Dawson’s Creek fans have been excited about the Katie Holmes–Joshua Jackson reunion at the heart of Holmes’ latest film Happy Hours since the first paparazzi photos emerged of the two actors walking down a New York City sidewalk.

But there was something broader that sparked Holmes’ idea for her latest work as a writer and director, which premiered earlier this month at the Tribeca Festival: the increased social isolation that many people have felt since the COVID-19 pandemic.

When asked what she hoped audiences grappling with those feelings of loneliness and a struggle to connect emotionally could take away from the film, Holmes told The Hollywood Reporter that she hoped people would “feel a sense of compassion for themselves and others and a sense of hope and that we can have fun again.”

Jackson added, “And that love is possible; life is long; there’s no given path; there’s no shelf life, and you’re going to be OK. It feels like knowing that you can take a deep breath and be OK right now is more important than it’s ever been.”

In putting together the cast for the film, Holmes didn’t just rely on her familiarity with Jackson, she also looked to the actors she’d worked with in the 2024 Broadway production of Our Town. Castmembers John McGinty, Donald Webber Jr. and Sky Smith were all part of the company of the Broadway production. McGinty had also worked with Jackson on Children of a Lesser God, describing joining Happy Hours as a “natural progression.”

Webber recalled how he and Holmes “became close friends” through their work on Our Town, and he was intrigued at the prospect of working with her on a project she wanted to direct.

“I thought there’s no way that this incredible person, incredible actress, incredible everything is also going to be an incredible director. And it turns out she was also an incredible director. I think people will see in the film,” Webber said. “I’m proud of the things that she’s able to get out of us because I think she’s an actor’s director.”

Indeed, as Holmes explained in a post-screening conversation with the cast and Tribeca Festival director and senior vp, programming Cara Cusumano, she and Webber would discuss the progress of this film during their time on Our Town.

“After the death scene every night, we would chitchat on the stairs,” Holmes said, addressing Webber. “You really pushed me to keep going, and you’d be like, ‘How’d that pitch go? And I’d be like, ‘Waiting to hear,’ or, ‘We’re going to keep trying.'”

Earlier, in her introductory remarks, Holmes spoke about how the film reflects the value of interpersonal connections and community.

“This film was made in the spirit of what Tribeca Film Festival is all about. What you’re about to see is a beautiful community of artists who inspire one another and support one another and who said yes to this experience,” she said. “Collaborating is not only fun but also essential and quite magical. We had a truly magical time making this film. And I thank everyone for sharing this vision with me. … Tonight is about this cast and crew. I truly love each and every one of you and I really wanted the camera to echo the light in each of you. Josh, thank you for sharing this space with me again. You created the ideal creative experience for me years ago and again on this film. This film is about connection and reconnection and our individual experiences that shape how we come together.”

For other actors, like Joe Tippett and Jack Martin, who plays the younger version of Jackson’s character and is part of the ensemble cast of Hulu’s Not Suitable for Work, it was the script that drew them to what Holmes envisions as a trilogy in the spirit of Richard Linklater’s Before films.

“It was one of the best scripts I’ve ever read,” Martin said. “It was phenomenal. I love romance movies — they’re some of my favorite movies, that genre. And this was just beautifully written, very authentic dialogue, incredible relationships, it really moved me emotionally reading it, which is rare for me. And Katie’s such a talent; she’s so incredible. It was one of those things where every single day that I was a part of it was better than the last. Everybody was just so kind and generous.”

Martin, Tippett and castmember Chloë Kerwin all spoke to Holmes’ supportive approach as a director.

“She’s just so encouraging and makes you feel like you’re on the right track always,” Kerwin said.

And Tippett joked, “She knows how to talk to actors and convince you you’re coming up with all of the ideas when they’re really hers.”

McGinty adds of Holmes, “She’s like a collaborator really. She’s amazing because she’s so open to so many different ideas, and it wasn’t like there was one way to do anything. She would ask what my ideas were, how to bring the character into life and think about what it would look like on the screen. Every time I work with her I learn about her as a person, as a human, on an intellectual level, on every level. I’m just so grateful.”

But, the reunion with Jackson is still of the most interest to fans.

Webber offered a slight tease, “Everybody asks me, ‘Do they get together in the movie? Do they stay together?’ Without giving anything away, all I can say is it was a reunion that’s worth the wait.”

And castmember Constance Wu shared her thoughts on why people are so eager to see the Dawson’s Creek alums together again.

“History between two people, which is kind of what this movie is about, that’s something that you can’t fake,” she said. “There is such a richness to their history, even by virtue of the time that they’ve known each other. They saw each other grow up, and that is a beautiful thing. And to look at that and appreciate that is very worthy of the big screen.”