Before YOUNG WASHINGTON reached living rooms, screenwriter Diederik Hoogstraten had a more immediate question: Would audiences show up?
“Ultimately, all you can do is pray and wait,” he told ChurchLeaders. Even with excitement building before the release, he didn’t know how moviegoers would respond.
Then came a trip to a screening in Utah with his children. Hoogstraten recalled learning that the weekend’s showings had sold out, and he said fathers especially appreciated having a movie they could watch with their sons.
“A hero’s journey about a hero worth celebrating,” he said, describing the movie’s appeal.
The response extended well beyond that theater. According to Box Office Mojo, YOUNG WASHINGTON earned more than $47 million in domestic ticket sales, which opened July 3 and reached No. 2 at the domestic box office on Independence Day.
Now families can catch up at home. Wonder Project announced Oct. 1 that YOUNG WASHINGTON had joined its subscription service on Prime Video after its theatrical and digital releases.
Director Jon Erwin’s movie follows George Washington before the American Revolution, when difficult choices and early failures were still shaping the future president. Actor William Franklyn-Miller plays Washington, alongside actor Kelsey Grammer as Lord Fairfax, actress Mary-Louise Parker as Mary Washington and actor Ben Kingsley as Robert Dinwiddie.
For Hoogstraten, telling that story meant balancing recognizable history with the demands of a drama. He told ChurchLeaders that the production took creative liberties with some dialogue and scenes while keeping the major historical events intact.
“I would say that the big sort of signposts of the movie are all true, are all historically accurate, and so are all the characters that you see,” he said of the movie’s historical accuracy.
He also pointed to the story’s treatment of Washington’s Christian faith and God’s providence, including conversations with Washington’s mother and a Native American warrior. For parents, those themes bring the conversation beyond dates and battle plans to the beliefs and choices that shape a life.
Wonder Project offers viewers a way to keep that conversation going. Its official movie page features a 45-minute historian roundtable with Erwin and an extended student discussion guide focused on character, leadership and decision-making.
That gives parents something to reach for after the credits: a chance to ask which choices helped shape Washington, where he stumbled and how the dramatized story compares with the evidence. The future president’s mistakes can start a more useful conversation than simply treating him as a name to memorize.
There may be more of his story ahead, though Hoogstraten stopped short of announcing a sequel. He said Erwin has publicly expressed interest in a movie called 1776 that would move to the Revolutionary War, and Hoogstraten hopes it happens.
For now, viewers have YOUNG WASHINGTON and the history behind it to explore. In its October announcement, Wonder Project listed its US Prime Video subscription at $8.99 monthly or $89.99 annually after a seven-day free trial.
Read Next: YOUNG WASHINGTON Snags No. 2 July 4th Movie Spot, Director Begins Sequel
Questions or comments? Please write to us here.
