by Nathaniel R
In the Heights
In the recent Yes No Maybe So post I mentioned that we were getting three musicals in the space of seven months. But that was a gross understatement as I hadn't yet finished my Oscar chart research for 2021. There are actually TEN musicals... no make that eleven (!) that are supposed to arrive before Christmas. Release dates are subject to change, of course. The current schedule represents Hollywood doubling-down, no quintupling down, on audiences salivating en masse for musicals in the way they currently only do for animated fare and superhero films. (That'd be a wonderful world of course, if audiences were so inclined.)
Lin-Manuel Miranda, of Hamilton fame, is spectacularly talented but looking at this schedule we're a little worried for him. We don't want Miranda to become the next Ryan Murphy -- i.e. stretched thin, predictable, veering into being a Brand first and artist second, and offering diminishing returns. Given that Miranda is involved in more than a third of these musicals, that's a major oversaturation risk. Tell us which of these ten you're most excited about in the comments...
In the Heights (June 11th, Warner Bros/HBO Max in theaters & streaming)
The 2008 Best Musical Tony winner written and starring Lin-Manuel Miranda made him famous. He's playing a supporting role in the movie this time with Anthony Ramos (A Star is Born, Hamilton) taking over the leading role. Olga Merediz reprises her Tony-nominated supporting role of Abuela Cladia.
Annette (Amazon, August 6th, in theaters and streaming?)
This musical drama was originally expected in 2020 but... you know... COVID-19 intervened. It's now ready to go and it's currently planning on a summer bow. It is an original musical from the always provocative French director Leos Carax (Lovers on the Bridge, Holy Motors) and it's about a comedia (Adam Driver) and his opera singer wife (Marion Cotillard) and their gifted child.
Dear Evan Hansen (September 24th, Universal Pictures in theaters)
The 2017 Best Musical Tony winner (it also won Best Featured Actress and Best Actor for the central mother and son characters) gets a live-action production with its original star (Ben Platt) and Julianne Moore in the key roles. The doomed character of Connor, whose suicide kicks off the plot, was played by Mike Faist on Broadway (Tony nomination) and though Faist isnt in this movie he'll potentially break out in another screen musical this year; he's playing the Russ Tamblyn "Riff" role in the West Side Story remake.
Cinderella (September TBA, Sony/Amazon in theaters/VOD)
Showbiz's favourite fairy tale has been told so many times that there are multiple non-musical and musical adaptations. What's more the musical adaptations are frequent enough that they aren't even remakes of each other but have their own scores! The latest will star Camila Cabello and comes from writer/director Kay Cannon and co-writer James Corden (sigh) who Hollywood feels duty-bound to cast in everything. Since he co-wrote and produced this one we'll let it slide. THIS ONE TIME. Seriously Hollywood we don't need this much James Corden every year. There are other actors; many of them are funnier and better at acting!
Encanto (November 24th, Disney in theaters?)
A Lin-Manuel Miranda original animated musical for Disney. It's about a young Colombian girl who comes from a magical family.
West Side Story (December 20th, 20th Century Studios/Disney in theaters)
Steven Spielberg's remake of the 1961 Best Picture winning classic, which was itself based on the 1958 Tony nominated musical which was itself a loose adaptation/riff on Shakespeare's Romeo & Juliet.
Sing 2 (December 22nd, Universal Pictures in theaters)
A sequel to the very popular animated animals singing contest movie.
TBA BUT ALSO EXPECTED THIS CALENDAR YEAR
Vivo (previously scheduled for June from Sony. 2021 TBA on Netflix)
Another Lin-Manuel Miranda original animated musical. This was originally scheduled for June the week before In the Heights opened. Now its both no longer dated and headed to Netflix. It's about a kinkajou travelling to Miami to deliver a message in the form of a song.
Everybody's Talking about Jamie (previously scheduled for 2020. Amazon, streaming in September)
This British stage hit about a teenager who wants to be a drag queen got a feature adaptation last year. It was delayed due to COVID. It was a Fox production that Amazon has now bought... Did Disney not want it? Perhaps too adult for Disney Plus?
Tony winners Lin-Manuel Miranda and Karen Olivo rehearsing for a concert version of "Tick Tick Boom!" several years ago.
tick...tick... Boom! (TBA on Netflix)
A FOURTH LIN-MANUEL MIRANDA MUSICAL. Well... not exactly. This one is actually written by the late composer Jonathan Larson (of Rent fame) but Lin-Manuel Miranda is testing the waters of movie directing with it, rather than directing his own piece In the Heights as his debut behind the camera. It's like musical chairs for this genre. We suspect this is Miranda's self-audition and if he pulls it off, he'll want to oversee the Hamilton film version. tick... tick... Boom! is an autobiographical musical and Andrew Garfield is playing the late composer. Bradley Whitford is in a supporting role as the legendary composer Stephen Sondheim. The cast is filled with great Broadway talent, too. Tony winner Judith Light (Other Desert Cities, The Assembled Parties), and Tony nominees Beth Malone (Fun Home), Joshua Henry (Carousel, The Scottsboro Boys), and Robin de Jesus (In the Heights, Boys in the Band, La Cage Aux Folles) all appear.
Cyrano (MGM/UA, TBA in theaters)
Joe Wright (Atonement, Woman in the Window) is directing this musical version of the oft-told Cyrano Bergerac tale and it will star Peter Dinklage. This is adapted from a 2019 Off-Broadway production that starred Dinklage with songs by members of the band The National. Dinklage is the only cast member making the leap to the film which will now also star Kelvin Harrison Jr as Christian, Ben Mendelsohn as De Guiche, and Haley Bennett as Roxanne. Though it doesn't have a release date yet it was already in post production several months ago.
ELEVEN MUSICALS. HOLLYWOOD FINALLY DECIDED YOU LOVED THE GENRE. I MEAN, WE DO... BUT WE DIDN'T THINK THEY WERE LISTENING.