BWW Roundup: Movie Musicals to Look Forward to in 2021!

After a year like this one, we could all use some musical warmth to look forward to. Luckily, we have it on good authority that several major Broadway musicals will be adapted and released as major motion pictures in the next year!

Some releases were delayed due to the COVID-19 pandemic, and some were originally set for 2021 - but, with the vaccine on the horizon, it feels like we can finally get excited about these exciting musical films again.

To celebrate the idea of seeing movies in theaters with friends again, BroadwayWorld compiled information about musical films set for release in 2021. Find out what we know below!

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IN THE HEIGHTS - JUNE 18, 2021

Lin-Manuel Miranda's Tony Award-winning first Broadway musical will bow on screen next June. "In The Heights" celebrates the diversity and character of a majority Latinx community in Washington Heights, Manhattan, New York City.

The film features an all-star cast, including "Hamilton" (and "In the Heights" original Broadway cast member) star Anthony Ramos, Corey Hawkins, Leslie Grace, Melissa Barrera, Stephanie Betriz, Dascha Polanco, Jimmy Smits, and more!

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WEST SIDE STORY - DECEMBER 10, 2021

Steven Spielberg's starry remake of Leonard Bernstein and Stephen Sondheim's masterpiece was pushed back a full year due to the ongoing pandemic. But we have it coming up in 2021! No trailer exists yet, but enjoy the above selection of photos from the upcoming feature.

Newcomer Rachel Zegler stars opposite Ansel Elgort and Broadway mainstays like Ariana DeBose, Mike Faist, Brian D'Arcy James, David Alvarez, Ben Cook, and Maddie Ziegler. Film's original Anita, Rita Moreno, even joins the cast in a reminaged version of the "Doc" role.

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EVERYBODY'S TALKING ABOUT JAMIE - TBA

Jamie may be coming along to save 2021... And you DON'T even know it. This hit West End musical based on the true story of teenage drag queen Jamie New is a powerful celebration of heart, uniqueness, and the power of creativity.

The film's release date has been pushed back several times - there is no official date set as of right now, but BroadwayWorld will be sure to update you when we know it for sure.
Richard E. Grant, Max Harwood, Sarah Lancashire, Lauren Patel, Shobna Gulati, Ralph Ineson, and Sharon Horgan round out the cast.

WHAT OTHER MOVIE MUSICALS ARE IN THE WORKS?

We don't have release dates just yet for these additional movie musicals, but we know they're coming!

An adaptation of "Tick, Tick... Boom!" is in the works from first-time feature film director Lin-Manuel Miranda. The musical is set in 1990 and follows Jon, an aspiring theater composer who waits tables in New York City while writing "Superbia," which he hopes will be the great American musical that will finally give him his big career break.

"Tick, Tick... Boom!" was written by the late, great Jonathan Larson. The cast includes Andrew Garfield, Alexandra Shipp, Vanessa Hudgens, Robin de Jesús, Joshua Henry, Judith Light, Bradley Whitford, and Noah Robbins. Filming wrapped in November of this year.

"Dear Evan Hansen" is also getting the movie musical treatment, helmed by Steven Chbosky. He wrote musical screenplays for the 2005 "Rent" film, and for the 2017 live adaptation of "Beauty and the Beast."

Ben Platt will reprise his Tony-winning performance in the film, which features a star-studded cast including Amy Adams, Julianne Moore, Amandla Stenberg, Kaitlyn Dever, and Danny Pino.

We have no word yet on when filming will commence, but, with all the recent casting announcements, it's safe to say the team is well into pre-production.

Other projects in the works include a musical film adaptation of "Cyrano," starring Peter Dinklage, and a live action "Little Mermaid" featuring Daveed Diggs, Halle Bailey, Jonah Hauer-King, Awkwafina, Jacob Tremblay, Melissa McCarthy, and Javier Bardem.

We also know that a film adaptation of Jason Robert Brown's "13: The Musical" is in the works - a casting notice went out several months ago.

"The Color Purple" and "Sunset Boulevard," musicals based on films, will return to the big screen in the form of their Broadway musical adaptations. "Little Shop of Horrors" (starring Taran Egerton, Scarlett Johanssen, Chris Evans, and Billy Porter) and "Fiddler on the Roof" are also eyeing film remakes.

"Fun Home" is also eyeing a big screen adaptation. A film adaptation of Sondheim's "Merrily We Roll Along," starring Ben Platt, Beanie Feldstein, and Blake Jenner, will be filmed by director Richard Linklater over the course of the next twenty years.