After many starts and stops over the last 10 years, from Universal pulling the plug on a 2011 adaptation to be directed by Kenny Ortega right when full casting was to be finalized, to escaping from the clutches of an imploding Weinstein Company in 2017, Lin-Manuel Miranda's Tony Award-winning In the Heights is finally arriving on the cinema screen under the direction of Jon M. Chu. While Miranda is not reprising the lead role, bodega owner Usnavi de la Vega, as he had intended for the earlier Ortega incarnation, he does have a supporting role here, ceding Usnavi's signature cap to his Hamilton co-star, Anthony Ramos. Ramos is but one of the many fresh faces that mostly populate the cast (in an amusing bit of irony, considering fear over a lack of "known" stars led to Universal's decision to abort their project), and "freshness" is what immediately comes to mind after watching the recently dropped first teaser trailer. Ramos looks and sounds like a more than worthy successor to Miranda, and Chu appears to have captured the energy that made the original stage production such an electrifying experience while making something that is also distinctly cinematic. It's still early, but these early signs are very promising.
In the Heights is set to be released in cinemas nationwide on Friday, June 26, 2020, from Warner Bros. Pictures.
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