For a period of Hollywood history where box office success is a complicated equation thanks to streaming and PVOD options, it’s somewhat disheartening how Jon M. Chu’s “In The Heights” has seemingly fallen out of Oscar contention. With vaccines driving down COVID cases and a “party like it’s the 1920s” atmosphere expected for the summer of 2021, “Heights” was positioned as a crowd pleasing movie that could help drive audiences back to theaters. Despite some rapturous reviews, it was perceived as a box office disappointment while simultaneously debuting on HBO Max. Fast forward six months later and another celebrated musical, “West Side Story,” actually opened to less with no streaming component.
READ MORE: ‘In The Heights’ is a joyous celebration of the Latinx diaspora [Review]
For Chu, the industry reaction to “Heights” appears to all be water under the bridge. He’s hard at work on the big screen adaptation of “Wicked” and producing an “Untitled Thai Cave Rescue” limited series for Netflix. But when asked last week about “Heights” sparse year-end accolades, he saw a glass half full scenario. A changed landscape, similar to what happened with his breakout hit “Crazy Rich Asians,” where a slew of actors from an under represented group star to spread their wings.
“And a lot of people out there who didn’t think they had the opportunity are now putting their all efforts into becoming better creators, and that’s only going to beget more,” Chu says. “For ‘In the Heights’ and ‘West Side Story,’ I think there’s a huge opportunity here to take big leaps forward. And by the way, we’re also on streaming, so who knows what that actually means? I don’t know if we can do apples to apples on that. But what I think it does is, is show look, Anthony Ramos, even if our movie didn’t make a lot of money on theatrical, we clearly had an impact because he is now the star of the ‘Transformers‘ franchise, which will come out soon. Leslie Grace is the star of ‘Batgirl,’ and that’s groundbreaking. Corey [Hawkins] is going to be in ‘The Color Purple’ as Harpo. And Stephanie Beatriz just did ‘Encanto.’ So there’s an engine that’s happening. And so I don’t feel despair or anything like that. I think we’re better off now than we have ever been. And we have to keep going. And big change is happening. It just may be happening at different paces at different moments.”
During the course of our conversation, Chu also gave an update on “Wicked” and more details on that Netflix limited series.
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The Playlist: How are you feeling these days? It’s been, what, six months since “In the Heights” came out?
Jon M. Chu: It’s something like that. [Laughs.]
I can’t even remember.
I mean, we finished like two years ago, so it’s been a whole journey. And I had a baby about six months ago. So, I don’t know any time anymore.
Time is just like a concept that you don’t even know whether it happens anymore.
Exactly. I just exist.
By the way, I’m curious how you’re feeling about it all. We’re almost at 2022 and “In The Heights” is still one of the most critically acclaimed films of the year.
Yes. Thank you, thank you.
There are people out there championing it, but it’s not necessarily getting the end-of-year love we might have expected. Are you bummed?
No, I’m not bummed. I mean, we don’t do this for the awards, of course, especially [as] we released in June. But what I love is that we made a thing. We made thing, where last year 4.6% of speaking roles were Latino people. And we made a movie full of it, with singing and dancing, there was no violence. It was full of joy and about dreams. And so for me, we accomplished that. We did that. And I don’t think any of us have any need for validation beyond that. I think we love the reaction that we’ve been getting from everyone, even since the movies come out. If you read any of those reviews it’s always a nice reminder of what people feel. But of course, I mean, I think that we deserve to celebrate our movie, award or not awards, that we were able to make this thing in Hollywood. And we put an African American man, an Afro-Latino woman on the side of a building, dancing as gracefully as Gene Kelly, Fred Astaire, and Ginger Rogers. And we gave people a new view of the bodega owner that they may pass every day, or a person on the bus stop that they may pass every day or the person in the apartment lobby, that we gave them space to make them heroes.
Being in the industry for as long as I have, what I’ve noticed is that these sort of films pop up, and then nothing changes substantially in terms of Latinx representation. Do you feel like it will ever change or is it just a one-off? Or with this film and “West Side Story” maybe Hollywood is getting it?
Hollywood has no choice. Whether they’re getting it or not, it’s happening. The pace at which it happens, of course, ebbs and flows. I was privy to a big wave of change after “Crazy Rich Asians.”
Yeah.
And it wasn’t that the movie changed things. It was that the actors who had never had opportunities to show off their talent suddenly had a platform to show how funny they were or how a great actor they were or how stunning they were, all these things. And by the way, the audience showed up and showed that also financially there was an audience for this. Then every time they’re in a movie now, they’re the stars of those movies. And that, from Gemma Chan to Henry Golding to Constance Wu, Jimmy O. Yang, Ronny Chieng, I mean, Awkwafina. It’s incredible. And you look at our landscape now compared to the year before “Crazy Rich Asians,” it’s a very different landscape. We’re not there yet, but there’s a lot more opportunity and there are a lot more creators. And a lot of people out there who didn’t think they had the opportunity are now putting their all efforts into becoming better creators, and that’s only going to beget more. For In the Heights and West Side Story, I think there’s a huge opportunity here to take big leaps forward. And by the way, we’re also on streaming, so who knows what that actually means? I don’t know if we can do apples to apples on that. But what I think it does is, is show look, Anthony Ramos, even if our movie didn’t make a lot of money on theatrical, we clearly had an impact because he is now the star of the “Transformers” franchise, which will come out soon. Leslie Grace is the star of “Batgirl,” and that’s groundbreaking. Corey [Hawkins] is going to be in “The Color Purple” as Harpo. And Stephanie [Beatriz] just did “Encanto.” So there’s an engine that’s happening. And so I don’t feel despair or anything like that. I think we’re better off now than we have ever been. And we have to keep going. And big change is happening. It just may be happening at different paces at different moments.
Clearly, we’re in this very strange theatrical landscape at the moment where it appears that older audiences aren’t coming back unless it’s “Spider-Man” or a big Marvel movie. But then can these movies still exist? Here you are working on “Wicked,” which doesn’t come out until 2023, correct?
I’m not sure we’ve announced it, but I don’t think it’s possible to come out in 2022.
Are you optimistic that audiences will come back by then? Or do you feel like, “Listen, Wicked’s its own thing,” it appeals to kids and teens and all that sort of thing?
Yeah. I mean, if we’re talking about “Wicked “specifically, it is a very different thing. It is a worldwide blockbuster show that has never been tapped in a movie before. Not animated, not live action, not even a live recording of it other than bootleg versions. And it’s beloved, it’s part “Wizard of Oz” andd a whole generation has grown up on it. So, I sort of put in a different category. It’s also a big spectacle and it’s also, I don’t know. I think there is a hunger for that. If you’re talking about the movie business in general and musicals in general, I’m not sure the answer is all there yet. Nor is the data there yet.
Yeah.
I do think, with Omicron right here, I think that messes up the data a bit. But one, I believe that streaming movies still can be great. Obviously they’re moving people. Obviously when you’re home and you have a big system and you can have the similar impact. But I do believe in the power of cinema. And I do believe that when, when the pandemic starts to settle down a little bit more, and who knows when that will be, we’ll find out where the audience is. But I do know that people want to be together. I mean, how many times in the pandemic did we say to each other, like, “I can’t wait to have a party with you again”? And movies are that, with strangers, by yourself. You go, it’s an event that you give space for a story that you wouldn’t normally give space to. So, I have to believe that people will come back. What they will come back for? I think that’s the big question. And I don’t know the answer to that. And that’s definitely changing. Hey, if someone can see your story at home and be more accessible to it, I’m all for that. But I do believe that cinema also needs to exist.
As someone who’s been to film festivals and seen the joy in person over the past six months as well, you’re not going to convince me that they won’t come back. People will spit in a cup for two days to go for Cannes. Before I let you go really quick, I know you’re producing and I think you directed a couple episodes of the new limited series about the Thai youth soccer team stuck in a cave in 2018?
Yep. [The story] is unbelievable.
Are you directing any episodes?
I didn’t direct any of the episodes. I wanted someone of Thai descent to help tell that story. We have the rights to the kids’ stories. So, we have stories that no one has ever heard before of what it was like in there about these kids and their families. And so we had Kevin Tancharoen, who directed a couple “The Book of Boba Fetts.” And we have this guy Nattawut Poonpiriya who directed one of the biggest Thai movies, “Bad Genius.” It’s about high school kids cheating. Anyway. He is insane. We just wrapped shooting. The footage is incredible. And it’s with Netflix and it’s a limited series. So, I can’t wait to share that with the world and show them another side of that story that they’ve never heard.
I know Netflix likes to shoot a lot of stuff and then bank it for a year and a half later. Do you know if it will come out in 2022? Or have they not given you any sort of idea of when they want it to come out?
We have not determined that date yet.
Then my one last question for you is, before I let you go and enjoy your holidays is, when do you think “Wicked’s” going to start shooting?
I can’t say yet, but I can tell you that things are heating up and we’re getting closer. I will make this movie, and it will be my next movie. But I can’t say exactly when.
Totally understand. Thanks so much for taking the time. And I’m still keeping my fingers crossed that “In the Heights” surprises as we go ahead through this season.
Thank you. Thank you. I appreciate that.
“In The Heights” is available on HBO Max
