After starring in Heartstopper and Agatha All Along, the whole world is wondering what Joe Locke might do next — and some of his fans think they’ve cracked the code.
Locke could be an early casting pick for the rumored Spring Awakening movie, a long-awaited film adaptation for the beloved musical, which first opened on Broadway nearly two decades ago in 2006. Fans have picked up on increasingly frequent interactions between Locke and Steven Sater, who wrote the musical’s book and lyrics and would no doubt have a hand in the Spring Awakening movie, too.
Locke and Sater’s relationship began when Sater saw Locke’s Broadway debut in Sweeney Todd early in 2024. Sater posted a selfie with Locke to his Instagram story, adding the caption, “simply the best.” In a TikTok live later that year, Sater told fans, “I could see Joe Locke as Moritz,” referring to one of the musical’s two male leads. “Joe Locke really wants to do the Spring Awakening movie,” Sater added.
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Indeed, Locke has been loud and clear about his love for the musical and his desire to be a part of it, be it on stage or on the silver screen. In an interview with MTV last fall, Locke was asked his dream theater role. “I’d love to play Melchior in Spring Awakening,” he replied, name-dropping the show’s other male lead. “Or if they do like a Spring Awakening film or something, I would just love to be in it. Not even a subtle hint, that. If anyone who has the power to do that is watching this, then I’d drop anything to do that.”
“Imagine Patti LuPone as Wendla. That’d be great,” he added with a laugh.
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“‘Agatha’ was the first time I’ve felt like I was an actual actor,” Locke said on the red carpet at the Independent Spirit Awards.
“We’ve moved on from that sort of thing,” Locke said of the previously unconfirmed movie in an interview last month.
Cut to the present, and Sater and Locke only seem to be getting closer. Last week, Sater posted another selfie with Locke to his Instagram story, this time calling him “brilliant” in the caption.
Then, in a recent TikTok livestream, Sater mentioned Locke multiple times. When one viewer asked if Sater knew that Locke was interested in being in Spring Awakening, Sater replied, “I’ve talked to Joe Locke about it. We got together last week.”
“I love Joe Locke. We’re becoming friends,” Sater said elsewhere in the livestream. “I think he’s a brilliant talent.”
That was all fans needed to ramp the theorizing up to 11. Though the Spring Awakening movie has yet to be officially greenlit, if it does enter production soon, we wouldn’t be shocked to see Locke join the project in his first film role as Melchior, Mortiz, or any member of the musical’s ensemble cast. Time to manifest, folks.
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