Jason Patric Meets His Broadway Successor in “The Lost Boys” as Original Film Star Visits Hit Musical
Jason Patric Meets His Broadway Successor in “The Lost Boys” as Original Film Star Visits Hit Musical
Dave QuinnMon, June 15, 2026 at 8:00 PM UTC
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Jason Patric and LJ Benet backstage at 'The Lost Boys' on BroadwayCredit: Valerie Terranova -
Jason Patric attended a performance of The Lost Boys musical and reunited with producer Patrick Wilson backstage
Patric met LJ Benet, who now plays Michael in the Broadway adaptation and praised Patric's emotional depth in the role
The musical, directed by Michael Arden, won four Tony Awards and features a score by The Rescues
Jason Patric came face-to-face with the next Michael Emerson over the weekend.
On Saturday, June 13, the actor who originated the role in the 1987 cult classic The Lost Boys attended a performance of the hit Broadway musical adaptation before heading backstage to meet the cast.
Patric was joined by his son, Gus, for the visit, where he reunited with The Lost Boys producer Patrick Wilson (whom he costarred with in the 2004 historical film The Alamo) and posed for photos with the company fresh off the show's four Tony Award wins earlier this month.
Among those Patric met was LJ Benet, who now stars as Michael in the stage adaptation — stepping into the shoes Patric first filled nearly four decades ago.
The backstage gathering also included Tony Award winners Shoshana Bean and Ali Louis Bourzgui, with Patric posing for pics with both. He also stood for a group photo alongside the musical's extended cast.
Patrick Wilson, Shoshana Bean LJ Benet, Jason Patric, Ali Louis Bourzgui and Gus Patric pose backstage at 'The Lost Boys' on BroadwayCredit: Valerie Terranova
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The meeting comes just weeks after Benet spoke with PEOPLE about the experience of taking on a role so closely associated with Patric.
"Jason Patric is so cool," Benet said of the actor's performance in the original film. "It's kind of hard to be that cool, especially when you watch the movie and you just realize how smooth and how suave he is."
Jason Patric (center) with his son, Gus Patrick (to his right) and the cast of 'The Lost Boys' on BroadwayCredit: Valerie Terranova
While preparing for the Broadway production, Benet said he found himself drawn to the emotional depth Patric brought to Michael, a teenager who moves to the coastal town of Santa Carla and becomes entangled with a gang of vampires.
"When I was watching it, I just felt like he was carrying a lot of weight behind his eyes," Benet recalled. "There's a lot of stuff that the movie doesn't really talk about in terms of his dad and what happened before they got to Santa Carla and why they're in Santa Carla in the first place."
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Benet said he tried to "channel" that same emotional complexity in his own performance. "When you're dealing with abuse like that, you don't really showcase it," he explained. "You kind of hide behind a facade, if you will. And I feel like that's what Jason Patric did so well."
LJ Benet, Ali Louis Bourzgui, Brian Flores, Dean Maupin, Sean Grandillo in 'The Lost Boys' Broadway musicalCredit: Matthew Murphy
The Broadway adaptation of The Lost Boys officially opened at the Palace Theatre in New York City on April 26, after beginning preview performances on March 27.
Directed by Michael Arden, the production features a score by The Rescues and a book by David Hornsby and Chris Hoch. It was nominated for 12 Tony Awards including Best Musical and wound up taking home four, including Best Scenic Design of a Musical and Best Lighting Design of a Musical.
In addition to Bean, Benet and Bourzgui, The Lost Boys also stars Benjamin Pajak, Maria Wirries, Paul Alexander Nolan, Jennifer Duka, Miguel Gil, Brian Flores, Sean Grandillo and Dean Maupin. The ensemble includes Ryan Behan, Grace Capeless, Mateus Leite Cardoso, Ben Crawford, Dominic Dorset, Carissa Gaughran, Ashley Jenkins, Liesie Kelly, Cameron Loyal, Pierre Marais, Mason Olshavsky, Hank Santos, Colin Trudell, DeLaney Westfall and Pierce Wheeler.
As for the film, released in 1987 and directed by Joel Schumacher, the comedic teen vampire thriller became an instant box office success and helped cement the careers of several members of its young cast, including Patric, Corey Haim — who starred as Michael's younger brother, Sam — and Kiefer Sutherland who played vampire gang leader, David.
The ensemble cast also included Jami Gertz, Dianne Wiest, Edward Herrmann, Corey Feldman and Jamison Newlander. The movie's soundtrack — featuring songs like "Cry Little Sister" — became nearly as iconic as the film itself.
Nearly 40 years later, The Lost Boys remains one of pop-culture's most beloved vampire movies ever made, inspiring comic books and sequels.
"I'm glad it's a touchstone for people," Patric told Entertainment Weekly in 2011, reflecting on the film's legacy. "I went on to do so many other things, that for the first ten years after it [was released], it annoyed me, this Lost Boys stuff — when I felt like I had made some really good, interesting movies. But it's a part of what I've done now, I'm happy with it."
Tickets for The Lost Boys are now on sale.
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