David’s Download: 4 Musicals that Need a Movie Adaptation or Reboot
With Kiss of the Spider Woman returning to the silver screen as a musical this month and Wicked: For Good hitting theaters at Thanksgiving, now felt like the perfect time to sift through Broadway’s library of musicals to find the next big screen adaptation. Believe it or not, after horror and comedy, musicals are my favorite genre to watch in theaters. Nothing beats the grandiose set pieces, enthralling choreography, and show tunes in surround sound. Keep reading to find out which properties I’d love Hollywood to greenlight as movie-musicals!
Footloose
The original Footloose from 1984 has one of the best-selling soundtracks of all time, and there was a solid remake of it in 2011. However, neither of these were proper musicals! I’m still shocked that the 2011 version wasn’t developed as a musical because at that point, the Broadway version of Footloose existed, complete with choral versions of the original soundtrack hits and several new songs. Plus, they had Julianne Hough at their fingertips already, and we know she can sing!
With that said, I would like to propose a musical remake of this beloved story. Perhaps Sabrina Carpenter as Ariel and Ariana Grande as Rusty? Can you imagine Grande’s version of “Let’s Hear It for the Boy"? *Chef’s kiss*
Waitress
While the Adrienne Shelly movie from 2007 is a gem, the story of Waitress really came to life for me with the Broadway musical in 2016. The book had a stronger sense of comedy, and the music and lyrics by Sara Bareilles strike the perfect balance of poignance and delight.
This would be crowd-pleaser on the big screen and a great potential showcase for a trio of young actresses/singers.
Beautiful: The Carole King Musical
Carole King hasn’t received the biopic treatment yet, so Hollywood should consider doing so by adapting the stage version of her life story, complete with her timeless catalogue of music.
Beautiful is one of my favorite jukebox musicals, and a movie version could have serious awards potential. We’ve seen actors win Oscars for portraying musicians countless times, from Rami Malek for Bohemian Rhapsody to Renee Zellweger for Judy. Maybe Carole King would even pen a new song or two for the movie!
Kinky Boots
Similar to Waitress, the Kinky Boots movie from the 2000’s is not a musical, but the Broadway version that arrived in the 2010’s with songs by Cyndi Lauper was electrifying.
With drag more popular than ever right now thanks to shows like RuPaul’s Drag Race, Kinky Boots as a movie-musical would give drag another avenue to shine internationally and provide several queens a big screen opportunity. Shangela or Simone as Lola could be a lot of fun, or perhaps there is an incredible vocalist ready for their silver screen debut in drag. Let’s make it happen, Hollywood!
And for what it’s worth…
Here are 4 movies that I think need a Broadway adaptation asap:
Disney’s The Princess and the Frog
The Greatest Showman
Marry Me
Kpop Demon Hunters
What Broadway shows do you think deserve the movie treatment???