Did You Hear? is a weekly examination of headlines in the entertainment industry and a take on what they could mean for the future of the industry and (often), the little geeky bubble that we occupy.
Netflix Lands Tick, Tick … BOOM!
Per Variety the bidding war for Jonathan Larson’s pre-Rent musical adaptation has been won – by Netflix; the streaming giant! Readers who are not as familiar with musical theatre history may not know that Tick, Tick … Boom! is a semi-autobiographical story about Larson’s struggle living in New York City and working at a diner while trying to break onto the Broadway scene. The lead character’s name is Jon – after all!
The movie itself has a lot of buzz around it because Hamilton creator and star, Lin-Manuel Miranda, is attached. Previously, Miranda staged, directed, and starred in a live production of the musical with himself in the lead role. He was joined by fellow Hamilton alum Leslie Odom Jr. (Murder on the Orient Express), and Phillipa Soo (The Code).
“Tick, Tick … Boom!” is set in 1990 and tells the story of Jon, an aspiring theater composer who is waiting tables in New York City while writing “Superbia,” which he hopes will be the next great American musical and finally give him his big break. Jon is also feeling pressure from his girlfriend Susan, who is tired of continuing to put her life on hold for his career aspirations. Meanwhile, his best friend and roommate Michael, has given up on his creative aspirations for a high-paying advertising job on Madison Avenue and is about to move out. As Jon approaches his 30th birthday, he is overcome with anxiety, wondering if his dream is worth the cost.
Although the rumours, as reported by Variety, are that Spider-Man, himself, Andrew Garfield is up for the role of Jon.
There was a huge bidding war to figure out where it was going to land and now that Netflix has it we may be poised for a movie musical revolution the way we saw studios doing in the 1990s?
J.J. Abrams Lands at Warner Bros.
Speaking of bidding wars – J.J. Abrams’ deal with Paramount Studios (under which his production company Bad Robot is covered), was up and for less than a week he was a free agent … except not really because the deal hasn’t lapsed yet, but let’s pretend like it did and things were very excited! While Bad Robot will retain producing rights on several of its previous projects (including such franchises as the Star Trek movies at Paramount), he and Bad Robot have made the jump to Warner Bros.
Reports are claiming the deal was sealed for over $500 million, which is an impressive takeaway before having done any work for the studio whatsoever. It speaks highly of Abrams’ pedigree, particularly now that he has such titles as Cloverfield, Star Trek, and Star Wars at his back.
Debate sparked seconds after the announcement broke public that Warners Bros. is going to be looking to Abrams to quote-unquote “fix” the DC Film Universe. Given the fact that Marvel Comics broke news yesterday about Abrams penning Spider-Man (the comic book), for them it’s a little funny to imagine him dipping his toe into the Justice League at the very same time.
Have You Spotted Krypton’s Superman Easter Eggs?
Krypton star Cameron Cuffe has been slipping in what appear to be nods to past actors who have played The Man of Steel.
From last night’s episode:
Cameron Cuffe on Twitter: “Well where d’ya think the kid learned it from? #Krypton https://t.co/M5Eq7cOATT / Twitter”
Well where d’ya think the kid learned it from? #Krypton https://t.co/M5Eq7cOATT
Here you can see what appears to be an homage to Henry Cavill’s Mission Impossible “arm cocking”. Perhaps not a move he made while playing Superman, but definitely something iconic performed by our current Clark Kent,
For me, Krypton is the little show that could. I didn’t really think it could work and it continually impresses. Nods like this to the predecessors are nothing short of delightful and have already lit the internet up with conspiracy theories and conjecture.
Here’s hoping this trend continues the rest of the season!
