What We Know (So Far) About the TICK, TICK... BOOM! Movie

The late, great Jonathan Larson's semi-autobiographical musical "Tick, Tick... Boom!" is getting the movie musical treatment, helmed by "Hamilton" creator Lin-Manuel Miranda! BroadwayWorld collected all the information we could about the upcoming film - including who's starring, what roles haven't yet been cast, and what will change from stage to screen.

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.

The young man is feeling pressure from his girlfriend Susan, who is tired of continuing to put her life on hold for Jon's career aspiration. Meanwhile, Jon's best friend and roommate Michael has given up on his creative dream and has taken a high paying advertising job on Madison Avenue and is preparing to move out. As Jon approaches his 30th birthday, he is overcome with anxiety, wondering if his own impossible dream is worth the cost.

Find out all we know about the upcoming film below!

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Who's in the Cast of the TICK, TICK... BOOM! Movie?

The star-studded cast of TICK, TICK... BOOM! includes Andrew Garfield, Alexandra Shipp, Vanessa Hudgens, Robin de Jesús, Joshua Henry, Judith Light, Bradley Whitford, and Noah Robbins.

Andrew Garfield plays Jon, the leading role and facsimile of Larson himself. He is an Academy Award-nominated actor who was recently seen on stage in The National Theatre's production of Angels in America directed by Tony Award-winning Marianne Elliott. He played Prior Walter in the production, which transferred to Broadway in 2018.

Garfield, a former "Spiderman," also starred in a Broadway revival of "Death of a Salesman" in 2012.

Alexandra Shipp played legendary singer Aaliyah in "Aaliyah: The Princess of R&B," and Ororo Munroe ("Storm") in several films in the "X-Men" franchise. She also had roles in "Love, Simon" and "Straight Outta Compton." She plays Susan, Jon's girlfriend.

Vanessa Hudgens starred in the Broadway production of Gigi. She is also known for her iconic roles in "High School Musical" (and its two sequels) and "The Princess Switch" (and its upcoming Netflix sequel).

Hudgens' career has intersected with both Miranda and Larson's work in the past; She played Vanessa in Miranda's "In the Heights" at the Kennedy Center in 2010 and Mimi in Larson's "RENT" at the Hollywood Bowl in 2010. In "Tick, Tick.. Boom!", Hudgens plays Karessa Johnson, an actor in Jon's musical.

De Jesús is a two-time Tony nominee: for Miranda's "In the Heights," and for last season's production of "The Boys in the Band." He reprised his "Boys in the Band" role on Netflix earlier this year.

His Broadway credits also include"La Cage aux Folles" and "Wicked." On screen, he starred in "Camp," "Fat Girls," and more. He plays Michael, Jon's childhood friend and a former actor who's revealed to be HIV-positive, in "Tick, Tick.. Boom!

Joshua Henry is a three-time Tony nominee for "Carousel," "Violet," and "The Scottsboro Boys." He's a Broadway staple, with credits including "Shuffle Along," "Porgy and Bess," "American Idiot," and Miranda's "Bring It On" and "In the Heights." He continued his collaboration with Miranda's work in "Hamilton" on tour, playing Aaron Burr.

He plays Roger, a newly-conceived character, in "Tick, Tick... Boom!"

Judith Light is well known for her extensive body of work on stage, in film and television. She recently led Amazon Prime's award-winning series, "Transparent," created by Jill Soloway.

She is also recognized for her impressive body of stage work; receiving a Tony nomination for the play "Lombardi," followed by two consecutive Tony and Drama Desk wins for the plays "Other Desert Cities" by Jon Robin Baitz and "The Assembled Parties" by Richard Greenberg. She has been a longtime advocate in the fight to end HIV/AIDS.

Light plays Rosa Stevens in the movie, a role usually covered by the actor playing Michael.

Bradley Whitford is probably best known for his long run playing Josh Lyman on "The West Wing." His Broadway credits include "Boeing-Boeing" and "A Few Good Men."

In the movie, he will play musical theatre giant and Jon's greatest influence Stephen Sondheim - a role never explicitly defined in the original musical.

Noah Robbins joins the cast in an unspecified role. He made his Broadway debut as Eugene Morris Jerome in the short-lived but memorable 2009 revival of Brighton Beach Memoirs (Outer Critics Circle nomination).

His Off-Broadway debut was as 'Andy Lipman' in Primary Stages' Secrets of the Trade (Clive Barnes nomination). Starting at the age of 11, he performed in several shows at the Kennedy Center with director/choreographer Debbie Allen. His big break, however, was playing Max Bialystock in an off-off-off-off-off-Broadway production of The Producers at his high school.

What Roles Haven't Yet Been Cast in the TICK, TICK... BOOM Movie?

Ostensibly all of the major roles from the "Tick, Tick... Boom!" musical have been cast at this point. Because of structural changes for the film, however, there could be new cast members playing new and expanded characters added as time goes on. BroadwayWorld will update you whenever we get this information!

What's Different About the TICK, TICK... BOOM Movie?

In the original musical, all roles are split between three actors. In the movie, a different actor will play each role.

Additionally, Stephen Sondheim is discussed, but never seen, in the original musical; Bradley Whitford has signed on to play the lyricist and composer in the film.

Who's Directing the TICK, TICK... BOOM Movie?

Pulitzer Prize, Tony, Emmy, and Grammy winner Lin-Manuel Miranda will make his feature directorial debut on "Tick, Tick... Boom!"

He also starred in a 2014 off-Broadway production of the musical at "Encores!", directed by Oliver Butler and artistic directed by Jeanine Tesori.

Miranda is the creator and original star of Broadway's "Hamilton" and "In the Heights," and the recipient of the 2015 MacArthur Foundation Award and 2018 Kennedy Center Honors. He played Jack in the 2018 sequel film "Mary Poppins Returns."

He honored Jonathan Larson in the New York Times in July of 2014:

"Rent' rocked my perception of what musical theater could be in several ways. It was the first musical I had ever seen with a cast as diverse as the subway riders I saw on the way to school. It was the first musical I had ever seen that took place in the present day, and sounded like the present day. The characters were worried about the things I worried about: finding a community, being an artist, surviving in New York," he wrote. Read the whole piece here.

Who Wrote the TICK, TICK... BOOM movie?

"Dear Evan Hansen" bookwriter and screen adaptor Steven Levenson penned the script for the upcoming adaptation of Jonathan Larson's musical.

Levenson's plays also include The Unavoidable Disappearance Of Tom Durnin (Roundabout Theatre Company, Outer Critics Circle John Gassner Memorial Playwriting Award), Core Values (Ars Nova, Drama Desk Nomination for Outstanding Play), The Language of Trees (Roundabout), and Seven Minutes In Heaven (Colt Coeur; Emerging America Festival/Huntington Theater Company).

He previously collaborated with Miranda on "Fosse/Verdon," the celebrated FX miniseries about the life, love, and collaboration between Bob Fosse and Gwen Verdon. Levenson served as showrunner, where Miranda executive produced.

Jonathan Larson received the 1996 Pulitzer Prize for Drama for RENT. He also won the 1996 Tony Award for Best Musical and the 1994 Richard Rodgers Award for RENT and twice received The Gilman & Gonzales-Falla Theatre Foundation's Comendation Award.

In 1989 he was granted the Stephen Sondheim Award from American Music Theatre Festival, where he contributed to the musical "Sitting on the Edge of the Future". In 1988 he won the Richard Rodgers Development Grant for his rock musical "Superbia", which was staged at Playwrights Horizon. He composed the score for the musical "J.P. Morgan Saves the Nation", which was presented by En Garde Arts in 1995.

Larson performed his rock monologue "tick, tick... BOOM!" at Second Stage Theatre, The Village Gate and New York Theatre Workshop. In addition to scoring and song writing for "Sesame Street", he created music for a number fo children's book-cassettes, including Steven Spielberg's "An American Tail" and "Land Before Time". Other film scores include work for Rolling Stones magazine publisher Jann Wenner. He conceived, directed and wrote four original songs for "Away We Go!", a musical video for children. RENT, his rock opera based on "La Boheme", had its world premiere on February 13, 1996 at New York Theatre Workshop.

Larson died unexpectedly of an aortic aneurysm on January 25, 1996, ten days before his 36th birthday.

The Jonathan Larson Grant was established in his name and is awarded to musical theatre composers, lyricists, and librettists, or writing teams, early in their career, to support artistic endeavors and safeguard long-term music writing careers.

When Does Filming Start on TICK,TICK... BOOM?

"Tick, Tick... Boom!" began principal photography in March of 2020, before being shut down due to the Coronavirus pandemic. Filming reportedly continued in October, however.

When Will the Film Be Released?

We now know that "Tick, Tick... Boom!" will make its world premiere at AFI Festival on November 10th, 2021.

That premiere will be followed by a theatrical release on November 12th and a Netflix streaming release on November 19th.