The new drama, Men, Women & Children boasts an impressive cast, including the up-and-coming young actress Kaitlyn Dever.

Dever is 17 years old and has already appeared in numerous television shows and movies. She had roles in Modern Family, The Mentalist, Justified and is part of the main cast in Last Man Standing. Her film roles include Bad Teacher, J. Edgar, The Spectacular Now and more recently in Short Term 12.

Men, Women & Children comes to Michigan theaters this October. The film centers on high school teenagers and their parents’ struggles with the internet and how it affects their relationships. Dever plays Brandy in the film who is a teenage girl that feels trapped due to her strict mother and somewhat by the technology around her. Dever explained that she and her character actually share some things in common.

“You sometimes see Brandy with a book whereas everyone else in the film is sort of on the computer,” Dever said. “I feel like that’s how I relate to it in some ways because I don’t have a need to go on social media.”

The film was directed by Academy Award nominated director Jason Reitman, who has directed such films as Juno and Up in the Air. Dever said it was a terrific experience working with such a talented director.

“I really felt like we were really good friends, which is important … He has his specific vision but also lets us explore our characters and I really appreciated that,” Dever said.

Men, Women & Children is a streak of films that Dever has starred in that has tackled some difficult topics. Last year she appeared in the drama Short Term 12 which focused on a teen residential treatment facility, and she also had a small role in The Spectacular Now, which was a coming-of-age teen film starring Miles Teller and Shailene Woodley.

“Doing these films that kind of touch on some serious environments, it’s a lot of fun,” Dever said. “I love doing different things and I love doing characters that are not myself. I like a lot of challenge and I definitely had a challenge for Short Term 12 and I absolutely had a challenge for Men, Women & Children.”

Men, Women & Children also stars Adam Sandler, Jennifer Garner, Dean Norris and Emma Thompson. It opens in Michigan theaters on Oct. 17.