What we know about Netflix's tick, tick… BOOM! 💥
The film marks Lin-Manuel Miranda's feature directorial debut
2021 is proving to be a golden year for movie musicals with plenty of exciting film adaptations on the way and one of them is tick, tick… BOOM! The film is based on the semi-autobiographical musical of the same name by RENT composer, Jonathan Larson - who will be played by Andrew Garfield.
The film also marks the directorial debut of Lin-Manuel Miranda adding to his wide range of work. So join us as we dive into everything you need to know about this upcoming movie musical including the plot, cast and a whole lot more.
What is tick, tick… BOOM! about?
The film is set in 1990 and follows a composer called Jon (Andrew Garfield), who's spending his time waiting tables but he dreams of writing the next great American musical. Ahead of a performance that could change everything for him he begins to feel the pressure from all ends.
His girlfriend Susan (Alexandra Shipp) seeks an artistic life beyond New York City, his best friend Michael (Robin de Jesús) has given up on his artistic ambitions and opted for financial security and the artistic community is currently being ravaged by the AIDS crisis. Jon finds himself wondering what he should be doing with his life before he runs out of time.
Who's in the cast?
Andrew Garfield as Jon
Andrew is best known for his portrayal of Peter Parker / Spider-Man in the Amazin Spider-Man films he's also appeared in the films Mainstream and The Eyes of Tammy Faye. On the stage Andrew played Prior Walter in the National Theatre's 2017 revival of Angels in America.
Vanessa Hudgens as Karessa
Vanessa rose to fame as Gabriella in Disney's High School Musical film series she's also appeared in a couple of live TV musicals including Grease Live! as Rizzo and Rent: Live as Maureen.
Alecandra Shipp as Susan
Alexandra is best known for her portrayal of Ororo Munroe / Storm in the later films of the X-Men franchise as well as playing Abby in Love, Simon.
Bradley Whitford as Stephen Sondheim
Emmy award winner Bradley has appeared in several successful TV series including The West Wing, Transparent and The Handmaid's Tale.
Judith Light as Rosa Stephens
Judith may be most recognisable to UK audiences as Claire Meade from Ugly Betty which aired on Channel 4 in the UK. Her other TV work includes Transparent, The Politician and American Crime Story.
She also has two Tony Awards for Best Featured Actress in a Play for Other Desert Cities and The Assembled Parties.
Joshua Henry as Roger
Joshua was in the ensemble for the original off-Broadway and Broadway production of In the Heights, he received a Tony nomination for his role as Haywood Patterson in The Scottsboro Boys. Joshua played Aaron Burr in the Chicago and first US touring productions of Hamilton.
Robin de Jesús as Michael
Robin was the original Sonny in In the Heights from its 2005 run in Waterford to its Broadway production. He was Jacob in the 2010 Broadway revival of La Cage Aux folles and has played Boq in Wicked both on Broadway and during its second US tour. Robin recently appeared in Netflix's adaptation of The Boys in the Band.
Joel Grey as Allan Larson
Joel Grey has a vast career on stage and screen over the past 70 years. He's best known for originating the role of the Master of Ceremonies in Cabaret - a role he went on to play in the film's 1972 film adaptation. He played the Wizard when Wicked first opened on Broadway in 2003 and played "Moonface" Martin in the 2011 Broadway revival of Anything Goes.
Also appearing is Richard Kind, Michaela Jaé (MJ) Rodriguez, Joanna Adler, Noah Robbins, Beth Malone, Tariq Trotter, Alex D. Jennings, Kate Rockwell, Mason Versaw and Ben Ross.
Who is directing the tick, tick… BOOM! movie?
The film adaptation will mark the feature directorial debut of In The Heights and Hamilton creator Lin-Manuel Miranda. When speaking about the the musical Lin said: “tick, tick…BOOM! is a corner of the world I know from every angle.
“I know what it’s like to be a struggling songwriter. I know what it is to be in your 20s writing that one musical, what it’s like to be in New York with a bunch of friends with artistic dreams and then watch them drop off one by one, to real life, while you’re still hanging on.
“It’s a story of doubling down on your craft in the face of impossible odds, which is not unique to musical theatre — it’s the struggle of any artist trying to make a living doing the thing they love.”
WATCH: tick, tick… BOOM! official trailer
Who wrote tick, tick… BOOM!?
Jonathan Larson was the man behind tick, tick… BOOM!, he wrote the show as a 'rock monologue' in the early 1990s performing it in Off-off-Broadway venues. The musical the Jonathan Larson is best known for was RENT which was loosely based on Giacomo Puccini's La Bohéme where it saw a group of young artist friends living in Lower Manhattan's East Village in the late 1980s who deal with homelessness, love, and the AIDS crisis.
On the morning of 25th January 1996, the same day as RENT's opening night Off-Broadway, Jonathan passed away at his home after suffering an aortic dissection. He never got to see the huge success that RENT became including a 12 year run on Broadway, a Pulitzer Prize for Drama and a Tony Award for Best Musical.
Following Jonathan's death, his friend and producer of tick, tick… BOOM! Victoria Leacock asked Pulitzer Prize-winner David Auburn to look at the script. David restructured the show's monologue format to be a for three actors instead. This version premiered Off-Broadway in 2001.
The screenplay for the film adaptation is written by Steven Levenson who wrote the book for Dear Evan Hansen as well as the screenplay for its film adaptation.
When will tick, tick… BOOM! be released?
The film adaptation of tick, tick… BOOM! will be released in select UK cinemas in November and will arrive on Netflix on Friday 19th November 2021.
tick, tick… BOOM!: Soundtrack
The soundtrack is set to be released along with the film's theatrical release on 12th November. The songs '30/90' and 'Louder Than Words' have already been released. Another song we should expect to hear in the film is the song 'Sunday' which Jonathan Larson wrote paying homage to Stephen Sondheim's song of the same name from Sunday in the Park with George.
Will there be any new songs?
Full details of the film's soundtrack aren't known but it has been common practice for film adaptations of musicals to add a new song to mix and with the film having a bigger cast it seems very likely.
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