calls, during which Tess notes that they’re both improving and Elly admits she’s afraid of losing Tess, which Tess promises won’t happen. Though missing Em and Elly, Tess continues to live with Nick, finding it easier to forget Zoe there. Jimmy gets Tess a summer job at an amusement park where he works. Soon, Jimmy and Tess profess their love for one another. One day, Tess runs into Em and David at the amusement park, though Em refuses to acknowledge Tess.

On the evening of Tess’s 16th birthday, Nick and Jimmy are both arrested; Tess realizes Jimmy sells drugs with her father. Her mother brings her presents; Tess tells her about the park and Jimmy. When Nick and Jimmy arrive home, they accidentally hit Frank with the truck. Nick takes Frank to the vet, and Jimmy stays with Tess. As they begin to have sex for the first time, the noise from the headboard and the image of Frank being run over trigger Tess’s memories of Zoe’s death. They stop, and Tess tells Jimmy the story: Tess missed the school bus, and her mother instructed her to watch Zoe outside. Tess ran inside to watch news coverage of 9/11, and returned to find Zoe stepping off the curb, only to be hit by a car. Jimmy assures Tess that he still loves her. Nick calls later to say Frank is okay.

Later that night, Tess wakes up Nick, asking to see a picture of Zoe. Nick drives Tess to her old house, where Tess decides she’s going to stay. She joins Em in bed, who reveals that she’s been sleeping with a picture of Zoe under her pillow. Nick lets Tess keep Frank, and after they depart, Tess stands in the grass where Zoe landed after the car accident. After moving back in with Elly and David, Tess continues visiting church with her father, seeing Jimmy, and seeing a therapist with her family. She begins carrying the photo of Zoe with her at all times so she can look at it when she wants to.

Cast

 * Sadie Sink as Tess DeNunzio
 * Theo Rossi as Nick DeNunzio
 * Kweku Collins as Jimmy Freeze
 * Jessica Capshaw as Elly Gladstone
 * Justin Bartha as David Gladstone
 * Vivien Lyra Blair as Emily Gladstone
 * Mckenzie Noel Rusiewicz as Zoe Gladstone
 * Tanyell Waivers as Vicky

Production
Filming began in October 2019 in Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania and concluded in November 2019. The film spent an extended period of time in pre-production, with the novel originally optioned in 2010. Production occurred in Pittsburgh, with a primarily local crew.

Release
The film was released in select theatres and on demand starting November 4, 2022. It was released on DVD on December 13, 2022. It was released on Blu-ray on February 14, 2023.