Lin-Manuel Miranda, creator of the hit Broadway musical “Hamilton”, and film director Jon M. Chu are ready to bring Latinos the “Crazy Rich Asians” moment that many desire.
Chu, who directed “Crazy Rich Asians”, one of the biggest box office hits of 2018, teamed up with Miranda and screenwriter Quiara Alegría Hudes to adapt Tony de Miranda’s winning musical “In The Heights” into a film premiering in 18 June in theaters and on HBO Max.
“This is a great musical film,” said Miranda during a virtual event on Saturday before the premiere of the film’s newest trailers during the 63rd Grammy Awards on Sunday night.
“We are so used to asking for less, just to ask to take up space. As Latinos, we think, ‘Please, let us make our little film’. And Jon, every step of the way, he said, ‘No, this is a great movie.’ These guys have big dreams, we can go so big, ”said Miranda.
“In The Heights” tells the story of a block that is disappearing as gentrification begins to take over the predominantly Latin neighborhood in Washington Heights, New York, where the film was shot more than two years ago and where Miranda grew up. The film focuses on several characters who deal with issues of family, love and community – an ode to the original musical that was highly praised for countering Latin stereotypes.
One of the film’s main characters, Nina, is a studious and ambitious young Latina who goes to Stanford University as the first person in her family to attend college, and everyone in the neighborhood admires her as “the one who managed to survive.”
“The struggle of the first generation of Americans in the Latin community is not much talked about because it is almost like a privilege, but there is a lot of identity crisis that comes with it,” said Leslie Grace, the Bronx-born Dominican singer and actress who plays Nina. “I am so blessed to have explored this with Jon, with Lin, with Quiara and the entire cast.”
Anthony Ramos stars as a winery owner, Usnavi, after recently appearing in the Oscar-winning film “A Star Is Born” and giving rise to the roles of John Laurens and Philip Hamilton in “Hamilton”.
“I never saw anything where there were 75 Latinos in the middle of the street dancing and singing about pride and where they come from,” said Ramos during the virtual event. “I am thrilled when I think about this film and what it means to me and the culture”, especially the one that continues to be significantly underrepresented in Hollywood films.
Latinos were the only major racial and ethnic group underrepresented in on-screen speaking roles in 2019, according to the USC Annenberg Inclusion Initiative. They found that 44 of the top 100 films had absolutely no Latin character with speaking roles, a rate that did not differ much from 2018 (47 films) or 2015 (40 films). Only 4.9% of the roles spoken in the top 100 films of 2019 went to Latinos, although they represent almost 19% of the country’s population.
In an effort to contain Latin invisibility in the film, Chu said that Latinos deserve “a dream musical” focused on “people in a place where the walls are not big enough to contain their hearts, and how is that,” he said. he. “We can witness that with this beautiful cast.”
Ramos praised Chu as a “director who only thinks big, who has big ideas”.
“This is what separates a small film from a large film,” he said.
Saturday’s virtual event also brought together the entire cast of stars from the film, including celebrities like “The West Wing” Jimmy Smits, “Orange Is The New Black’s” Dascha Polanco, “Brooklyn Nine-Nine” Stephanie Beatriz, “The Walking Dead’s” Corey Hawkins and Daphne Rubin-Vega, who created the role of Mimi Marquez in the Broadway musical “Rent”.
“This notion of home, of wanting the next generation and their children to do better than you, are competing themes in this country, not just for us,” said Smits, who plays Kevin, a hardworking businessman and Nina’s father. “But looking at it with these very specific lenses, it does something for us, of course, but it will have a universal impact.”
Actress Olga Merediz, who is reprising her beloved role of Abuela Claudia, which she originated in the Broadway version of “In The Heights”, also attended the event. His character is best remembered for his musical number “Paciencia y Fe”, Spanish for patience and faith.
“It is basically a prayer,” said Merediz. “It is something that gives you strength and gives you hope. And believe me, during this pandemic, the song ‘Paciencia y Fe’ that Lin-Manuel wrote beautifully has been alive in my mind because there was not much to hold on to. “
The release of “In The Heights” was delayed several times last year because of the Covid-19 pandemic. But actress Melissa Barrera, who plays Vanessa, a girl who dreams of becoming a stylist and love interest for Usnavi, said that “I can’t wait for the world to see this beautiful film”.
“We did something very special and it took a while to wait for it, but I feel that now the time will fly by June,” said Barrera, also known for her role as a star on the STARZ TV show “Vida”.
Miranda agrees.
“I started writing this film when I was 19 years old. I just turned 41, ”said Miranda. “Imagine 500 people dancing to your music in the middle of Highbridge Park…. It is a dream come true. “
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