The moving and electrifying trailer for 'In the Heights' is here

Conceived as a “hip-hop version of Rent,” by Hamilton’s Lin-Manuel Miranda in the late 1990s, In the Heights catapulted him into stardom when his story, set over the course of three days and involving characters in the largely Hispanic-American neighborhood of Washington Heights in New York City, made its off-Broadway debut in 2007, hit Broadway in the Spring of 2008 and was nominated for 13 Tony Awards, winning four – including Best Musical, Original Score and Choreography.

Lights up on Washington Heights…The scent of a cafecito caliente hangs in the air just outside of the 181st Street subway stop, where a kaleidoscope of dreams rallies this vibrant and tight-knit community. At the intersection of it all is the likeable, magnetic bodega owner Usnavi (Anthony Ramos), who saves every penny from his daily grind as he hopes, imagines and sings about a better life.

In the Heights fuses Lin-Manuel Miranda’s kinetic music and lyrics with director Jon M. Chu’s lively and authentic eye for storytelling to capture a world very much of its place, but universal in its experience.

In the Heights stars Anthony Ramos (A Star is Born, Broadway’s Hamilton), Corey Hawkins (Straight Outta Compton, BlacKkKlansman), singer/songwriter Leslie Grace, Melissa Barrera (TV’s Vida), Olga Merediz (Broadway’s In the Heights), Daphne Rubin-Vega (Broadway’s Rent), Gregory Diaz IV (Broadway’s Matilda the Musical), Stephanie Beatriz (TV’s Brooklyn Nine-Nine), Dascha Polanco (TV’s Orange is the New Black) and Jimmy Smits (TV’s L.A. Law, the Star Wars films). Chu is directing the film from a screenplay by Quiara Alegría Hudes; it is based on the musical stage play, with music and lyrics by Lin-Manuel Miranda, book by Quiara Alegría Hudes and concept by Miranda. In the Heights is produced by Miranda and Hudes, together with Scott Sanders, Anthony Bregman and Mara Jacobs. David Nicksay and Kevin McCormick served as executive producers.

Behind the camera, Chu is reuniting with his Crazy Rich Asians production designer, Nelson Coates, and editor, Myron Kerstein. He is also collaborating with director of photography Alice Brooks (TV’s The Walking Dead) and costume designer Mitchell Travers (Eighth Grade). The choreography is by Christopher Scott, who previously teamed with Chu on the award-winning The Legion of Extraordinary Dancers.

In the Heights was filmed in New York, primarily on location in the dynamic community of Washington Heights. Slated for release on June 26, 2020, it will be distributed worldwide by Warner Bros. Pictures.

Here is the first trailer.

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Erik Anderson

Erik Anderson is the founder/owner and Editor-in-Chief of AwardsWatch and has always loved all things Oscar, having watched the Academy Awards since he was in single digits; making lists, rankings and predictions throughout the show. This led him down the path to obsessing about awards. Much later, he found himself in film school and the film forums of GoldDerby, and then migrated over to the former Oscarwatch (now AwardsDaily), before breaking off to create AwardsWatch in 2013.

He is a Rotten Tomatoes-approved critic, accredited by the Cannes Film Festival, Telluride Film Festival, Toronto International Film Festival and more, is a member of the International Cinephile Society (ICS), The Society of LGBTQ Entertainment Critics (GALECA), Critics Choice Association (CCA), San Francisco Bay Area Film Critics Circle (SFBAFCC) and the International Press Academy. Among his many achieved goals with AwardsWatch, he has given a platform to underrepresented writers and critics and supplied them with access to film festivals and the industry and calls the Bay Area his home where he lives with his husband and son.

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