A Beautiful Day in the Neighborhood

Plot[edit]

In 1998, at the beginning of an episode of Mister Rogers' Neighborhood, Mr. Rogers displays a picture board with five doors. Three of the doors are opened to reveal the familiar faces of Lady Aberlin, King Friday, and Mr. McFeely. The fourth door is opened to reveal the face of Mr. Rogers' troubled new friend, Lloyd Vogel, who has a black eye and a cut near his nose. Mr. Rogers explains that Lloyd has been hurt (and not necessarily on his face), and he is struggling to forgive the one who hurt him. After explaining what forgiveness means, Mr. Rogers leaves to visit Lloyd.


Lloyd Vogel is an Esquire journalist known for his cynical writing. He is nervous to attend his sister Lorraine's third wedding because his estranged father, Jerry, against whom he has long held a grudge, is also attending. However, he attends with his wife Andrea and their newborn son, Gavin. During the reception, Lloyd is approached by Jerry, who notes his son’s new family. When Jerry makes a joke about Lloyd's deceased mother Lila -- whom he cheated on and abandoned when she was dying of cancer twenty years earlier -- this enrages Lloyd into punching his father and starting a chaotic brawl, in which he is punched against the wall by another guest, explaining the scar on his face.


Lloyd's editor, Ellen, assigns him to interview children's television presenter Fred Rogers for a 400-word article about heroes. Lloyd feels that the assignment is beneath him, but is informed that none of the other heroes were willing to talk to him. Still cynical, Lloyd questions whether Mister Rogers is "for real". Lloyd travels to the WQED studio in Pittsburgh to interview him. Rogers is dismissive of his fame and displays concern for Lloyd's nose injury. With coaxing, he relates some of the issues with his father, whose apology and attempt at reconciliation Lloyd has rebuffed. Rogers tells him his ways of dealing with anger, including striking the keys of a piano.


Determined to expose Rogers' friendly persona as an act, Lloyd watches several episodes of Rogers' show, but cannot discern anything. Interviewing Rogers again when he visits New York, seemingly dodging Lloyd's questions, he reminisces about raising his two sons. Fred takes out his puppets and asks Lloyd about his childhood rabbit stuffed animal and his father, provoking Lloyd into ending the interview.


Lloyd arrives home to find Jerry and his wife Dorothy having brought pizza while talking with Andrea. They have a tense argument over Jerry’s absence during Lila’s cancer progression and his self-development since. As Lloyd relates how his mother suffered hysterically in her last moments with only him and his sister present, Jerry suffers a heart attack and is transported to the hospital.


Faced with his resurgent trauma at staying overnight at the hospital for Jerry, Lloyd decides to go to Pittsburgh to see Rogers for counsel under the guise of work against Andrea’s protests. Exhausted on arriving, he envisions himself as Rogers’ guest, being asked about hospitals. Next, he finds himself wearing rabbit ears and shrunken to the size of Daniel Striped Tiger and King Friday XIII, while Rogers and Andrea (as Lady Aberlin) tower over him. Finally, Lloyd also dreams about Lila, who gently recognizes his anger being for her memory, but assures him that she doesn’t need it. Lloyd awakens to find he collapsed on set.


Rogers and his wife, Joanne, bring Lloyd to their home to recuperate. The men later go to a restaurant, where Rogers asks Lloyd to spend one minute thinking about the people who "loved him into being", and encourages him to forgive Jerry.


Lloyd apologizes to Andrea for leaving her and Gavin at the hospital and visits Jerry and Dorothy at their home. He learns Jerry is dying of cardiac stenosis, and that is why Jerry attempted to reconnect with Lloyd. Lloyd forgives him, promises to be a better father, and writes an article about Rogers' impact on his life. Dorothy tells Lloyd that Jerry had never mentioned his previous marriage or children until recently, after he became ill.


Lorraine, her husband Todd, and Rogers visit Jerry. Rogers asks Jerry to pray for him before he departs. Jerry dies shortly after Rogers' visit and Lloyd's 10,000-word article, "Can You Say ... Hero?" is published as Esquire's cover story.


At his studio, Rogers finishes the episode he was earlier working on, opening the fifth and final door on his picture board, revealing a picture of Lloyd happily reunited with his family. As the production ends, Mr. Rogers plays the piano alone, stops, strikes the keys in frustration, and resumes playing.