Movie musicals have been around for decades, and the genre has been experiencing a bit of a renaissance. 2021 was chock-full of these projects, with beloved stage productions being adapted for film. Netflix got in on the fun projects like The Prom and Lin-Manuel Miranda's Tick, Tick...BOOM!, and now that trend is continuing. And the first trailer for 13: The Musical adds Debra Messing and Rhea Perlman to the Broadway musical.
13 opened on Broadway back in 2008, and had a limited but impactful run on the Great White Way. In fact, that's what made Ariana Grande into a star, and helped her book her gig on Nickelodeon. Now a movie version is coming, with the above trailer revealing the first footage of the adaptation hitting Netflix. And 13: The Musical is making some big changes to Jason Robert Brown's source material.
The above trailer opens on our protagonist Evan, played by Eli Golden. He's a New York City kid set on planning the best Bar Mitzvah possible when his parents suddenly split and he moves to Indiana with his mother (Debra Messing). Evan has to make new friends and plan his party, all while belting out killer tunes by Jason Robert Brown (The Last 5 Years, Songs For a New World).
While the cast of young talent are largely newcomers, there are some familiar faces helping to flesh out the cast. In addition to Debra Messing, we also see the always iconic Rhea Perlman as his Grandma Ruth. Additionally, Nickelodeon icon Josh Peck has a role as Evan's Rabbi. These are all brand new roles debuting for the first time in 13: The Musical's movie adaptation. On stage, there are no adults and both the cast and band are made up entirely of young talent.
This change for 13: The Musical is obviously a big one, and it looks like the screenplay by Tony Winning playwright Robert Horn is going to deviate quite a bit from the stage show's script. But this is pretty standard practice for the genre, with Dear Evan Hansen droppings songs and the In the Heights movie changing song order and cutting a character completely. The upcoming Netflix movie musical is directed by Tamra Davis, who previously worked on projects like The Politician and High School Musical: The Musical: The Series.
At the time of writing this story, Ariana Grande hasn't yet reacted to the first trailer for 13: The Musical. Grande created the role of Charlotte in the original Broadway cast, while also covering the female lead Patrice. In the years since, Grande has kept in contact with Jason Robert Brown, even appearing in concerts with the acclaimed composer and putting out covers of his songs.
13: The Musical will arrive on Netflix on August 12th. In the meantime, check out the 2022 movie release dates to plan your next movie experience.
