Interview: Lin-Manuel Miranda on "Encanto" and "tick, tick...BOOM!"

by Nathaniel R

at the world premiere of "tick, tick, BOOM!"

I had the pleasure of interviewing Lin-Manuel Miranda in November while he was doing press for Encanto, now streaming on Disney+ with its soundtrack doing great business, too. He was energetic and smiling and gave great quote. Just a few days later, in a significantly less arranged moment, we came face-to-face the night of tick, tick... BOOM!'s premiere in Los Angeles. The response to the movie that night couldn't have been dreamier. He looked elated if significantly more tired than he had over Zoom. He admitted at the party that the entire week was a total blur. Just the week? The entire past year has been one Lin-Manuel Miranda highlight after another. So much so that we named him one of our top three entertainers of the year. In addition to questions about Encanto, tick, tick...BOOM!, and Hamilton, I made sure to ask him how he finds time for sleep.

[This interview has been edited for clarity.]

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Peter Bogdanovich (1939-2022)

by Eric Blume

Oscar-nominated director Peter Bogdanovich has died at age 82.  Famous primarily for directing three classic films consecutively early in his career, he was a true lover of the medium and a key influence on fostering in a new energy in American cinema during the 1970s. 

Bogdanovich's early career was as a film programmer for New Yorks' Museum of Modern Art.  He watched over 400 films a year and kept reviews for each one of them.  His passion for and understanding of film got him a gig as assistant to Roger Corman, who helped him direct his first film, Targets, in 1968.  This led to the three-film master stretch for which Bogdanovich is most remembered and treasured...

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The Case for Andrew Garfield Winning Best Actor

By Ben Miller

Garfield at The Hollywood Reporter actor's roundtableWill Smith has had his name chiseled into the Best Actor Oscar since we first laid eyes on the trailer for King Richard.  It's a foregone conclusion, no need to pay attention to anyone else.  As with Best Actor last season and Best Actress 2018, everyone knows who is going to win, so it doesn't matter who the Academy votes for! If your memory is fogging up, it's because those "foregone conclusion" frontrunners in 2018 and 2020 did not, in fact, take home the trophy.

2021 may well repeat history as Andrew Garfield campaigns, charms, and web-slings his way into the conversation to take home Best Actor on Oscar night.  Let's break down the reasons why Garfield could walk away with the trophy...

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One For Them, One For Me: Noah Baumbach's "Madagascar 3" and "Frances Ha"

A new series by Christopher James

Noah Baumbach at a screening of Frances Ha

Do one for them; do one for you. If you can still do projects for yourself, you can keep your soul.

— Martin Scorsese: A Journey

Many creatives have pointedly or inadvertently taken Martin Scorsese’s career advice. One has to hit it big in order to have clout in Hollywood. Often, it takes clout to make passion projects. In this column, we want to look at the times wherein a filmmaker or actor’s career triumphs have come at a time where they’ve also had to make compromises. In some cases, people have taken the easy cash grab in order to sustain more creative endeavors. Other times, the populist “one for them” ends up being a creative triumph, loosening the talent up.

The first entry in this series belongs to Noah Baumbach, for his wonderfully chaotic 2012. In the same year he begins his partnership behind the camera with Greta Gerwig in Frances Ha (released in 2013), he secretly writes Madagascar 3: Europe’s Most Wanted. Do these movies share any DNA, or is it a textbook case of “one for them (I need money), one for me (I’m an artist)”?

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Almost There: Peter Dinklage in "The Station Agent"

by Cláudio Alves

With Cyrano in cinemas at the end of the month, Peter Dinklage is on the hunt for his first Oscar nomination. Playing a musicalized version of the classic role, the actor can capitalize on his stardom, which has been steadily growing over the past decade. After years of being ignored, Dinklage's stint in Game of Thrones made him a household name, beloved by the industry and with a slew of trophies to show for it. Will an Oscar nomination be next? It's the second time he's seeking Hollywood's most coveted statuette, having also been a contender back in 2003. Tom McCarthy's The Station Agent was Dinklage's breakthrough, an indie gem with incredible acting across the board…

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