EXCLUSIVE: Jim Parsons previews gay dramedy ‘Spoiler Alert,’ reveals touching personal connection
Spoiler Alert: The Hero Dies, in which celebrated entertainment journalist (and TVLine co-founder) Michael Ausiello recounts his husband Kit Cowan’s terminal cancer diagnosis and their final months together.“I will be honest, the book sat on the counter for several weeks until I was taking this little vacation—I thought it’d be a good time to read it,” Parsons reveals to Queerty with a chuckle. “Which is true and not true, because I was devastated by it.”Still, he couldn’t put it down. “I can’t imagine anybody else writing with such precision and clarity what it is to stand next to somebody as they go on this end-of-life journey like this.” He was so moved, in fact, that he optioned the film rights shortly after finishing the book.
For Parsons, the urge to tell Ausiello’s life-affirming story on the big screen was “irresistible.”Fast forward to five years later, and the actor is thrilled to share the first trailer for Spoiler Alert, a heartwarming adaptation of the memoir—which stars Ben Aldridge, Sally Field, Bill Irwin, Jeffrey Self, and Parsons himself as his friend Michael Ausiello.Watch the brand-new trailer here, and then head below to read more from Queerty‘s exclusive conversation with Parsons and Spoiler Alert director Michael Showalter:Thanks to their work on—and about—television, Parsons and Ausiello’s paths had crossed many times over the years.
According to the actor, he’s long felt a strong personal connection to the story of Ausiello and his husband, who passed in 2015.“[Their] story echoed so many facets of my own life—not the tragic part of the journey, by the grace of God—but the long-term relationship,” Parsons shares.
